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Ronnie
Drew
As
MBE no longer works with Eleanor Shanley or
Ronnie Drew this pages are not kept up-to-date.
Ronnie's CD
'The Humour is on Me Now' is available from
 Ronnie
Drew was born and reared in Dun Laoghaire
on the coast of south County Dublin. At an
early age he realised he was not cut out for
a 'nine to five' job, especially of the a.m.
variety and so in the mid-fifties he emigrated
to Spain and lived there for three years.
During his time in Spain he taught english,
learned Spanish and studied art the of Flamenco
guitar. On his return to Dublin, Ronnie met
the late John Molloy, a renowned actor, who
invited him to perform in a show at Dublin's
Gate theatre. Ronnie worked with John in various
theatrical shows, singing, acting and playing
guitar. It was at this stage Ronnie learned
the discipline and art of stagecraft.
In 1962 'The
Dubliners' appeared from the back room of
O'Donoghues Pub on Dublin's Baggot Street.
Their style of music created quite a stir.
In 1967 they released 'Seven Drunken Nights'
entering the British Top Ten with an appearance
on BBC's Top of the Pops. In 1995 they appeared
once again on the show with Shane McGowan
and the Pogues, with their single 'The Irish
Rover'. Throughout his career Ronnie has recorded
and toured with a wide variety of groups and
artists including, The Hothouse Flowers, Stocktons
Wing, De Dannan, Donal Lunny, Giles Servat,
Antonio Breschi, and collaborated with World
Music legend Jah Wobble on a recent recording
'Invaders of the Heart' featuring the works
of famous Celtic poets.
On the theatrical
side he has appeared in Sean O'Casey's 'Purple
Dust' at the Peacock theatre, Dublin, 'Joseph
and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat' at
the Gaiety theatre, 'Sleeping Beauty, Babes
in the Wood' and a successful run with renowned
actor / comedian Niall Tobin in 'Bells of
Hell'.
 In
1997 Ronnie teamed up with ex-Stockton's Wing
frontman Mike
Hanrahan and together they wrote
and performed the critically acclaimed 'Ronnie
I Hardly Knew Ya'. The show had an eight week
run at the Andrews Lane Theatre in Dublin,
followed by a nationwide tour of Irish theatres
and a successful appearance at the 1998 Edinburgh
Fringe Festival. They have also taken the
show to Israel, The Chech Republic, Hungary,
Denmark,The USA and the UK.
Along the way
Ronnie has released a number of solo recordings,
his first being 'Guaranteed Dubliner' in 1978.
In 1995, after leaving the Dubliners. he recorded
and released 'Dirty Rotten Shame' featuring
songs specially written for him by Bono, Elvis
Costello, Shane McGowan and many More. The
album which was produced by ex-Moving Hearts
sax player Keith Donald also featured Dublin
rock band Aslan. Earlier this year Ronnie
recorded and released 'The Humour Is On Me
Now', produced by his stage partner Mike Hanrahan,
it is a collection of songs including old
classics from Delia Murphy, Sean O'Casey,
and Paddy Kavanagh side by side with new songs
from Johnny Duhan, Shane McGowan and Mike
Hanrahan. It also includes a Brendan Kennelly
poem and great music from some of Ireland's
finest musicians Maura Breatnach, Martin O'Connor,
Kieran Hanrahan and Ronnie's old friend from
the Dubliners John Sheehan.
Ronnie Reviews
"Hold on, I'm racking my
brains....no, I can't think of a single reason
why you shouldn't go to see 'Ronnie I Hardly
Knew Ya!'. Singer, songwriter, sometime actor
and all-round purveyor of craic, Ronnie Drew's
show opened to tumultuous approval at Andrew's
Lane Theatre in Dublin last night. From the
anecdote about his ill-fated stint at the telephone
exchange, through encounters with Behan and
Kavanagh, to the ballads he does so incomparably,
the former Dubliners frontman was in absolute
top form. Even if he hadn't been, the magic
spells weaved by guitarist Mike Hanrahan would
have made the evening worthwhile. Embarrassingly
brilliant - his playing had me sighing audibly"
Chris Lowry - Irish Independent
"One of Dublin's best loved
sons (and the one with the most distinctive
voice) hit the stage last night for an evening
of music chat and craic. From the moment he
growled "Good Evening", Ronnie Drew established
an immediate rapport with the audience. Ronnie,
I Hardly Knew Ya consists of a clever mix of
songs and anecdotes that lead seamlessly into
each other. ~Ronnie tells tales of the literary
greats like Brendan Behan and Patrick Kavanagh
- and their drinking escapades. At the heart
of the show there is the unique humour of Dublin.
Ronnie freely admits that he's not the best
guitarist or singer in the world - but it's
his lack of slick professionalism on stage that
adds to the charm and character of this gravelly-voiced
loveable rogue. At the end of the evening, I
wasn't sure who enjoyed themselves more - Ronnie
or the audience!"
Linda Higgins - Evening Herald
"Ronnie Drew's latest offering,
The Humour I On Me Now, is a must for all fans
of the ex-Dubliner and a definite maybe for
the yet-to-be-converted to the joy of traditional
Irish music. Ronnie's unique and powerful voice
is ably assisted by a host of Ireland's finest
traditional musicians, including, Maire Breathnach,
Mairtin O'Connor, Kieran Hanrahan, and John
Sheehan. Ex-Stockton's Wing frontman Mike Hanrahan
produces. The Collection includes a host of
classics from the era of Patrick Kavanagh and
Sean O'Casey and some more modern numbers from
Shane McGowan and Johnny Duhan."
Karen Murray - Irish World
"That seasoned showman,
Ronnie Drew, does not overly indulge in Flourishes.
In Ronnie, I Hardly Knew Ya, he just walks on
and plunges into his act, here consisting of
a well-chosen selection of songs, poems and
anectdotes. His trick is simply in the delivery,
and by the end he has revealed himself to be
a superb entertainer.."
Gerry Colgan - The Irish Times
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