"Though The Mountains Be High Above" - Dermot O'Reilly & Lasting Legacies

Since the sea was the way between island and nation
And old ways were new ways in this planters' station,
She's watched all the changes with pride and some sorrow,
Some old ways remain and she hopes that tomorrow
Will kindly tend to the bountiful sea,
And her land and her people will always be free.

She's a West country lady from back in the past,
And she faces the ocean where noisy waves blast
On the rocks, and the wind blows a gale from all quarters,
Or summer sun sparkles on still waters
Down in the bay. - West Country Lady, Dermot O'Reilly

I was in St. John's a few months ago and, as I usually do when I am there, I went to see Fergus O'Byrne and Dermot O'Reilly perform at O'Reilly's Pub. It was the "new" O'Reilly's, but it was more or less the same old crowd: the place wasn't packed (this was an early-evening performance, out of both tourist and holiday seasons), but it was full enough to be noisy and boisterous. It was also full enough to have made up a good crowd for two men who have few if any peers when it comes to a love for and an influence on Newfoundland music and culture, or at least it could have been good if more people in that noisy and boisterous crowd had treated those two excellent and dedicated artists as something more than background music.

But they didn't. Not this night at O'Reilly's. Fergus and Dermot play at O'Reilly's all the time, after all. It's not as if they were singing songs that the regulars hadn't heard plenty of times before or wouldn't be hearing plenty of times again. Most of those regulars grew up hearing Fergus and Dermot sing those same songs.

I grew up hearing a very different set of songs, far removed in genre and distance and culture from the songs that most of the others present were hearing as a background soundtrack for a night out at O'Reilly's. And I don't have the option of wandering down to the pub to see Fergus and Dermot on any given weekend the mood happens to strike me; I only get to hear those songs performed by those two excellent and dedicated artists when I am in town.

So I go, each time. I listen, each time. And when I leave, I look forward to the next time.

This time, we sat up against the far wall while Fergus and Dermot performed their music. They played with the same accomplished professionalism and showed the same unwavering self-respect that I've come to expect from them, an expectation that has never once been disappointed. People stood around the bar and sat at tables and looked to be having a grand time, laughing and talking, circulating and socialising, absorbing the music into their evening even if no one other than the two of us was actually watching the players upon that little stage.

At the end of each song, we clapped; once in a while, another person or two belatedly joined in and clapped along. Even when they didn't, we continued right on. The laughter and talking continued, and so did the music. The two men on stage played as if every eye in that pub were fixed upon them and as if each ear were attentive. They played their music with all of the integrity and respect such music deserves. After the last song of the set came to a close, the two of us clapped again, long and loud. 

Another set was scheduled after a short break but we had to leave, for some reason that seemed important at the time but which I can't recall now. We put on our coats and started out, and on the way we passed by Dermot. He gave the both of us a long look, a knowing twinkle in eyes that looked to me as if they could see clearly in the midst of the thickest fogbank. He smiled a rakishly charming smile. "Thank you, ladies," he said, making a courtly little bow that summed up the situation with wordless perfection.

I left the pub that night looking forward to my next time in town, my next time seeing and hearing those two consummate performers.

I'll be back in a few days, but there will be no next time - not for me, not for my friend, not for those regulars, not for Newfoundland and not for Newfoundlanders. Dermot O'Reilly passed away Saturday morning. He is going to be sorely missed by all of us, by those who listened and by those who did not, as well as by those who saw with wonder-filled newcomer's eyes, those long familiar with and aware of his worth, and those who never had cause to think much about how their own lives may have been influenced. The wonder and the worth and the influence will live on in the music, and in the hearts of those who are moved and touched and occasionally even changed by that music.

Tonight, the thought of never again hearing Dermot sing his beautifully poignant West Country Lady is a difficult thought. Tomorrow, I will remember to be thankful for how fortunate I have been to hear him perform it, and all the rest of those songs, so many times. And I expect that for the rest of my own life I will be hearing that beautifully poignant song, as well as all the rest of those songs, played and sung by so many of the others who have been moved and touched and changed by them.

As legacies go, it's not so bad.

