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Picture
REVIEW
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✭✭✭✭☆ 4/5
ONE NIGHT IN DUBLIN
JOIN THE MULTI-AWARD-WINNING IRISH BAND THE WILD MURPHYS
FOR ONE GLORIOUS NIGHT OF MUSIC FROM THE EMERALD ISLE
FEATURING SONGS FROM THE DUBLINERS, THE FUREYS, THE POGUES,                   
VAN MORRISON, THE DROPKICK MURPHYS, DANIEL O’DONNELL & MANY MORE…
AT THE PALACE THEATRE, SOUTHEND
​ON FRIDAY 26 JULY
One Night in Dublin became One Night in Westcliff last night but it almost didn't happen!

The band's lorry suffered a breakdown that morning and four of the band were involved in a car crash; so instead of getting to the Palace Theatre, Westcliff at 11am, they finally arrived at 5.30pm.  Lesser bands would have possibly called it a no show (and I wouldn't have blamed them)  and cancelled, but not this lot. The Wild Murphys led by Middi Murphy, are made of strong stuff, possibly fuelled by their love of performing or maybe a Guinness or two, but essentially you feel that the last thing they would want to do is to not let down the excited Southend audience waiting to see them.  Kudos too, to the Palace Theatre tech team who did a fantastic job in such a short time frame, getting the band's set, lighting and sound up, with excellent looking and sounding results.  

Talking of the set, this is fabulously detailed staging with a brilliantly drawn pub backdrop.  With the band and all their instruments filling the 'bar', you could easily imagine yourself  sitting at a table with a pint or two of Guinness, enjoying the music and craic in Temple Bar instead of sitting in a Southend theatre auditorium.

Each band member has great music credentials and together they create a fantastic sound, knocking out every Irish song you can think of, plus some that you may not know so well. 

Middi, (who is actually English) is not only the lead singer of his band but also plays guitar, accordion, harmonica and fancies himself as a bit of a comedian with some great banter in-between tunes, not least with lead guitarist, John Macrae, who is Middi's longest serving band member.  They reminded me a bit of Little and Large.  Tony Davis provides some nifty fingered keyboard skills, along with Will Stockbridge on bass, Fay Donaldson plays a mean flute and sax, Trevor Brewis (The Toy Dolls, Jimmy Nail) is on drums and there's some really expert fiddle playing from BBC Young Folk Award winner, Sophy Ball.

The Wild Murphys take on their own style when reproducing each song and Middi has a sweet, self deprecating manner telling the audience before the interval to make sure they went out to the bar for a beer, joking that, "we sound better when you've had a drink!"  I think it's true to say that Middi certainly does have a 'pub singer' style to his singing which sometimes means you don't always catch every lyric in some songs, which is a shame when so many of them relay some great tales.  However, no matter, this band have an abundance of enthusiasm and musicianship and fabulously stomped their way through such songs as Galway Girl, Tell Me Ma, Dirty Old Town, The Irish Rover, Brown Eyed Girl, Seven Drunken Nights, Sally MacLennane, When You Were Sweet Sixteen, Whiskey in the Jar, Wild Rover and Molly Malone, to name just a few and the audience LOVED it. 

Finishing with The Saw Doctors classic, I Useta Lover
 a happy and perhaps a few slightly tipsy audience members  jigged their way out of the Palace Theatre, probably off to the seafront in search of some cockles and mussels!

The tour continues.  See website for details.  

The multi-award-winning Irish band The Wild Murphys features the very best traditional Irish musicians playing a thrilling mix of traditional and contemporary tunes guaranteed to have the audience’s hands clapping and toes tapping all night long. 
 
The seven-piece live band is headed by lead singer Middi Murphy armed with blarney, banter and an accordion, alongside Trevor Brewis (Jimmy Nail) on drums, Tony Davis (Prelude) on keys and the BBC award-winning fiddle player Sophy Ball on fiddle.
 
In their own inimitable style, The Wild Murphys celebrate Irish classics with tracks including: Galway Girl, Tell Me Ma, Dirty Old Town, The Irish Rover, Brown Eyed Girl, Seven Drunken Nights, Sally MacLennane, When You Were Sweet Sixteen, Whiskey in the Jar, Wild Rover and Molly Malone, to name just a few. 
 
Let ONE NIGHT IN DUBLIN come to you – kick back in Murphy’s Pub, sing along and imagine yourself back in Temple Bar as Middi and his band entertain you all night long - “Ah, go on, go on, go on!”
 
www.onenightindublin.com
 
Friday 26 July @ 7.30pm
 
To book tickets log onto: www.southendtheatres.org.uk
We pull up a stool in Murphy’s Pub to talk Irish Music with The Wild Murphys founder Middi Murphy.

Q) Middi.  Tell us a little about ONE NIGHT IN DUBLIN and what audiences can expect.

It’s a fun night filled with great Irish music; we’ve some top-notch musicians
(and me!) and we love what we do, which is play Irish songs in our own inimitable Wild Murphys style!  We love putting our spin on songs that people know and love and giving them a different version to hear and  sing along to. If you’ve ever been on a holiday abroad and walked past an Irish pub, heard the music and thought “I must go in there” then that’s what we’re all about!

Q) What’s so special for you about the music of Ireland?

I grew up with Irish music, my dad loved it and played it all day long! He used to go over to Ireland a lot to see the bands and then when the bands came over to the UK he’d sneak me into the clubs to see them.

I’ve always sung and played Irish music and songs, It’s one of the few things I'm quite good at in life! I spent years playing in the Irish theme pubs all over Europe and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else, there’s something so ‘all-encompassing’ about this music – it doesn’t matter where you’re from or how old you are, it’s music anyone can enjoy.

Q) What have been the highlights for The Mad Murphys over the (HOW MANY?) years you have been on the road?

We could write a book, in fact I should!  I think I’d call it “101 uses for a Travelodge
kettle”!  It’s been such an amazing journey and every time you think you’ve seen it all, something else comes along that surprises you. The six years I played at Molly Malones on the Greek island of Zante will always be a special time in my life. We’ve done opening sets for some great Irish acts and we’ve had some great acts open for us. I think though, my biggest highlight is still to come - I’ve always loved theatres, not just the shows in them but the buildings themselves and their history so to go and stand on some of those stages where so many amazing people have made their mark and to see the other side of the curtain is just going to be a dream come true.

Q) Who is your favourite artist and why?

It’s had to pick one single artist as I love certain aspects of so many bands and singers.  I’ll always have a big soft spot for Brendan Shine because he was my dad’s favourite and there are so many memories wrapped up in his music. I like some of the new guys who keep the old tradition of the ‘dance band’ but do it in their own way like Nathan Carter and Derek Ryan but I guess if I could only take one album on the road with me I’d be torn between ‘Floggin’ Molly - Live at the Greek’ and ‘The Saw Doctors - If this is rock and roll I want my old job back’.

Q) Tell us a Wild Murphys joke!

Did you hear about the fortune telling dwarf who escaped from prison? There was a
small medium at large (My favorite joke of all time!!)

​

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