Eurosong 1996
Raising the Cup!
Ronan (far right) holding the Eurovision 96 trophy:
The Original GoodFellas Wedding Band Ireland
About the Band
Do you remember a time, back in the murky past, when winning the Eurovision was possible for the likes of Ireland? Remember we used to win it ALL the time? We were like the Hussein Bolt of the Euro-world.
If you needed an inoffensive, catchy tune, (which nobody would ordinarily buy outside of Eurovision), with a couple of dodgy looking backing singers, and a BIG key change, Ireland was the country to provide you with it. Over and over.
Even Father Ted went in for it!
It was back in the days before it became EasternEuroVision.
Who was the last Irish MAN to hoist aloft the coveted trophy and monument to formulaic pseudo-pop?
Was it Johnny Logan? No.
Shay Healy? Surely it had to be Shay, sure he was always winning it? You couldn't get a mug out of Shay's kitchen cupboards for all the Eurovision trophies he had in there. Erm, no.
Linda Martin then? No.
The last Irish man to hold the Eurovision trophy was our very own Ronan. He was tinkling the ivories behind Eimear Quinn when she stormed home to victory with the inexplicable "The Voice", penned by Brendan Graham (presumably after a night on the tiles with a load of druids and celtic high priests).
Ronan recalls that he ended up with the gig after a chance encounter with Jimmy Walsh, the author of the Niamh Kavanagh song "In Your Eyes", which took the trophy home in 1993.
It was a Wednesday and Ronan was asked "Are you free Friday? Brendan Graham needs a keyboard player for the Late Late?"
So Ro called Brendan and arrangedto meet him on the following afternoon - Thursday - in Bewley's Cafe in Grafton Street. Brendan played him the demo of the song on a cassette walkman (remember them???) and armed with only that perfunctory listen, the following evening they were on The Late Late Show playing "The Voice".
Ro recalls being amazed that they got through the National Song Contest and being told he was going to Oslo for a week, which culminated in him playing that song in front of 300 million people.
We're fairly sure that Eimear wouldn't have won only for Ronan's ghostly keyboard sounds and noises, which were strangely evocative of a cold morning, soaking wet and shivering in Newgrange. The Europeans love that sort of thing.
Not only that, but in front of 300 million viewers, Ronan also managed to be the only member of the band who was repeatedly missed by the 400-odd cameras that were there capturing the event for posterity.
Only once or twice, in the whole song, can our Ro be seen. There was unfounded and untrue speculation at the time that perhaps he was signing on and was afraid that the fella in Werburgh Street would recognise him. Witness all the 80's band posters which had all the band members in shades. Not because shades lent them an air of removed cool and nonchalence, but because the fella in Werburgh Street, hatch #8 would recognise them.
He ended up hoisting aloft the trophy in the time-honoured GAA style because Eimear is only a slip of a thing, a wee waif-like elfin creature who found it too heavy! So Ro lifted it! It was made of pewter and was unbelieveably weighty.
Brendan Graham passed him the trophy as all the flashbulbs went off and leant to him and said..."Ronan...savour this moment!".
And he did.