4th Jan. 2013 - The Button Factory
3rd Jan. 2013 - The Grand Social
5th Jan. 2013 - The Button Factory
5th Jan. 2013 - The Button Factory
In addition to the Main Vibe for Philo gig in 2013, a YOUNG ROCKERS VIBE (Matinee for younger Vibers) took place on 5th January 2013.
Unfortunately I'm short of info on all of the acts who played the Young Rockers Vibe on the day. If you see yourself or anyone you might recognise in the gallery below please contact me and I'll update the this section! In the meantime, I have added the YRV images to the main gallery below.
Contact pastvibes @ vibeforphilo.com (without the spaces obviously!).
We're delighted to announce that the legendary Faither Jack of "Thin Lizzy - A Rock Legend" fame/infamy has agreed to be guest DJ at the 27th Vibe. You've all seen and been amazed by the YouTube videos and downloaded the tracks Faither Flak-Jacket and his merry crew have excavated from oblivion over the years.
FJ and Nick S aka The Glummer Twins are, of course, the driving-force behind the recent reissues, BBC Box-Set and forthcoming Deluxe Box-Set. You can only dream about what goodies FJ will unearth/preview/debut on the night. Here Jack gives us a sneak peak of what to expect, although envy and potential legal interference prohibits us from giving you a really good look at just what lives on FJ's IPod. (Anybody ever get a good look at what's on Nick's?) Prepare to be delighted and excited as the good Faither digs deep into the well for your edification and entertainment, For more information check out Thin Lizzy - a Rock Legend.
Even better than the Real Thing? Vibe regulars seem to think so. Some say it's in the tone. Eric has it. So did Gary. Robbo has it too. It seems to just ooze from Brian Grace's fingertips. Of course Brian got his introduction to the world of Thin Lizzy from Philo himself and with his contributions to Vibes over the years is a worthy custodian of the Lynott Legacy. Throw Phil Edgar, Matt Wilson, and Flamin' Eamon Ferris into the mix and the result is so hot - it's steaming!!
It's been said that nobody does Lizzy better than these guys and were inclined to agree as they delve into the back catalogue finding new meaning and lost gems to celebrate the strength of Phil Lynott's songwriting. This year they tell us they intend to mine the early albums, singles, and eps. Going on past performances you can expect the unexpected as they trawl the archives for those lesser known masterpieces which brought Thin Lizzy to the fore nearly five decades ago.
While Vagabonds will be explored, the boys will be keeping a close eye on the earlier material and will be drafting in help from several friends and guests for what is already looking like one of the highlights of 2013.
You need serious cajones to call yourselves The Thin Lizzy Experience. It kind of sets you up for a serious fall. But these boys came, they saw, and pretty much conquered all our hearts. It's quite some time since we've had someone back two years in a row so it says a lot about them at the 26th Vibe. It's not like they're the best “live-jukebox” in town. No, the boys grabbed the audience and took them for a serious ride on the Lizzymobile - the highlights of which are too numerous to mention, except, if you were there you know what were talkin' about, if not, you've probably heard the legend of that performance by now.
Experience is the key - you really need to see and hear these boys live, so for those of you who were Experienced in 2012 there's a chance for more and those who missed out now's your chance to catch up. A special bonus will see the boys play the Young Rockers Matinee on the 5th, so for all those under 18, or if you want to indoctrinate your kids into the wonderful world of Thin Lizzy this is an opportunity not to be missed.
When a band talks about that "special indefinable soul" of Philo's music we tend to take notice. When the singer just happens to be Lar Fraser of legendary Dublin rockers Predator - they have our attention.
Throw John Nesbitt & Phil Kennedy on twin lead guitars, Noel O'Brien (Bass) and Stuart Burke (Drums) into the mix and well… we're very interested.
For the past year or so the boys have been bringing their full-on, blistering, two and a half hour, Live and Dangerous Set to the faithful and spreading their passion and love for Philo all over Ireland.
It's hard, it's heavy, with a cornucopious sprinkling of light and shade - just the way we like the opening act for the Main Event.
Five good North Side Dublin Lads, better known as The Lizzy Experience, we're re-branding them (just like a Government Department) "For One Night Only" as the DUBH LINN BOYS. (Well you cant have two bands on the bill with similar names now can you?!!)
The Boys in the Band would like us to point out that the rumour about them performing in Blue and White Tracksuits/Woolly Hats and Trainers is taking this years Vibe Dublin theme just a tad too far - but we are trying to secure the services of Irish soccer boss Giovanni Trapattoni's interpreter, just in case there are any southsoiders attending!
