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Commins Calling The man from Lurga,
Charlestown, who died in recent weeks, was a perfectionist when it came
to music and the stage.
Remembering showband star Malachy Tiernan
Commins Calling Michael Cummins MALACHY Tiernan never forgot his showband roots. The man from Lurga, Charlestown, who died in recent weeks, was a perfectionist when it came to music and the stage. He was also one of nature's gentlemen who was always happy and content lending a helping hand to others. Growing up in the 1960s, Malachy caught the showbiz bug from an early stage and started his music career with Mick Mulligan's Band before progressing to the Fab 5. The latter was a catchy name at the time, with obvious associations with the Fab 4, better known as The Beatles. A short time later, Malachy was part of a group of lads who formed the Riviera Showband. The lead singer was Shea Cribbin from Kilkelly (who died in Dublin last year) and the other members included Gerry Foley, Patsy Haugh, Kevin Maloney, John Conway and Brendan O'Grady. Seamus Cox from Aghamore was their manager. It was the golden era of the showbands and The Riviera played dates all over Ireland from 1964 to 1970. They also undertook a number of tours to England where they enjoyed a lot of popularity among the large number of people from the western region who were living and working there at the time. Malachy played saxophone and guitar and also was a vocalist with the band. Later times saw him join his life-long friends, Gerry Foley and Brendan O'Grady, and ‘Roots’ became a popular band on the local circuit. For the past few years, Malachy had his own one- man show and was known as Mr T. Last year, he fulfilled an ambition by recording a selection of tracks for a CD down at Tom Kelly's Studios in Ballina. It contained a variety of styles ranging from big band to rock 'n roll and country, the kind of music which was such an integral part of his life. It was March of 2006 when Malachy was first diagnosed with an illness. He remained positive throughout, never losing his abiding love for the world of music and entertainment. Only last Easter Sunday night, he played a date in McLoughlin's pub in Charlestown. It was in celebration of 50 years in showbiz and it was his second last gig. Over the years, he penned quite an amount of songs. Among them was ‘Love and the Country’ which was a sizeable hit for Shea Cribbin and the band and got quite a few airplays on Raídió Éireann in the late 1960s. Malachy married Vera O'Brien from Bushfield, Charlestown, and they would have celebrated their 36th wedding anniversary this year. They raised a family of three sons and a daughter had had to cope with the great tragedy of losing their son Gary who died in a road accident in 1991 at the age of 16. Later years brought the joy of seeing their son David win Mayo and Connacht club medals with Charlestown Sarsfields as well as sport the Mayo jersey at senior level. Malachy also had a great fondness for the land and the rural way of life. He was always available to help out the neighbours and all had a kind word for this noble gentleman. His great friend, Gerry Foley from Barcul, Kilkelly, said: “The music was his life. He started at the age of 12 with Mick Mulligan's band, the Dixietones. We were together in the Fab 5 and later with the Riviera. He spent a year with Gerry Fahy and The Fleet from Tuam and they toured in Canada. After that, Malachy, Brendan O'Grady and myself formed Roots. "He was a real gentleman and lived for his family and showbiz. We never had an argument over anything in all the years I played in the band alongside him. He was very highly regarded in the locality. He was a friend to all,” said Gerry. The very large attendance at the funeral ceremonies was truly reflective of the special place he had in the hearts of so many. At the Requiem Mass in Charlestown, John Walsh from Claremorris rendered Let it Be, The River, and My Forever Friend while Lorcan Leavy played Sail Along Silvery Moon on the saxophone. Many friends from the showbiz scene were among the congregation. Malachy is survived by his wife Vera and family, David, Alan and Triona, brother Sean (England), daughter-in-law Caroline, Alan's fiancée Naomi, relatives and many friends.
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