From the stony grey soil of Monaghan to Raglan Road in Dublin, country music united country and town last Friday night. People will argue its merits within the country genre but there is little disputing that this show had an outreach into the hearts and minds of people way outside the regular country fraternity that has to benefit country music in the times ahead.
The welcome was warm and genuine from the moment we set foot in RTÉ. It was such a privilege to have been there with the sponsors of the show, the Irish Farmers Journal, which for the last five years has been at the very heart of the transformation in the respect that is now so evident for the country music industry.
Huge ratings
The build-up continued with the RTÉ Radio One programme, hosted by, Shay Byrne, which ran for 90 minutes ahead of the switch-over to the television show. It guaranteed a huge audience for the night.
The Entertainer of The Year, as voted by the public, went to Galway man, Mike Denver. The Portumna native received a massive vote to take the honours. Several people joined in the good wishes to the recipients of the Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement Awards. Among those honouring Big Tom McBride, the first inductee into the RTÉ Country Hall of Fame, were Monaghan playwright Pat McCabe, the legendary Shane McGowan of The Pogues, Margo O’Donnell, Larry Gogan,and Paschal Mooney.
Philomena Begley also had a host of endorsements, including ones from Ray Lynam and Susan McCann, for the Lifetime Achievement award.
Nathan Carter’s version of Wagon Wheel, also voted by the public, took the Favourite Country Song award. It has been a remarkable two years for Nathan Carter who has been attracting huge crowds to concert and dance shows here at home and in the UK. He was also honoured with the Live Act of the Year award on the night.
Awards
The Male Artist of the Year accolade went to Jimmy Buckley while Lisa McHugh was the recipient of the Female award. Derek Ryan, just back from Jamaica, and who has also had a special year on the circuit, was presented with the Songwriter of the Year award.
Mike Denver also picked up the award for Album of the Year (Cut Loose) while Robert Mizzell took the honours for Video of the Year.
The Newcomer of the Year went to Cliona Hagan, a very talented young singer from Co Tyrone whom we are sure to hear a lot more about in the times ahead. Michael English and his band received the accolade for Best Dance Band which reflected the immense progress they have made on the circuit over the last two years. It was nice to see the contribution of Dublin based and Cavan native Mick Clerkin being honoured with a special Industry Award. Mick was the founder of Release Records, a label that did huge work in promoting various artists over the years. At one stage, Mick was the pioneer behind a mediumwave radio station that broadcast on 1035 kHz in the London region, promoting country music to the city and its environs.
Shows like this will help bring many new people, both artists and followers, on board
Joe Finnegan, one of the main movers behind the RTÉ awards night, expressed thanks to all who had worked on putting the show together, spreading the appeal of the genre beyond its regular and loyal clientele.
“Shows like this will help bring many new people, both artists and followers, on board and will greatly enhance the overall appeal of the various streams of country music that are such a part of life here in Ireland,” said Joe.
People from various walks of life, including former Eurovision winning songwriter, Shay Healy, Paddy Cole, Fr Brian D’Arcy, and TR Dallas, read the citations for the various award winners.
It’s good to see country music back on top again.
When something is done successfully, you can often-times wonder why it hasn’t been done before or why it has taken this long in the first-place. This can be said of the Irish Country Music Awards. The reaction of the viewers, those who attended the awards and the country music stars themselves summed up just how well the inaugural awards were received.
Local radio
Among the artists lauding the event was Mike Denver who won Entertainer of the Year. He told Irish Country Living that praise must be given to local radio stations while commenting on the success of the night. “It is a great night for Irish country music. It showed off all that is great about Irish country music and why it has been growing and growing. Country music has been keep going by local radio. It’s what has kept artists like me on the road,” he said.
Mayo man Gerry Guthrie was equally delighted. “It is the first of these awards so even to be nominated is an absolute privilege,” he said.
As the build-up progressed back stage in RTÉ, the lucky few who managed to source tickets for the event were buzzing in anticipation.
“Country music has taken off with the youngsters up North,” according to James McGrath a young Armagh native and jiving enthusiast. Tony and Kathy Naughten from south Galway said they travelled all around Connacht to attend country music nights.
When the doors opened it was all eyes on Daniel O’Donnell who treated the crowd to a medley of his all-time favourite country songs and then we were off. Each award winner that received their prize gave a similar message, one of gratitude and appreciation, both for the prize and for highlighting the industry.
Hall of Fame
Possibly the most humbling moment of all was Big Tom McBride’s induction into the Hall of Fame, that came towards the end of the night. His performance of The Same Way You Came In very nearly took the roof off RTÉ. It was an emotional moment and you could clearly get a sense of how great his influence is on the country music scene.
Similar emotions were felt when Shay Healy presented an award. The broadcaster and songwriter, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 10 years ago, was given a rapturous reception when he finished his citation.
So Wagon Wheel is officially our favourite ever country music song and Mike Denver is our Entertainer of the Year by popular demand.
In the end, you got the feeling that the results of the awards ceremony almost came secondary to the success of the event. The perception that country music is an “old man’s game”, was all but shattered. As the young fresh faces of the industry such as Derek Ryan, Mike Denver and of course Nathan Carter and their female counterparts Lisa Mc Hugh, Cliona Hagan and Niamh Lynn, to name a few, dashed across our TV screens last Friday night, you got the sense of a revolution of sorts within Ireland’s music circles.
Mike Denver: 'Irish Country Music Awards is the talk of the country'
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