Ronnie Drew's latest collaboration is a spoken word album, with lyrics that bite into Irish life, writes Brian Boyd.
When Ronnie Drew took to the stage of the National Concert Hall last March to perform at a World Music show, he was just out of hospital after breaking his hip and was walking only with the aid of a stick. He performed a song that had been specially written for him, called At The Tail End Of A Hurricane. Speaking the words, he intoned in his famous baritone: "Wealth is the new religion and celebrities are the new gods . . . welcome to your new Eden, to your early mornings and long commutes. Welcome to your career paths and to your 'media' lifestyles . . ." At the end of the song, there was stunned silence. Drew had delivered the words with a real bite and intensity, subverting his "national treasure" image. Slowly, though, the applause rang out - but opinion on the night was divided between who didn't really understand what he was on about and those who thought it was one of the best things he had ever done.
Hurricane was written for Drew by the musician, Niall Austin, who had met the Dubliners singer through his day-job in advertising. "I was just fascinated by the man," says Austin. "There is a whole lot more to him than people sometimes appreciate. He's very literate, extremely well read, speaks fluent Spanish and Italian and is an excellent flamenco guitarist. He has a huge range of interests and I think he often feels he is boxed into a corner."
Dubliner Austin, who first performed in the early 1990s indie act, Brian, had a set of different lyrics that he had intended to give to a number of people to record for a spoken word album with musical backing. "Ronnie was the first person I approached. I showed him the lyrics and he said he wanted to do it. When we were in the studio recording his track, I suddenly realised that I didn't want anyone else to do any of the other lyrics - I wanted Ronnie to do them all.
"His vocal delivery was stunning and he really seemed to get what the lyrics were about," he says.
All the lyrics are biting observations of contemporary Irish life, something that suited Drew. "He told me he didn't always want to be doing, as he put it, "parlour songs for auld fellas" so he agreed to do all five tracks" says Austin. The album, Pearls, is credited to Ronnie Drew and Grand Canal. The latter is Austin's new band who provided all the musical backing on the album. This album is a side-project for Grand Canal in that they are usually more of an "alt-Americana" type band. Their impressive line-up features former members of the Stars Of Heaven, The Blades, The Fat Lady Sings and a new vocal talent in the shape of Claudia Boyle. Grand Canal will release their own album early next year.
Pearls is a type of split album in that there are the five Austin/Drew songs and five tracks that Drew had previously recorded with the UK musician Jah Wobble. Formerly a member of PIL (the band John Lydon set up after the Sex Pistols), Wobble is a world-class bass player who has worked with acts such as Sinéad O'Connor.
Drew had worked with Wobble on an album that was never released in Ireland. It featured the singer reciting poems by Brendan Kennelly, Louis MacNeice and Shane MacGowan. Because the five Wobble/Drew tracks were very much in keeping with what Austin had recorded, both sets of five tracks were fused together to produce Pearls.
THE RECORDING OF Pearls took place during Drew's chemotherapy treatment for cancer (he is now in remission). "He showed amazing energy," says Austin. "I think what interested him was the fact that he found the lyrics to be something different, and he showed really great insight into them. He never changed a word. I think he likes the fact that his work on this album will polarise his usual fans. Some will love it, some won't, but for Ronnie I think, if something is so polarising, it must be good. This is by no means an 'easy listening, Ronnie Drew doing poetry to music album', these are challenging lyrics and his delivery of them is incredible - he's full of passion, he comes over like a Beat poet."
It's not very well known that for years, a solo Ronnie Drew toured with the Pogues. He would go on as the support act and in front of thousands of rowdy Pogues fans, would recite poems by WB Yeats and Louis MacNeice. "You would think that it would be a tough slot, but the Pogues fans loved Ronnie doing poetry, they loved him because they knew he was the real deal," says Austin.
There is a sense, on Pearls, of Drew being recast as a sort of Irish Johnny Cash figure. "That's correct in that he doesn't view himself or like being viewed as some sort of "national treasure," says Austin. "Working with him both entertained and educated me. He's a remarkable performer."
Pearls by Ronnie Drew and Grand Canal is available now. Grand Canal and Ronnie Drew will perform at the Sugar Club, Dublin, on Sun, Nov 11. www.grandcanalmusic.com