Welcome on Board Boys - to the - 27th Vibe for Philo "DUBLIN"
Take one of the hottest female vocalists this side of Janis Joplin, stir in some pretty hot guitars, add a dash of Brazilian Rhythm, and stir it all through a Live and Dangerous/Slash/Zep/G'n'R/ mixer and you're only just starting to imagine what a treat awaits you at the Young Rockers Matinee.
Hazel Jade started gigging when she was 4. She's caused quite a bit of Record Company and Press attention since she was 13. Now, still a teenager, with a big, big, voice, she joined forces with Keith Garret (Guitar), Adam Shelly (Guitar) and Gabriel Grecco (drums/Bass) to form the astonishingly tasty Elevation Falls.
The young Rockers Matinee will be the bands debut, but don't let that put you off. Collectively they have a maturity and pedigree that would make many established acts blush. They're Cool, They're Talented, and even their picture looks good. Definitely not to be missed!
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's the supersonic pinkies of Conor McGouran and his Teenage, Virtuosi, Guitarslingers. Conor, as you may know by now, made his Vibe debut at the age of 11, and we just keep bringing him back, because, apart from being a hell of a player, he's one of the few people around who can get into the tonal space once inhabited by one Robert William Gary Moore.
As a bonus Conor was joined by his band The Harleys with special featured guests Dylan (11), Luke (16), and Luke (18). Hannah Mellon also played a stunning version of Jailbreak with the band before being joined by Radio Nova dj Pat Courtenay for a jam session. Definitely one of those “I was there moments” with history in the making!.
* File in irish is a poet, pronounced 'filla'... filiocht is poetry, pronounced 'fil-ee-acht'... fuil is blood, i pronounced it 'fulla'. crumlin, or krumbillenn, is the crooked glen, translated from the irish.
Baile atha cliath is dublin, pronounced 'ball-yeah awe-ha klee-ah'. i play around with the sound of the town: dubh linn baile, cliath baile atha etc. phil is also a root word in the english. it comes from the greek philos meaning loving. philosophy, the love of wisdom etc. i write without the capitals and i spell fonettikalli mostly (phonetically, the way you would say a word)...*
philo was a fellow filla who did dub rhyme it -
dissa vibe for philo dublinnitt and for filla dub lynott...
is dat? isda? 'ssstatue phil? is that you phil standing standy still?
ah, mcdaids and bruxill have you outstanding so handy phil...
looking so dandy phil! onda levill with jimmi joyce and charley parnill -
but if you not too care phil yool be the next ronill mcdonill or danyill o connill oh peepill
dissa vibe for philo - and diss - dissa scribe from a filla -
see philo was a fellow filla! oh philo had filiocht inda fulla! philo's fulla was fulla da filla!
yes! know it ye that poetry woz pumpin in hizzy thin lizzy blood -
a duburban myth - suburban shit and grit was in fellow filla philo's hood -
outstraight he knew the nooks and crannies and grannies of the crooked glen -
twoz in krumbillenn where philo first learned to phil up the filla's pen -
oh philo! a fellow filla - wait! - before you fall a kulla - (coladh is sleep: 'kulla')
the hook again - in pigeon irish and in bearla seagulla... (bearla is irish for the english language)
philo was a fellow filla who did dub rhyme it -
dissa vibe for philo dublinnitt and for filla dub lynott...
ah! how paradoxical - black and while oddsoxxikal of you to be so un-inksular -
how kareoke hill - parry okkee phil - howthethic - poetic - pen-inksular -
so jugular and heartfelt was the pelt of your vernacular -
oh yes i guess you woz dess thin lizzied to sparkill phil so spectacular -
and tizz no wonder we hold you spesh phil - tender - tabernacular -
shoor weed keep you deep phil even if this land was secular -
and now - 27 years later it is un-peculiar and unsurprisingly circular
i wake up in the baile atha cliath and it shatters my soul sometimes when i see it -
like is it for real or is it an idea? can i screw it together like a yoke from ikea?
i wake up in the baile atha cliath and it bristes mo chroi sometimes when i see it (breaks my heart)
like a bird in a cage and i just wanna free it - like a word on a page and i wanna melody it...
i walk true the dubh linn baile - town fulla drugs and alkohol, yeah -
boardwalk junkies - banklink beggars - muppett monkeys - insolent feckers -
i walk true the cliath baile atha but never in the places i know i not awta -
same shits done by the garda siochana or the elected dopes over there in the dail, yeah -
i walk true the capital of ireland - its dole queue with a workforce up for hire man -
many heads down with nothing to inspire them - i've seen their eyes - the anger - the fire in them -
i live in the suburb of the dee five - its an odd number so i guess i'm from the northside -
coolock - darndale - belcamp - moatview - these were the spots where once i did float true -
i've seen it with me own two suile how folk chase the cash coz the lack of it rules ya -
i've heard it with me own two cluas - inna joe - onna dart - onna bus - onna luas -
vicious, pathetic chin waggery - smile in the face with a dose of back stabbery -
people begrudging other people - robotic greaseballs oh deeing on diesel...
