Live at the Marquee: Damien Dempsey gig a religious experience

A remarkable run of concerts at Live At The Marquee continued on Saturday with Damien Dempsey playing a show that will perhaps be nominated as the gig of the year by some of the people in attendance. His gigs are often likened to an almost religious experience but I’ve never heard a priest get as loud a roar as when Damien walked on stage!

Dempsey’s best-known songs were peppered throughout the set, early in the set Damien remarked that upon reflection he might have written one song in slightly too high a key and the audience might need to help with it, the immediate choir of thousands of voices immediately filling in the opening lyrics of “Patience, give me some of that sweet patience, Lord, I will keep my eye on my goal…” will certainly stick in my mind for any end-of-year lists.

Keeping an eye on things and people is a key element of Damien Dempsey’s words, he mentioned how he had issues with his self-esteem the first he played Live At The Marquee but that “he was ready now” and how the first time he played in Cork it was to a handful of people and that he was grateful to now be playing the biggest indoor venue you can in the city. A particularly passionate rendition of ‘Negative Vibes’ echoed this mindset of finding your inner strength.

His much-loved song about getting to New York, ‘The Apple Of Me’ got an enthusiastic response and his take on ‘The Rocky Road To Dublin’ almost used the crowd’s clapping and chanting as a new percussion instrument in the band.

Two different anecdotes about clothing choices made by Damien Dempsey got great laughs, the first was about him wearing leather shoes with tracksuit pants because “nobody comes up to talk to you when you are in that combination” earlier in his career as he wasn’t used to becoming well known reemphasised the journey he has taken with his audience. 

The second struck a chord with anyone who has waited for ‘the right time’ to wear something new, Damien had purchased a flat cap – as made famous in Peaky Blinders – and wore it to the National Concert Hall for Shane MacGowan’s 60th birthday party, and who was the first person he met when he walked into the dressing room? Cillian Murphy of course!

Shane MacGowan was mentioned again later towards the end of the show, when Damien reflected on the Irish singing greats we have lost in recent years such as Shane, Sinead O’Connor, Séamus Begley and Christy Dignam, he went on to deliver The Pogue’s ‘Rainy Night In Soho’ with a depth that is rarely heard.

As ever his band took every passionate song of his up several notches, driven largely by John Reynolds on drums, you can sense the long-standing connection between Dempsey and his producer. Reynolds also produced John Spillane’s latest album ‘100 Snow White Horses’ and there was a great reaction from the audience with John Spillane joined Damien and the band towards the end of the night.