Four Men and a Dog is an Irish traditional band that emerged in 1990 during the Belfast Folk Festival. The band plays Irish traditional music with a mixture of different other genres, including rock, jazz, blues, bluegrass, swing, salsa, polka and even rap. They originally had their name because of former singer Mick Daly's nickname; "The Black Dog". Daly was later replaced with Kevin Doherty. Other original members included Gino Lupari, Donal Murphy, Brian McGrath, and Cathal Hayden.[1]
Their debut album, Barking Mad (1991), was granted Folk Roots magazine's "Album of the Year" award,[2] the first time that an Irish group had that honour.[1] Line-up changes ensued before in 1993, Shifting Gravel, their second album, was not well received by critics nor the public. Their displeasure was centered around Doherty's pop/rock leanings, which overwhelmed the earlier pure Celtic undertones of the group.[2]
They met The Band in 1994, and recorded their album Doctor A's Secret Remedies (1995)[2] at Levon Helm's studio in Woodstock, New York, with musical guests Garth Hudson and Randy Ciarlante. Rick Danko also joined Four Men and a Dog on a UK tour where they played some of The Band's classics.
Long Roads followed in 1996.[1]
Band members
- Cathal Hayden (fiddle)
- Gerry O'Connor (banjo, fiddle)
- Gino Lupari (bodhran, bones, vocals)
- Kevin Doherty (guitar, vocals)
- Dónal Murphy (accordion)
Discography
- Barking Mad (1991)
- Shifting Gravel (1993)
- Doctor A's Secret Remedies (1995)
- Long Roads (1996)
- Maybe Tonight (2003)
- Wallop the Spot (2007)
References
- ^ a b c "Four Men & A Dog | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
- ^ a b c Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 483. ISBN 1-85227-745-9.