ah the old town - the home town can hammer the ceann down (head)
but it soon lifts when i hear a bit - when i get a hit of the boys are back in town...
i can be a buckled buachaill (boy) bent out of shape and out of tune like,
but i soon mend when i re-befriend a dance in the moonlight -
i mean like - for 30 years, phil, your recordings have been with me -
from vinyl phil to tape to seedee to emineMP3 poetry they have hit me -
their impact was instant - a jab to the heart -
it was love at first listen - was a fan from the start...
ah your music is timeless, phil - my own 9 year old dawter likes -
and your songs are still sung, phil, round open fires and at open mikes
and your songs will be sung still, phil, as long as dublin is licked by the liff -
and dublin holds you forever young still, phil, the same way you beautifully held a riff...
yes - dublin loves lizzy - dublin loves philo
and the people of dis city always, always will
o philo was a fellow filla who did dub rhyme it -
dissa vibe for philo dublinnitt and for filla dub lynott...
John Cummins
He remains probably the most influential and fondly remembered Irish musician of all time, so it is fitting that Phil Lynott is commemorated each year.
Organised by Lynott's close friend Smiley Bolger, the Vibe for Philo is an annual event held on January 4, the anniversary of Phil's death. Each year a collection of Irish musicians and performers come together to play the music of Phil Lynott and Thin Lizzy to an audience of respectful friends, family and fans.
The 27th Vibe for Philo took place in a packed out Button Factory on Friday. First on stage were the aptly named Dubh Linn Boys, a band who completely embodied their home town in distinctive Dublin songs Johnny, Southbound and Oldtown, as well as beautifully tender rendition of Still in Love with You.
Following this Conor McGouran (who played his first Vibe in 1997 at the age of 11) joined The Harleys for a fabulous acoustic rendering of Don't Believe a Word and some other gems, including massive versions of the Phil Lynott and Gary Moore collaboration Out in the Fields, and Black Rose.
The love in kept on coming northern Irish group The Low Riders, who took on the challenge of delivering some of Lynott's earliest material in a set that consisted entirely of songs taken form Thin Lizzy's first three albums.
From the audience response it was clear that the fans are still as passionate about the music as ever. But Lynott's influence stretched far from just music. Following The Low Riders, street poet John Cummins presented a piece of spoken word, hip hop balladry. The poem (written specially for the occasion) was wonderfully evocative of the influence music could have on somebody's life. Cummins' words culminated in a chorus like refrain, which described Phil as the “fíle with fíliocht in his fola.”
Next on stage were upcoming young rockers Sal Vitro, fresh from a supporting slot opening for the reformed version of Thin Lizzy in the Olympia theatre in November. Their short set consisted of slow, heartfelt renditions of A Song for while I'm Away and Dear Miss Lonely Hearts. The palpable emotion the band related through the music was a powerful indicator of the influence Lynott's music continues to have on young artists. The fact that Sal Vitro managed to bring their own distinctive sound to bear on the songs, sets them apart as a band both capable of following in the Thin Lizzy mould, and of succeeding in their own right.
Before the final band of the night took to the stage, Smiley Bolger brought out a very special guest, Phil's mother Philomena. She told of the legions of fans who still write her letters and come to visit her. “People keep thanking me,” she explained, “but it's me who should be thanking you.” She led the packed out crowd into a minute of silence, not just for Phil, but for “all the loved ones you've all lost,” she explained. After the sheer energy of the previous acts on the stage, the silence was a powerful reminder of the loss being commemorated.
The final act on stage was Sheffield cover band The Thin Lizzy Experience. Complete with afro haired, bass playing front man, they couldn't have done much more to look the part. They blasted through a set of classic Thin Lizzy numbers with suitable mix of energy and charisma. They hit all the classics, from Waiting on an Alibi and Dancing in the Moonlight to a medley of the Cowboy Song, Rosalie and The Boys are Back in Town, before culminating in a rousing rendition of Whiskey in the Jar.
By this point it was after two in the morning, but the crowd weren't ready to go home just yet, and Smiley Bolger wasn't about to let the band vacate the stage just yet either. The call for one more song was answered with Running Back, Do Anything you Want To and Sha-la-la. The music felt like it could go on forever, like there was an infinite amount of songs still to be played. It was a fitting tribute to the enduring nature of music, the power of music to endure across generations. The Thin Lizzy Experience kept playing until closing time at 2.30, finally finishing off with a request from the audience to play Cold Sweat. More than anything else it was an absolutely fitting tribute to Philo.
Images thanks to:
Marc Leach
Darragh Owens
Raymond Wright
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