By Kevin Donnellan
The Fureys & Davey Arthur play Vicar Street on Saturday 26th March and for Eddie Furey it will be something of a ‘homecoming’ gig.
Speaking ahead of their eleventh appearance at the venue, Eddie, the oldest of the Furey brothers, was keen to point out that the band has ties with the Liberties going back to childhood.
“We [the Furey family] came out from the Liberties to Ballyfermot originally in the very early 50’s so to us it’s like coming home [to play in Vicar Street],” he explains. “And there’s always a great atmosphere there.”
Despite moving away from the Liberties at a young age, Eddie still feels a great affinity with the area.
“Me wife is from the Liberties, from Oliver Bond Flats…we’d know all the families around there,” he explains. “All the businesses on the street, they always give us a wave when we’re going by. I love going around there and looking in at the shops and all.”
“[I remember] the Limelight up in Thomas Street when that was going on…I’d have only been going along for a listen, listening to other people playing after I came back from America and other parts of the world,” he says. “There was an awful amount of folk going on in those days.”
And across the road from the Vicar Street venue is the church where Eddie and his wife got married.
“Every time I look across to Johns Lane Church from Vicar Street I start crying,” he jokes.
The Fureys and Davey Arthur have played together for over 30 years, having formed in 1978. The line-up has changed over the years and is currently made up of Eddie, his brother George and Davey Arthur, along with another two musicians: Luke Crowley and Danny Lynch.
In the past they have played for former Australian Prime Minister John Howard, President Mary McAleese and Pope John Paul amongst others. But despite a long career Eddie has no intention of slowing down any time soon.
“If you slow down you get rusty and you can’t do anything, I can’t see that happening unless I get taken away in a wooden box.” he says.
Their appearance in Vicar Street should include plenty of their old favourites like When you were Sweet Sixteen, The Green Fields of France, Red Rose Café, The Old Man and Leaving Nancy.
The Fureys & Davey Arthur play Vicar Street on Saturday March 26th. Tickets €30 plus booking fee.
By Kevin Donnellan