Posted in Music with tags catchers, setanta on April 10, 2019 by Fanning Sessions
From Portstewart, Catchers were Dale Grundle (vocals/guitar), Alice Lemon (vocals/keyboards), Peter Kelly (drums), Ger FitzGerald (bass, until 1995), Craig Carpenter (bass, 1996 onwards) and Jonathan Lord (lead guitar, 1998). They released two albums on Setanta, ‘Mute’ (1994) and ‘Stooping To Fit’ (1998). In 2006, seven years after the end of Catchers, Grundle formed The Sleeping Years. To celebrate the 25 year anniversary of ‘Mute’ a remastered edition is about to be released via French label ulule. Dale will be on RTE 2fm tonight speaking to Dan Hegarty about the band and the upcoming shows. The band were the subject of a recent article in The Blackpool Sentinel. If anyone has the remaining session tracks or knows what they were we’d love to hear from you!
The Deadly Engines were Paul Patrick McCartney (guitar & vocals), Joseph McCowan (bass, backing vocals), Anthony Doherty (backing vocals, noises) and Richard Rainey (drums). In 1992 they released an album ‘Entrance’ on Setanta Records. Paul PJ McCartney is also a member of Bam Bam & The Calling who have announced a show on May 4th at the Collon Bar as part of Derry Jazz Festival.
We recently posted a number of tracks from David Long, but today we have the contents of a cassette David had a hand in namely Backwards Into Paradise. Said cassette gets a mention in a recent interview David did with Nick Kelly of the Irish Independent:
“We did so many things wrong. We were naive,” he said. “We’d been in different bands since the age of 17 until we got signed, when I was 26. We were a long time doing rehearsals and playing small gigs and getting nowhere, so when the chance did come we were more shocked that anyone had an interest.”
That interest came from a London-based Dubliner who was looking for Irish bands to sign to his new independent record label.
David says: “Keith Cullen from Setanta went into Comet Records in Dublin and bought a DIY cassette of our music. The cover had a photo of a girl and a building. He rang me up to say he was interested in signing us to this new label called Setanta. Then he rang back two weeks later to say he was going to get Adrian Borland from The Sound to produce it. I couldn’t believe it.
“We were so lucky. I don’t think we would have got anywhere if Keith hadn’t bought that cassette. At that time we were called Backwards Into Paradise – I think it was Keith who suggested we shorten the name.”
David has fond memories of the period in Dublin in the late 1980s when so many good new bands emerged.
“When I was 17 or 18, me and Shane O’Neill from Blue In Heaven used to go to a place called The Magnet Bar on Pearse Street,” he said. “They used to have The Bodice Gigs where The Blades, Microdisney, Nun Attax, Chant Chant Chant all played. It was a brilliant scene.
“You had Rollerskate Skinny, Power Of Dreams, A House, Something Happens. The Stars Of Heaven were another great band. Nobody had any money. There was nothing happening in Dublin. It was simpler. No one was into music as a career; it was just a bit of fun.”
David’s album ‘Water Has Memory’ is available on iTunes or at Tower Records. Keep up to date with his activities via the Into Paradise facebook page.
Came across this snippet when working on the recently posted 1990 interview, this is a short segment from 1991 with A House prior to the release of their third album ‘I Am the Greatest’. Up for discussion are: getting dropped by Blanco Y Negro, the vocals for ‘Heart Happy’. signing to Setanta Records, Keith Cullen, not getting on the BBC playlist. If the remainder turns up I shall update the post.
Posted in Music with tags derry, rare, setanta on January 22, 2013 by Fanning Sessions
Derry is 2013 UK City of Culture and to celebrate we’re going to dig out a few unsung bands from that neck of the woods. Today’s featured act Rare were Mary Gallagher (vocals), Locky Morris (bass), Seán Ó’Néill (guitar) and David Whiteside (drums). Seán or John O’Neill was of course a former member of The Undertones and That Petrol Emotion. The band’s first release ‘Set Me On Fire’ appeared on Setanta Records and also featured Paul PJ McCartney of Bam Bam & The Calling. This particular recording is from a performance at the Derry Centre for Contemporary Art on 12th January 2013 and comes courtesy Jim Cunningham who has been documenting live music in Derry for the last 25 years.
