The Orchestras and Showbands of the 1950's and 1960's

Currently listing 1,030 Showbands as of 23 August, 2024
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The era of the Irish showbands actually started in the mid to late 1950's, but really didn't catch fire and explode until the early 1960's. Many books and documentaries have done a good job explaining how and why the showbands came about. What is certain is that a showband had just one job...entertain the crowds and "keep them dancing."

The term "showband" was self-reported as having been coined by the late legendary Belfast musician Dave Glover. In a 1989 interview on BBC Ulster radio he said that although the Clipper Carlton were the first band to put on a show during the night with their "Saturday Night Jukebox" segment, he was the first to add the word to his band's name, becoming The Dave Glover Showband. At the same time, Brendan Bowyer claimed to have coined the term with the Royal Showband in 1957. In a 1995 interview with Hot Press with Joe Jackson, he said "But it was the Royal who were the first to use the word ‘showband’ which soon became totally devalued, as far as I’m concerned.

Actually, although many people have claimed to have coined the term "showband" (and many sincerely believe they did), it has to be remembered that back in the 1950's someone in Belfast had no idea what someone in Waterford was doing, therefore it is obvious they could have each thought they coined the term. In actual fact the BBC Orchestra changed its name in the late 40's or early 50s to the "BBC Show Band." The first band in Ireland to actually call itself a "Show Band" was "Brian McCarthy and his Show Band" in a Cork Examiner newspaper classified advert in May 1952. The first band to use the single word "Showband" was Columba Gallagher, from Strabane and also an original member of the Clipper Carlton who are acknowledged as the first showband, but never used the word as part of their name. The "Columba Gallagher Showband" appeared in the classified ads of the Irish Independent newspaper on April 20, 1955. On the same day in the same paper, the Dave Glover advert read "Dave Glover Orchestra." By the way, in January 1955, the Andy Hennessey Orchestra used the tagline "Ireland's Greatest Showband."

Although in later years the term would come to identify a broad range of musical styles, in the mid 1950's it meant just that...the band included a "show" in the middle of the evening. Usually this "show" included comedy skits, impersonations, or other acts that stopped the crowd in their tracks and they watched the "show" for up to a half hour or more, after which time dancing would be resumed. Click here to listen to Dave's story about the term "showband." (You must have Real Player to hear the streaming audio).

The pictures below are a who's who of the showband scene in the mid 1960's this is the front and back covers of the 1967 Spotlight Annual (kindly contributed by Liam O'Reilly). Click on either photo to get a large size image and the names of all the stars!       

Before the days of electric guitars, keyboards, and synthesizers, brass instruments dominated the music of Ireland. Every showband worth its salt had two, or even three (or more) brass players. Although brass instruments were overtaken by guitars and organs in American and British pop music in the sixties, showbands, and some notable pop acts, continued to feature brass.

This was the period in Irish entertainment history that gave the country its first "superstars." Names like Dickie Rock, Brendan Bowyer, Butch Moore, Brendan O'Brien and many others, came to prominence during the heyday of the showbands in the early to mid-1960's. Ballrooms dotted the countryside and were packed with "punters" every night. Bands like the Capitol, the Clipper Carlton, the Royal Showband, the Miami, and many others created an industry that employed upwards of 10,000 people at its peak.

Of course these bands were huge, but not all bands were making thousands of pounds a night. Thanks to a member of our community, Declan Byrne, we have an exclusive from his late mother's collection of memorabilia. Click on the small photo at the left to see the full size image. For those who can't wait to see, the date was 1966, the band was The Royal Earls Showband, and the fee was £60 for five hours from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Those were the days!

Seeing Double: As you peruse the list below, you will occasionally see the same band name twice, but from different towns. This isn't a mistake and the bands didn't move. Often two bands in different parts of the country would choose the same name. Depending on where they played, this usually did not create a problem, but when it did, one band usually changed its name. There are several great resources about this era in Irish entertainment history including Vincent Power's book, Send 'Em Home Sweatin' and Finbar O'Keefe's book, Goodnight, God Bless and Safe Home.            

The photo at left was donated by Liam O'Reilly and was taken in Donegal in 1963. Each ballroom was running twice a week with top bands in all the venues. Click on the photo for a full size version. Most amazingly, all these halls were within twenty miles of Letterkenny.

**We owe major thanks to Patrick Hoye for his help and continuing support in building this list. A very special thanks to David Dwane of the Western People, Billy Swann, formerly of The Cossacks Showband, Joe Dodd, and Liam O'Reilly of the Columbia Showband (among others), who generously contributed their collections of photographs to the website. Also our thanks go to Michael Nesbitt, Glen Brown, John Baird, Dick Lynott, Jan Lynch, Anne Lynch, Lorraine Clarke, Karl Compton, Paddy Brennan, and Teddie Palmer for additional info and photos.   

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Click on any blue highlighted Showband name (or number - P2/P3, etc.) to see their photos

* All entries with a single asterisk were suggested by one of the following people: David Dwane of the Western People, Billy Swann, formerly of The Cossacks Showband, Joe Dodd, Liam O'Reilly of the Columbia Showband, Michael Nesbitt, Glen Brown, Jan Lynch, Anne Lynch, John Baird, Karl Compton, Lorraine Clarke, Paddy Brennan, and Teddie Palmer

** All entries marked with two asterisks were given to us by Patrick Hoye, a great supporter of the site and member of the era of Irish Showbands. I've asked him on several occasions how he remembers all these names and he said, they just keep coming to him. Thanks Patrick, your help in compiling this list has been invaluable! Patrick played bass with the Jivenaires, Swingtime Aces, New Drifters, and the Joe Dolan Band before emigrating to Boston!

*** All entries marked with two asterisks were taken from a list in Finbar O'Keefe's 2002 book, "Goodnight, God Bless and Safe Home."

^ All entries marked like this come from the 1967 Showband Annual which we received from Liam O'Reilly of Arklow, former member of The Columbia Showband, among others. Thanks Liam for the contribution and photos elsewhere on the site!

Although much has been added since its inception, the basis for this list was from Francis Kennedy's excellent website on Irish Showbands located at: http://www.irishshowbands.net Francis has photos of many of these bands, as well as information on members, showband posters, records sleeves, and a wealth of information. Visit his site today to learn more. Another great site for information on the showbands of the 50's and 60's is at www.jivenaires.com.