GREAT IRISH BANDS, PART FIVE - SEAN A. MCDERMOTT
Jul 15th, 2007 by Conor McCabe
Who says he’s not a band?
I only met Sean A. McDermott a couple of times, and that was when I drinking in the Underground bar on Dame Street. (That was around 1989-92, and it was in the Underground that I saw Packie Bonner make THAT save. Wipe tear from eye. Sigh!) Anyway, Sean A. McDermott never used to talk that much, and I only found out why later on. It was because he was usually so shitfaced that he just couldn’t physically speak. Still, the man was the closest thing we had to a Svengali - well, it was Ireland in the 1980s - and so when I came across this video for one of his various musical projects, a band called $1,000 Wedding, I just had to put it up here as part of the series. Am I right in saying that’s Eileen Gogan, formerly of the Would Be’s, in backing vocals? The video contains footage of some of the lads from Hey Paulette and Feargal is the Applejack. Enjoy.
God, Conor, you’ve got to stop doing this. I’d neatly packed all memories of the Underground bar away and here you are… throwing them back into the light of day…
That is Eileen of the Would Bes. Sean has a great track called ‘Would She Hold Me Tighter If She Loved Me?’ that I’ve always been fond of.
Do you remember the compilation ‘Dostoevsky Lose its Flavour on the Bedpost overnight?’ that he put out on his label Mickey Rourke’s Fridge?
My brother is currently in $1000 Wedding with Sean and they’re currently rehearsing regularly…
http://myspace.com/1000wedding
he does a great version of wayfaring stranger too.
I’m sitting next to him right now and bar a strange tolerance for billie piper’s pop career, he truly is a legend in his own lunchtime.
Nope, its not Eileen, its a girl called Mary Whelan - and i should know- because i recorded this song for sean. It also features Maurice Kelly on bass from regular underground faves Imelda’s Boyfriend, and Bernard Walsh from the Stars of Heaven on drums. The barman in the video is Martin Jackman from fab ska band The Freres Jackman.
The Underground was great tho- eh?
I always mix up Eileen and the other female singer (is it Mary?).
The Underground rocked. Especially the carpet…
I think I’m still in $1000 wedding, and it is me on bass.
Derrick is being very modest, he’s also responsible for the guitar work along with Sean.
I wonder if Bernard and Mary still think they’re in the band too?
Alas, today’s new fangled technology is too much for dear old Imelda’s boyfriend, and besides I gave the tapes (remember those!) to our guitar player extraordinaire Terry Rainey, so that’s that. Terry wouldn’t even know what the internet is!
I’ve known Sean for a couple of years and am lucky enough to count him as a friend. He is one of those rare products of this city, a true genious. I wrote a song in his honor entitled, “Cow-punk Debonair”, a handle given to him by Eamonn Carr. My life, this city and wht wider world is a better place for him being in it.
Hello is that Conor McCabe of the Wry Cathchers Eileen
‘Fraid so! Hi Eileen. Luckily enough, there’s no footage of us hanging around so no fear of the wrycatchers ending up on youtube.
Thats a pity I still sing motorcycle boy, thats a classic glad to see you r doin ok, E
cheers Eileen!
I worship openly at the altar of Sean A., a man of unique vision and musicality, a true original, so good you hate him, so bad you love him, constantly a hairs whisper away from being the greatest thing from Ireland ever, currently feeling immense guilt over the box of dats immediately behind me containing his unreleased album, that was ‘meant’ to be last Summers project too…
I know this post here is a bit old, but I just found this video while watching some Gram Parsons stuff, and, good god, it’s fantastic. Does he have any properly released albums?
Just came across the thread again. This song, ‘outstanding’ was from an album called ‘exile on dame st’, mostly recorded in bernard walsh’s shed, as far as I can remember. It was produced and engineered by the late great Derrick Dalton, who also played guitar on it. As far as I can remember some of the tracks were recorded in Temple Bar and also featured Terry Rainey on guitar. My favourite ‘another country song’ was one. The whole rather wonderful escapade is not for the faint hearted
Seems Sean has made it all available at
http://1000wedding.bandcamp.com/album/exile-on-dame-street
There’s also an old hot press review of the album available at
http://www.hotpress.com/archive/2614455.html
I know this thread is really old, but was wondering if this Eileen Gogan is the same that lived a bit in San Francisco and worked a pub called The Bank of Ireland? This was maybe 15 years ago? She would be from Dolphin’s Barn? We hung out quite a bit and would love to reconnect.