Proud of Pubs special: The Dubliners

It all started in a pub - O'Donoghues in Merrion Row, close to St Stephen's Green in Dublin. Forty-four years on, the members of the Dubliners are...

It all started in a pub - O'Donoghues in Merrion Row, close to St Stephen's Green in Dublin. Forty-four years on, the members of the Dubliners are still enjoying a pint at their respective locals, and their music is a staple of pub jukeboxes not only in Ireland, but also up and down the UK.

From 'Whiskey in the Jar' to 'Finnegan's Wake', and 'All for me Grog' to the band's biggest solo UK hit, 'Seven Drunken Nights', the Dubliners' back catalogue is a tribute to their native country's enthusiastic, if occasionally turbulent, relationship with a drop of the hard stuff.

Which is a good enough reason to explain why, with the Dubliners in London to promote their new CD, as well as launch a 13-date UK tour, it seemed more than appropriate to meet up in a pub. Getting together over a drink in the Stanhope Arms in London are band members Eamonn Campbell, John Sheahan and Sean Cannon. "We started our career playing in pubs," says John, "and pubs are still a great place to enjoy live music."

Back in 1962, O'Donoghues was at the heart of the growing folk music scene in Ireland, with some of the country's most talented young singers and musicians regularly getting together to play a mix of traditional songs and their own compositions.

Some of them made the jump from ad hoc jam sessions to form a permanent group which, admittedly with a number of personnel changes, is still playing 44 years later.

One very early line-up, before the core of the Dubliners was firmly established, was known as the Ronnie Drew Ballad Group, named after one of the band's founders. However, a communications breakdown saw them billed up in one town as the Ronnie Drew Ballet Group.

"Pubs were where it all started for us," says fiddle player John, who was a charter member of the line-up that became the Dubliners. "O'Donoghues was the place to play. Paddy and Maureen O'Donoghue didn't have any children of their own, and they treated us like sons. They'd even make us sandwiches when we were off out to gigs."

In those days, the band travelled in an old Volkswagen camper van to play in pubs and bars around Ireland. These days, the travelling conditions tend to be more comfortable and the venues larger, but the principle remains the same. "You have to treat a concert hall as if it were a big pub," says John. "You're trying to get the same kind of atmosphere going."

The band were interested to learn about The Publican's Proud of Pubs campaign, highlighting the importance of pubs to the community, and more than happy to sport Proud of Pubs badges. "It's a great idea," says Sean.

Pubs in Ireland have, of course, blazed a trail ahead of their UK counterparts in terms of the smoking ban, which came into force in March 2004, a full two years before the ban in Scotland this year, and more than three years before England follows next summer.

Having spent many a night singing for his supper in smoky pubs, Sean recalls: "There were times when I'd be singing a sad old ballad, and when I finished tears were running down my cheeks. Everyone thought it was the emotion, but it was really the smoke."

Eamonn, a smoker himself, is quite forthright: "The ban has improved the air quality in pubs, but ruined the atmosphere. If you're having a chat and someone gets up to go outside for a smoke, you lose the flow. Watching the football is the worst, though. You don't want to go out for a smoke in case you miss a goal."

So what do the lads look for in a pub? One requirement is paramount: "a decent pint of Guinness" they chorus. Although the version sold in the UK is now brewed in Dublin, for the Dubliners the jury is still out as to how well their home-town tipple travels.

"Over the years, we've tasted some strange stuff that called itself Guinness around the world." Sean recalls a Guinness-sponsored tour of Australia which required the band to be photographed drinking from cans on a boat in Sydney Harbour. "It was horrible," he says. "More of it went into the sea than into us."

Eamonn is quick to point out "that was before the widget, of course. That's a great invention, it's made a real difference to the quality."

Despite their status as Irish cultural icons, the Dubliners can enjoy a drink these days without being expected to sing for their supper. "At your local, you're just one of the gang," says Eamonn.

CD giveaway

'Too Late To Stop Now! The Very Best of the Dubliners', has just hit the shops. It features 20 of the band's classic recordings from across their 44 year career, including their bar-room classic 'Seven Drunken Nights', and two riotous collaborations with the Pogues, 'The Irish Rover' and 'Whiskey in the Jar' - guaranteed to get the party started at any occasion calling for a bit of a dance. The double CD also includes a recording of the band's 40th anniversary concert 'Live at the Gaiety'.

We have five copies to give away to pubs, just in time to get the Christmas festivities going with a vengeance. To enter the draw, answer the following question:

Which of these is not a classic recording by the Dubliners?

A: The Wild Rover

B: The Range Rover

C: The Irish Rover

Send your answer on a postcard to Dubliners Competition, The Publican, Ludgate House, 245 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 9UY, with your name, pub name and address.

The first five correct answers drawn after the closing date of November 6 will win CDs. Usual competition rules apply.

Tour dates