The years have been kind to Brendan Shine. The Roscommon farmer still cuts a swathe through the Irish showbiz scene. Long years spent in the vineyard has seen him reap a fine harvest.

As Brendan gets ready to embark on a six-date golden jubilee concert tour, which will also include his debut performance at the National Concert Hall on Thursday, 18 June, he recalls the early days and how it all began close to the town of Athlone.

“I joined Kieran Kelly’s Céilí Band in 1963 and Johnny Dawson joined a year or two later. We were only gasúrs at the time. Around 1968, I went on to form what we called Shine’s Country Céilí Band. All the members of the céilí bands used to sit down but we got up and started belting it out along with country music which was getting popular at the time. The Old Cross Céilí Band in Tyrone did much the same thing and also took on board country music. That’s where Philomena Begley started out.”

ADVERTISEMENT

The country music scene was beginning to blossom around Ireland with Pat Ely and the Smokey Mountain Ramblers blazing a trail, followed soon afterwards by Ray Lynam and The Hillbillies and the Cotton Mill Boys. Big Tom, Larry Cunningham and many other big names were already setting the woods on fire.

“My first single was Treat My Daughter Kindly. I was more of a ballad singer in those times and later went into the country side of things. I always had a fondness for the singing style of Connie Foley from Kerry. He had a lovely twist to his style of singing.

“O’Brien Has No Place To Go was an old song that became a massive hit for me.

“I also recorded The Woodlands of Loughglynn which is still requested to this day. I first heard it from two local men from near me in Curraghboy in South Roscommon, Paddy Beades and Odie Hughes.”

The 1970s saw Brendan become an institution on the Irish dancing circuit with a string of Top 10 hits that catapulted him into the top league.

In the 1970s, Brendan recorded New Roads, an all-country album that many who follow the genre still rate as his finest album of pure country music.

“It was a very popular album at the time. Don Williams was absolutely huge.”

In the mid-1980s, Brendan hosted his own series called Nice ’n Easy on RTÉ television. In contrast to many others, Brendan did not forget the role of songwriters, ensuring that one of his guests each week was a local Irish songwriter.

He is one of Ireland’s most prolific ever recording artists, having over 40 albums to his credit and another new album in the planning stages. All through the years, Brendan Shine has remained a permanent fixture on the scene. Along with Foster and Allen, he was among the first to cultivate the UK concert circuit and attract in a whole new range of followers, mainly from the English and Scottish traditions.

He also made inroads into the scene in Wales and performed at numerous major agricultural shows, something that no other Irish artist has ever done down the years.

Five decades on, Brendan maintains a pretty hectic schedule. He still does a mix of dance and concert dates both at home and overseas. He has performed on numerous Caribbean cruises over the years, always flying the Roscommon flag in style. He is a passionate supporter of the Rossies and the primrose and blue is entwined in his psyche. His long-time manager, Dublin-based Noel Carty, hails from Ballinlough in Co Roscommon.

He has a special fondness for America and is doing more work there in recent times than ever before.

“The audiences there tend to love what I do. I always feel so much at home with them. It’s a great country and they have such a marvellous time for the Irish,” says Brendan.

Joining Brendan on his upcoming tour will be his daughter Emily as well as long time comrade, Johnny Dawson from Athlone. The Conquerors will accompany them on all the dates while Michael English will make a guest appearance at the National Concert Hall show.

Outside of showbiz, Brendan and his wife Kathleen still farm their Angus beef herd at Taughmaconnell, a few miles out from Athlone.

“Farming has always been part of my life. It keeps you rooted and I love it. The Irish Farmers Journal and Ireland’s Own are two publications that come into the Shine household every week. The week would not be the same without them.”

•The Brendan Shine Golden Jubilee Concert Tour opens in the Theatre Royal, Waterford, on Sunday, 14 June. He plays the Lime Tree Theatre, Limerick, on 17 June; National Concert Hall, Dublin, on 18 June; Galway Town Hall Theatre on 21 June; Glór, Ennis, on 24 June; and Cork Opera House on 25 June. CL