All About
The Johnny Flynn
Showband
(1940's - 1972)
Photo Gallery -
Band Lineups -
Discography
- Audio samples -
Where Are They Now?
The Story
Article by John Baird and Gerry Gallagher
The
town of Tuam in Co. Galway, has earned a reputation as “the Showband
capital of Ireland” because at one time
in the early 60's, no less than six top class showbands called the
well known market town home. The best known of these was the
Johnny Flynn Showband, a musical combination with its roots
firmly in the tradition of the Tuam Brass Band. This is not
surprising as Tuam's bandmaster, Danny Kelly (senior) was a member
of the original Johnny Flynn Dance band.
The band's story starts long before the era of
the showbands. Back in the 1940's, The Johnny Flynn Dance Band
traveled the length and breadth of the West of Ireland. With Johnny
on accordion, the band could play the standard dance tunes of the
day, as well as a wide variety of ceili, dixieland and country
music. This is one of the distinctions that allowed them to provide
what dancers wanted, a trait the band
would carry for the rest if its history. The band's reputation was
second to none and it was a natural that when the showband boom hit,
Johnny would be right there in the thick of things.
In
1958, Johnny cast aside the music stands and put together his first
fully fledged "showband." The original lineup was: Johnny Flynn
(organ/accordion), brothers Brendan Flynn (sax/clarinet) and Francie
Flynn (bass), Danny Kelly (Jr.-trombone), Billy Potter (guitar),
Frankie Hannon (drums), Ollie Maloney (trumpet) and Gerry Cronin
(vocals).
The band was an immediate success and even out
drew the top bands in the West of Ireland. The band became one
of the first five showbands to touer the United States in 1963. They toured America
during the Lenten season, and while over there recorded a single
featuring Gerry Cronin entitled You Took Her Off My Hands. It
was never released here as the hole in the middle of the record was
too large for a standard record player.
You Took Her Off My
Hands (Now Please Take Her Off My Mind) / Hoots Mon Twist
on Headline records. in New York,
catalog number 1016.
In the early 60's, Ollie Maloney, Gerry Cronin
and Billy Potter left to form the Ohio Showband. The Johnny
Flynn Band continued to travel countrywide and had a huge following
up here in the Nort-west. More tours of the USA and trips to the UK
were undertaken, and they took part in the New York St. Patricks Day
parade in 1963.
As like other bands there were many personnel
changes but the line up that made the most impression on the
recording scene was : Johnny and Francie Flynn, Frankie Hannon, Jim
Dalton, Danny Kelly, Roy Donnelly, Joe McIntyre (Sax) , Billy Kelly
(Trumpet), Pete Creighton (Guitar) and vocalist Pat Smyth who had a
No. 1 hit with “The Black and Tan Gun” in 1966. This fine
line up also recorded many singles and an album entitled “The
Magnificent 7” which covered much of the band,s varied stage
repertoire
Like all the Tuam bands The Flynn Band
featured many brass arrangements, this being their trademark and
their varied dancing programme of pop, dixieland, country, and
ballads was well received by appreciative dancers.
They had in their enigmatic drummer Frankie
“Flash” Hannon a superb drummer and showman and his rendering of
Fats Domino numbers were showstoppers to say the least.
In the early 1970,s the end of the traditional
showband line up was in sight, but Johnny Flynn continued on as The
Johnny Flynn Sound until the end of 1972. This great showband has
left us with a host of memories and will never be forgotten. They
were great musicians all: names like Mickey Eagleton, Mickey Devaney,
Billy Mc Glinchey, Patsy Haugh, Angelina Mc Donagh, Martin Murphy,
and others were a part of this famous Showband.
Sadly Johnny Flynn died in 1996 preceded by
Brendan Flynn, Billy Kelly, Frankie Hannon, Gerry Cronin, Ollie
Maloney and more recently by Jim Dalton. May all the deceased band
members Rest in Peace.
Photo
Gallery
Click on thumbnails for full images
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| Johnny Flynn Band -
1956 (JB) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(JB) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(LR) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (BK) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(LR) |
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Johnny Flynn Showband (BK) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(BS) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(JB) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(PB) |
Johnny Flynn Showband
(JB) |
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| Johnny Flynn Sound
(JB) |
Johnny Flynn Sound
(JB)
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Pat Smith (RM) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
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Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
Johnny Flynn Showband (RM) |
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| Johnny Flynn Showband - 1966
(BF) |
Johnny Flynn
(PH) |
Johnny Flynn Dance Band
- 1950's |
Coming Soon |
Coming Soon |
