The Chieftains
Live from Dublin
A Tribute to Derek Bell
RCA Victor - 82876-67137
available on Amazon
This is a live disc recorded in Dublin, Ireland, in December 2004, that is a tribute to their former Harp player who died a couple of years prior to this recording. The lineup for this tribute is the 4 remaining members of the Chieftains; Paddy Moloney, Sean Keane, Kevin Conneff, and Matt Molloy, and a large number of friends who had played with Derek and wanted to be part of the tribute. Derek was a classically trained musician who was considered a genius by all, and a mad genius by many. His love of cats was legendary and was often seen wearing wildly colorful socks with cats all over them. As to his music it is without equal as to its technical and artistic brilliance. However this is a stunning gathering of friends and cohorts who have come together to honor the ‘rogue’.
Paddy Moloney produced this disc and he of course had a hand in the mixing of it, and for that he, and those on the team, should be commended. This is a live disc that is not marred by the extraneous noise that is often rampant; the
sound is as crisp and clean as any studio disc. For all of that the love and respect these assorted musicians have for Derek comes blazing through here. For those who don’t know this “tatty folk group” this is as good an introduction as you can possibly get; and for you that know them this is a wonderful tribute that salutes both Derek and the wide-ranging eclectic musical efforts of this incomparable group. This group took traditional Irish music and married it to many musical genres from around the world, always producing music that bridged gaps and geographical divisions that caused separation. The group has done as much, or more, for cohesiveness and unity of mankind than many politicians.