<img src='' title='Event Category: Music' alt='' id='templ_icon_' width='' height='' /> Event Category: Music

Following their Sold Out tour earlier this year, The White Horse Guitar Club will be back on the road again in September/October with their second tour this year, the ‘Wide River’ Irish Tour, and a new single ‘Cash on the Barrel Head’.

The band received huge accolades from the Irish music media-including Fiachna Ó’Braonáin, Tom Dunne, John Creedon and Lilian Smith with their version of the Townes Van Zandt classic, ‘If I Needed You’, and saw their YouTube figures rocketing to over half a million views. It wasn’t long before the good news reached the BBC 6 presenter Cerys Matthews, who featured the band on her popular Sunday radio show in March, describing them as ‘..taking Ireland, and the rest of the world by storm’.
​​
Not only did The White Horse Guitar Club form a band, they forged close friendships with one another and strong connections with their audiences in Ireland and abroad. The band members come from all walks of life; one is a stonemason, another an engineer, a photographer, a teacher, but they all share a common bond in their passion for singing, playing and performing live.

Having clocked up a major milestone last year, some commentators may have assumed that his Phil Coulter at Eighty national tour was a lap of honour – the last hurrah for his followers. But they’d be wrong! At over 30 shows across the country, the fans had their say, with packed houses and standing ovations, it was definitely not time to say goodbye. They wanted more of that Coulter magic, the songs, the stories and the touch of Tranquillity.

After 55 years at the top of his game, Phil has achieved the status of legend in the music business, but his enthusiasm and energy have never waned. He loves his audiences and has happily jumped straight back into planning another show and a new tour, with fresh collections of memories and melodies. Audiences really responded to the different qualities that his special guests brought to the evening and so he is delighted to welcome back his glamorous and ever popular wife, Geraldine Branagan, and rising star George Hutton.

As the man said, fashions may fade, but quality is timeless.

The Illegal Eagles make a welcome return to Cork Opera House with a brand new production, promising more of their trademark musical prowess, acute attention to detail and incredible showmanship.

This critically acclaimed show features the very best from the Eagles’ catalogue of classics including ’Hotel California’, ‘Desperado’, ‘Take It Easy’, ‘New Kid In Town’, ‘Life In The Fast Lane’ and many more… The latest all-star line-up of the show, produced as ever by Phil Aldridge, features Tony Kiley (formerly from 80’s sensation The Blow Monkeys) on drums, Trevor Newnham (Dr Hook) vocals and bass, Greg Webb vocals and guitars, Mike Baker vocals, guitars and keys and Garreth Hicklin vocals, guitars and keys.

Garreth, Greg, Trevor and Mike effortlessly capture the vocal style and delivery of Henley, Walsh, Fry, Schmidt and Meisner and are all masters of their respective instruments. Extremely tight harmonies & an acute attention to detail are synonymous with The Illegal Eagles, now in their 24th year on the road. Following a number of critically acclaimed UK & European Tours, The Illegal Eagles have established themselves not only as the ultimate celebration of The Eagles, but as one of the foremost authentic and talented shows in the world.

Sharon Shannon, Frances Black and Mary Coughlan are some of the most successful female artists Ireland has to offer and are no strangers to each other, having performed and recorded together as an integral part of the successful Woman’s Heart albums and tours. The three artists will play a set each with their own musicians, performing many of their greatest hits before joining each other on stage together at Cork Opera House to complete the night.

Sharon Shannon received worldwide recognition with the song ‘Galway Girl’ from the Hilary Swank movie, PS I Love You. Traditional Irish music is Sharon’s background, but she has been fearless in her musical exploration, having defied genres and woven her unique style through country, French-Canadian reggae, hip-hop, dance and classical. When Nanci Griffith called Frances Black “the sweetest voice of Ireland,” she was paying tribute to someone who has been one of Ireland’s best-loved and most enduring artists since the late 80s, with a string of best-selling albums, awards and other accolades behind her. The extent of Frances’ popularity and talent has been reflected in the awards and accolades that she has received for her albums and live performances.

