This is what I think Blindboy would call a Hot Take… or unhinged rambling… but it’s been in my head, so I thought I should document it with photos and videos while I can.
In November, at a belated birthday feast at my friend Lissie’s flat (and Glen’s old flat) on North Great George’s St, I saw this copy of An Timire, an Irish language magazine from summer 1968, hanging on the wall. I thought he was a politician or leader of the era, but I couldn’t place him. The magazine is long out of print, and despite searching in the enshittified post-google world, I couldn’t trace it, and soon forgot about it.
During Scotland’s recent World Cup invasion of Boston, there was a piece in the paper about Scotland’s amazing campaign in 1978. It mentioned their anthem Ally’s Tartan Army, which featured the line “We’re all part of Ally’s Army!”. If that sounds familiar to the Irish, it’s because Ireland borrowed it in 1990 for the chorus of our very first World Cup song, “Put ‘Em Under Pressure”, substituting Jackie (Charlton) for Ally (MacLeod). In fairness, the Scots had also borrowed it from a US civil war marching song called “Tramp Tramp Tramp” – which was sung by both sides, with lyrics regularly rewritten. So borrowing was already in the tradition.
There’s marvellously odd caoin-ing of Olé Olé by Moya Brennan (Clannad) at the start, an uilleann pipe solo from Davy Spillane, and the whole wild affair was produced by Larry Mullen Jr (U2) at Windmill Lane.
Now the rest of that 1990 anthem borrowed heavily from Johnny Fean’s guitar riff on “Dearg Doom”, the 1973 single from The Táin by Horslips (shown here on The Old Grey Whistle Test).
Like many of Horslips tunes, it was borrowed and reworked from a traditional air called Ó Neill’s March. It was a well known tune, but became particularly popular in Horslips’ time, because it featured on Sean Ó Riada’s hugely successful live album “Ó Riada Sa Gaiety” in 1969.
Although I knew the name and some of his importance to Irish music and culture, I didn’t know any detail, so I went to the oracle of Wikipedia to demand answers. And there he was, Sean Ó Riada, staring out at me, in exactly the same pose as he had from the cover of An Timire, over the shamrock china teapot.
When this happened a few weeks ago, I excitedly recounted this overly long ramble of incoherent nonsense to Lissie by text? Voice note? (Which would have been more humane?!)
“I have solved the mystery! It’s Sean Ó Riada!”.
“Ahahahaaaa! it all comes around!
Glen is meeting with Peadar [Ó Riada] today or tomorrow…”
…. because of course he was! The man was connected to it all. Give everyone a giant hug when you see them. We’ll do the same.
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