Twenty years after the release of their debut album ‘Trains, Boats And Planes’ Cork’s finest the Frank and Walters have announced a special show at the city’s newly renovated Savoy Theatre on Saturday 29th of December. Joining them on the night for their only Irish show this year will be Power of Dreams. Also on the bill are Jim Bob of Carter USM, The Naildrivers and The Hard Ground. Ashley Keating of the Frank & Walters has a weekly radio show ‘Green On Red‘ on Cork’s RedFM and last week he interviewed Craig Walker of Power Of Dreams followed by Cian Corbett (keyboards) and Rory Murphy (guitar) of the Frank & Walters. Thanks to the kind exertions of a gentleman in an outsized red suit yours truly will be making a trip to the gig so if you would like to avail of the ongoing cassette amnesty I’ll be in a raincoat down the back with my trusty walkman.
Avril Hoare and the team on the RTE Radio 1 ‘This Week‘ show did a nice segment on Setanta Records this Sunday. The piece features interviews with Keith Cullen himself, Eamon Sweeney, Ashley Keating and John Mulvey. Thanks to Colm O’Callaghan for the tip off.
I’ve long been a fan of the RTE 2XM show C60 hosted by Pat McGrath and his look at the label is a suitable showcase for both show and label so I’ve taken the liberty of posting it here. Check out the show on facebook and listen back to recent shows via the excellent RTE radio player.
Catchers – Call Her Name
Divine Comedy – Lucy
Divine Comedy – Jerusalem
The Frank & Walters –
A House – I Am The Greatest
Cane 141 – The Grand Looner
Brian – We Close
Stars – The Life ?
The Separate – Video Killed The Radio Star
Into Paradise – Tomorrow
Evan Dando – You Thought Hard About
The Harvest Ministers – That Won’t Wash
Richard Hawley – Baby Your My Life
A House – Without Dreams
The latest episode of ‘Pimp my iPod‘ looks at labels one of whom, Setanta released the debut album from The Divine Comedy in 1990. Neil Hannon has I believe since distanced himself from the album but I just came across this review in an old issue of Hot Press and I know of at least one reader who will be interested.
From Clondalkin, Power Of Dreams are Craig Walker (guitar & vocals), brother Keith Walker (drums) and Michael Lennox (bass). They recorded a Fanning session in April 1989 and in July 1989 they recorded an EP for Setanta Records produced by Sean O’Neill (ex Undertones and That Petrol Emotion). Here’s what Craig Walker said in an April state.ie interview:
“Our first demo was produced by a guy called Stano who was around at the same time as the Virgin Prunes and ended up working with Colm from My Bloody Valentine. He sent it over to Keith Cullen because he knew he’d just started Setanta Records by putting out an Into Paradise single, another Dublin band. He came to a show, said he wanted to put a record out and invited us over to London.”
“We didn’t really think much of it but we went over and he put us in a studio in Elephant & Castle. We’d never really been to London before and ended up staying in Keith’s squat. The whole experience was fantastic. We recorded the single, went away and didn’t expect anything more. Then I got a call from Keith that we were single of the week in Music Week and Melody Maker. It all went crazy then.”
Following a bidding war they signed to Polydor. Cypress, Mine! guitarist Ian Olney (most recently seen with the reformed Sultans Of Ping F.C.) joined in June 1990, just before the release of debut LP ‘Immigrants, Emigrants And Me’. 2010 marks the 20th anniversary of the release of that album and to mark the occasion, the band have reformed for a series of live shows in Spirit Store, Dundalk (March 10); Whelan’s, Dublin (March 12); and The Pavilion, Cork (March 13). A 2CD limited edition of the album, containing all 14 original tracks plus the debut EP ‘A Little Piece of God’ and various b-sides, will be released on 1st March 2010.
Craig Walker has just released his debut solo album ‘Siamese’ and he recently recorded a session for Dan Hegarty on 2fm.
Here is the title track of that original Setanta Records EP:
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In the absence of an official RTE Fanning Session archive consider this blog a humble starting point. Any musical submissions would be gratefully accepted as are any corrections or recollections... click on the pic to send an email or even better comment on the post in question. We are interested in anything recorded from irish radio or TV in the 1980s and 90s.
The Fanning Sessions Archive 