The
patriot game
One
of the greatest voices this country has ever produced fell silent for
ever on 30th January 1984.
Luke Kelly, who died at the ridiculously young age of 44, was one of
the best-known and best loved figures of the Irish folk movement that
began in the 1960s, largely due to his powerful and passionate voice
that belted out such classics as Raglan Road, Joe Hill and Scorn Not
His Simplicity. His early death merely cemented his place in Irish musical
history as one of the great Dublin icons of the twentieth century. 
For those people though who were not fortunate enough or old enough
to have heard the great man in his prime, the next best thing is on
hand, as Chris Kavanagh and The Patriots bring their highly-acclaimed
“The Legend of Luke Kelly” show to Draíocht for two
nights at the end of the month. Chris bears an uncanny resemblance to
Luke while his singing talent has been described by critics as the nearest
thing to the voice of Luke Kelly as it is possible to get.
“Luke Kelly will never be forgotten,” Chris told Community
Voice. “He left a mark that I believe will live on through
many generations to come and of course the folk audience will always
exist. Even now he is being appreciated by a much younger audience with
each new year seeing the release of DVDs and albums.
“In his short life of 43 years he managed to touch so many people
through his singing and also most of the songs sent a strong message
to the listener. I think that he stood out from every other Irish singer
due to his way of performing with such passion and feeling. There was
nothing phoney about him. He was just a natural.”
As well as taking on the role of Luke, Chris also plays five string
banjo and although he is a Finglas man at heart, he has very strong
links with the Dublin 15 area. He lived in Westway Rise for a number
of years and worked in the computer print factory Fujitsu Isotech for
thirteen years until it closed down in 2001. And he also had the great
perspicacity to marry a Blanchardstown girl, Hilary Doyle.
The local connections do not end there. Hilary Doyle’s two brothers,
Gavin and Graham, play bass and acoustic guitar respectively in the
Patriots as well as filling in on backing vocals. “Graham still
lives in Westway, close to the Snugborough road,” explained Gavin.
“He used to play football for Corduff United and at one time he
was the manager of the Royal Tara Stud on the river road, close to Ashtown
where he took care of exotic birds!
“As for myself, I have moved away from the area now. I remember
I was partly taught how to play guitar by Fr. Ray Dalton who was a priest
in St Patrick's parish in Corduff in the 80s! That of course was when
I wasn’t working for Superquinn in Blanchardstown!”
Sadly the final member of the Patriots, Joe Finn, a highly accomplished
uilleann piper, whistler and fiddle player has no connections with the
area at all, though he did appear with the lads at Draíocht when
they played a sell-out gig there in September 2006.
“It is our mission to bring a taste of the late, great Luke Kelly
back into people’s lives,” Chris said. “We are really
looking forward to these two shows in Draíocht and hope that
Dublin 15 will enjoy our tribute to the great man.”
Such is the power of this show that the Kelly family themselves are
big fans, often turning up to their shows and supporting the lads in
keeping Luke’s legacy alive. There can be no greater tribute than
that.
Chris Kavanagh and the Patriots bring “The Legend of Luke Kelly”
to Draíocht’s main auditorium on Friday 29th February and
Saturday 1st March at 8pm.
Tickets are €18 / €16.
Community Voice, Media
House, Church Avenue, Blanchardstown,
Dublin 15
Phone +353 1 822 1432 - Fax +353 1 640 4444
info@communityvoice.ie
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