Stockton's Wing is an Irish band formed in 1977 by four All-Ireland champion musicians; Paul Roche on
flute/whistle, Maurice Lennon on
fiddle, Tommy Hayes on
bodhran, and
Kieran Hanrahan on
banjo/
mandolin, along with Tony Callinan on
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
and vocals. They have collaborated with well known artists including
Christy Moore
Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. In addition to his significant success as an individual, he is one of the founding members of Planxty and Moving Hearts. His first album, ...
, "as well as more than a dozen musicians who have worked to create an impressive collection of work". Their style has been described as including "Irish folk, melancholic ballads, upbeat jigs, and modern pop".
Stockton's Wing have supported artists including
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
and
Prince.
Their song "Over The Moor" is used as the theme music for
Liveline
''Liveline'' is an Irish radio interview and phone-in chat show broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1 each weekday afternoon between 13.45 and 15.00. The programme, which is currently presented by Joe Duffy and known for its slogan "Talk to Joe", seeks the ...
, one of the most popular radio shows in Ireland.
Name
The band took its name from a line in the
Bruce Springsteen song, "Backstreets"; "Slow dancin' in the dark on the beach at Stockton's Wing, where desperate lovers park to meet the last of the Duke Street Kings.”
Early years
The five founding members had won in the traditional music category of a talent competition, sponsored by
Guinness, in
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
. An up-an-coming rock band from Dublin,
U2, formed only two years before, won the rock category. The victory landed Stockton's Wing a contract with
Tara Records, who released their self-titled debut in 1978, which consisted of traditional songs.
These quickly gave way to a mix of more contemporary influences, as "they departed from their Trad roots".
During the recording of their second album, ''Take A Chance'' (1980), singer-songwriter and guitarist Mike Hanrahan replaced Tony Callinan. Unlike its predecessor, the sophomore effort "featured some original music and marked the arrival of a progressive force into the world of Irish music."
At the
Ballisodare Folk Festival they met
Australian Stephen Cooney who then joined the band playing
bass guitar
The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
, and
didgeridoo, further adding to the evolving sonic tapesty.
1982 saw the release of ''Light In The Western Sky'', with the band moving further into original compositions, and delivered the hit singles "Beautiful Affair" and "Walk Away".
The following year, Tommy Hayes was replaced by Fran Breen on drums, and Peter Keenan joined on keyboards.
Extensive international tours
1984 saw Stockton's Wing embark on their first
American tour. This coincided with the release of ''American Special'', a compilation by Shanachie Records, containing "a selection from each of Stockton's Irish releases".
The band toured extensively, staying away from the studio, and in 1985 released the live album ''Stockton's Wing Live - Take One'', which had been recorded in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
and
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a city in the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay, and is the sixth most populous city on ...
. Re-mastered in 2006, it was aimed at "the tens of thousands who attended the almost 1,500 performances across Ireland, the UK and America".
Line-up changes, return to Tara
1986 saw the release of ''Full Flight''. This was followed in 1988 by ''Celtic Roots Revival''. In 1991, Davey McNevin replaced Kieran Hanrahan, with Fran Breen and Stephen Cooney also departing. Fran Breen joined
Nanci Griffith
Nanci Caroline Griffith (July 6, 1953 – August 13, 2021) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She appeared many times on the PBS music program ''Austin City Limits'' starting in 1985 (season 10). In 1994 she won a Grammy Award f ...
's Blue Moon Orchestra, and Stephen Cooney began a fruitful collaboration with accordion player
Séamus Begley.
Kieran Hanrahan went on to present the traditional music program Ceili House on
RTE Radio 1. Stockton's Wing were the band playing at the
céilí in the
Jim Sheridan
Jim Sheridan (born 6 February 1949) is an Irish playwright and filmmaker.
Between 1989 and 1993, Sheridan directed two critically acclaimed films set in Ireland, '' My Left Foot'' and '' In the Name of the Father'', and later directed the fi ...
film
The Field (1990). The following year, they returned to Tara Records for the release of a 20-track compilation of their first three albums (reissued in a 2005 boxset). 1992 saw the release of ''The Crooked Rose'', and in 1995, with Eamon McElholm having taken over as lead singer, ''Letting Go''. Their sound in this era has been described as pioneering "a sort of Celtic Yacht Rock – mixing
Steely Dan with
Planxty
Planxty were an Irish folk music band formed in January 1972, consisting initially of Christy Moore (vocals, acoustic guitar, bodhrán), Andy Irvine (vocals, mandolin, mandola, bouzouki, hurdy-gurdy, harmonica), Dónal Lunny (bouzouki, guitars ...
,
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous wi ...
with
The Doobie Brothers
The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in 1970 in San Jose, California, known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies. Active for five decades, with their greatest success in the 1970s, ...
."
Twenty first century
In 2003, original members Paul, Maurice, Kieran and Tommy along with Mike Hanrahan got together for a number of reunion concerts. In January 2009 they took to the stage at the West County Hotel,
County Clare
County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,81 ...
. In 2020, ''Beautiful Affair: A Stockton's Wing Retrospective'', was released. The band toured in 2019/2020, and drew on recordings from two concerts in Ennis and Dublin, for the album ''Hometown''. "Showcasing material from across the band’s career", music journalist Ed Power wrote, "it is reminder of their unique blend of the ancient and modern. Folk collides with funk, confessional songwriting with rock ’n roll."
Discography
* ''Stockton's Wing'', 1978
* ''
Take A Chance'', 1980
* ''Light in the Western Sky'', 1982 (deleted)
* ''American Special'', 1984/85 (deleted)
* ''Stockton's Wing Live – Take One'', 1985 (deleted)(re-released 2006)
* ''Full Flight'', 1986 (deleted)
* ''Celtic Roots Revival'', 1988 (deleted)
* ''The Collection'' 1991
* ''The Crooked Rose'', 1992
* ''Letting Go'', 1995
* ''Celtic Collections'', 1997
* ''The Very Best of Irish Jigs, Reels & Songs'' 2005
* ''Live - Take One'' (re-release) 2006
*A Beautiful Affair: A Stockton's Wing Retrospective (2020)
* ''Hometown'' (2022)
References
External links
Stocktons Wing LiveStockton's Wing on YouTube{{Authority control
Irish folk musical groups
Musical groups from County Clare
Ennis
Claddagh Records artists