Emperors Showband
(1961-1967)
Photo Gallery -
Band Lineups -
Discography
- Audio samples -
Where Are They Now?
The Story
The first mention of the Emperors Showband from Derry we found is an
advert placed in the Irish Independent in November, 1961 by the
band's manager, Ben Martin, looking for gigs. The first gig we have
found listed was in December, 1961 when they were part of a two band
session in the Mecca Ballroom in Lifford. Although it is doubtful
this was their debut gig, it would be safe to say they got their
start in late 1961. Their tag line, when they advertised themselves,
was that they were the "Napoleons of the
North."
As far as we can tell from
advertising, it took the band awhile to get moving outside of the
Derry area. We can find little information about them, even in the
archives of the local Derry People newspaper. There may be
more info about them in the Derry Journal newspaper, but the
archives we have access to go unfortunately don't go beyond 1924. Although the
Emperors
traveled up and down the country, we think this was mainly in the
western part of Ireland as they played often in the North, Sligo, Mayo, Donegal
and Munster, although apparently never in Dublin (no adverts found).
Based on the adverts for the band,
it appears they stopped playing in 1967. We have been unable to find
any information about their line-up except that Jackie Boyd (who
used the stage name Mark Richards) passed away in 2008. We also know
from handouts that the band featured John Richards and Des Dillon
and that they would also be managed by William Duffy. We also
know Nell McDonald was in the band in 1965.
We continue to research the band
and there is more to come.....
click on thumbnails for full image