Mary Coughlan is the only singer these shores have produced to rival the greatest of European cabaret and American jazz club blues because of one thing: her voice. She is unique in blending the whisky-blurred, smoke-seared, husky notes and laconic wit of Billie Holiday and Peggy Lee and the line of deep, down and dirty blues singers back to Memphis Minnie and Bessie Smith with the sardonic, bitter-sweet defiance and despair of the Piaf chanteuse, born out of war, in the shadow of Brecht, at war with the world, men, and finally, herself.

A special celebration concert in their home county featuring special guests, this will be a night not to be missed featuring all the old hits and memories with a special tribute on the night to the late Dale Haze.

Gina, Dale Haze and The Champions formed in 1973, and the Cork-based band took the dancing scene by storm in the late 1970s and early 80s with 12 chart hit singles and several best-selling albums. The Band quickly became Ireland’s top attraction with record breaking attendances at dances and concerts. Amazingly, 50 years on the original Band members, Gina, Pat, Mossey, Eddie & Tony still perform together at sell out shows. 

Performing classic hits ‘Give Me back my Love’, ‘Dreams are Good Friends’, ‘Drunken Sailor’, ‘A Real Good Feeling’ and many more, Gina & The Champions are delighted to feature special guest Ronan Collins, as they pay tribute to the showband legends, Joe Dolan, Red Hurley etc. This is certainly a show not to be missed on this momentous occasion!

The great Country Rock band SMOKIE have emerged as one of the greatest and longest-lasting bands from the 70’s and 80’s. They continue to be in demand across the globe and are one of the most requested acts to appear in venues. Smokie return to Cork for another cracking show on Friday 29th September.

It’s hard to believe, but Smokie celebrated their 45th Anniversary in 2018 embarking on a world tour which saw them visit three continents and bring that distinctive Smokie sound to 19 countries around the globe. And in case you thought they would be tired and burned out? Well, not a bit of it! They have revelled in the challenge of bringing a new freshness and vigour to their classic pop hits.

The show will feature songs like ‘Something’s Been Making Me Blue’, ‘I’ll Meet You At Midnight’, ‘Don’t Play Your Rock ‘n’ Roll To Me’, ‘If You Think You Know How To Love Me’, ‘Wild Angels’, ‘Oh Carol’, ‘Needles and Pins’, ‘Have You Ever Seen the Rain’, ‘Mexican Girl’, ‘For a Few Dollars More’, the classic ‘Livin’ Next Door to Alice’, ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ and many more – all of which were Top 10 entries around the world.

Goin’ Back, A Lifetime of Song will feature many of the great classics that Rebecca has made her own over the last twenty years, such as ‘Blue Bayou’, ‘The Winner Takes it All’, ‘A Woman in Love’, plus a string of show songs from classic shows such as Evita, Blood Brothers, The Streisand Songbook and many more.

The show will also feature for the first time Rebecca’s version of the great Carol King classic ‘Goin’ Back’, ‘it is a song I have always loved and as the years fly by it is very fitting for me, as I look back over my wonderful career. I am looking so forward to singing it’. Rebecca will be joined by her long time backing singers Mary Lowe and Allison Vard, and backed on stage by the brilliant Kenny and the Jets.

The success of this Irish produced touring show, now approaching its 13th year and its fourth visit to Cork Opera House, is down to two important factors – the timeless quality of the Carpenters’ fantastic hits and the ability of Toni Lee to recreate the mesmerising voice of Karen Carpenter.

No one else comes near Toni in this regard, she truly is Karen Carpenter reborn. The world has hundreds of tribute shows touring on a non-stop basis, but only a handful of them are capable of genuinely transporting you back in time, by replicating a performance that is on a par with the original artist. The Carpenters, We’ve Only Just Begun is one such show.

Every song in the show is a classic hit from the best songwriters in popular music history. It is a hit parade of non-stop magic including joys like: ‘Superstar’, ‘Top of the World’, ‘Solitaire’, ‘Close to You’, ‘Rainy Days’ and ‘Mondays’, ‘Yesterday Once More’, ‘There’s a Kind of Hush’, ‘Please Mr Postman’, ‘I Need to be in Love’ and so much more . . . With the smoky smouldering voice of Toni Lee as Karen Carpenter, We’ve Only Just Begun is a unique concert event unmatched by any other tribute show.