Comments

[Cathryn from New Jersey]

The Old Boys

The old boys are leaving
Leaving one by one
Where young birds go flying
Spread your wings and run
But over the fields by the drystone walls
An eagle will come no more

Welcome were the headlands
St valery behind
No medals worth wasting
On memories of sand
But sweet is the breeze over Raasay
The morning awaits you there

What kind of heroes
Here for us now
Stone leaders, stone preachers
Minnows on flow
But low hang the lights over viewfield
And this night will day see no more

The old boys are leaving
Leaving one by one
Where young birds go flying
Spread your wings and run
But over the fields by the drystone walls
This eagle will come no more

From Runrig's Proterra CD

As a new and enthusiastic fan of Ryan's Fancy, it's sad to know Dermott O'Rielly has passed on. But it's also good to know his voice and contribution will continue on.

[C.J.]

This is a great loss to family, friends, and everyone who loves the music of Newfoundland. I wish I'd been able to see Dermot play once and if I had I'd have wished to see him play 100 times. He sounds like a man who touched lots of people and whose memory will live on in songs and hearts.

Carole

[Brendan Loy]

Thanks so much for this wonderful post... I linked to it over on my site:

http://www.brendanloy.com/wp/2007/02/over-piper-stock-hill-take-the-time-for-to-wander.html

I also blogged about Dermot's passing again here:

http://www.brendanloy.com/wp/2007/02/more-on-dermot-oreilly.html

I only knew of Dermot through "West Country Lady," as recorded on the "All the Best Folk Music of St. John's" CD that my parents and I bought when we visited Newfoundland in 1991. It was my favorite song for several years and remains intimately associated with my childhood. But I had no idea until now of the broader influence that Ryan's Fancy had. As a longtime fan of Great Big Sea and the Barra MacNeils, I'm very grateful to have that insight -- and of course, it makes me all the more saddened at Dermot's passing.

My blog audience is primarily a bunch of sports fans and political junkies, not Newfoundland folk-music fans, but who knows, maybe I'll win a few converts. :)

[lynda]

Hello, Brendan, and welcome. Thank you for the linkage. Since I'm a sports fan and political junkie myself, safe to say you've won at least one new convert to your own blog, and probably some more.

One of my pivotal moments of understanding the "context" of Great Big Sea's music was the night I saw Fergus O'Byrne and Dermot O'Reilly on stage with GBS in St. John's - how they sang and played together and, equally as enlightening, how the crowd responded to them being up there together. It was not so much a matter of seeing a torch that had been passed as it was seeing a torch whose warmth and light was still being shared across generations. I spent a good part of this past ECMA weekend wondering who will comprise the next generation of torch-sharers. That, and simply feeling the loss of a man whose music I loved.

Carole, yes, I think that once would have made you want more. I hope that you and Brendan and anyone else who might be interested would consider getting ahold of the "Songs From The Shows" CD of Ryan's Fancy. It can be ordered from this link

http://www.avondalemusic.com/ryansfancy.html

and it is a wonderful CD. I believe it is the only Ryan's Fancy album that has the full support of the band members, and I am hoping this means that they are the ones getting the royalties for it. I do know for sure that anyone who purchases it will be getting far more than their money's worth in excellent music.

Cathryn, that was beautiful. I read your comment before heading to the ECMA SC on Sunday, and as I was watching Bruce Guthro and listening to his songs, I was thinking about his "alternate identity" with Runrig. I was lucky enough to see Runrig a few years ago in Denmark. Truly a fascinating band, and very moving words you've quoted here.

I do believe Dermot's music - his own songs, his work with Fergus and of course the Ryan's Fancy songs - will be heard and played for many years. And his impact on the music and culture of Newfoundland will probably not be truly quantifiable for many years, since it is still taking place and will continue to do so for some time to come.

Which I hope helps those who loved him and who will miss him the most to smile and be proud in spite of their sadness.

[Brendan Loy]

Thanks for the reply, lynda, and I'm glad you'll be checking out my blog. Though, for the record, I didn't mean I hoped to win a few converts from this site to my blog, I meant that I hoped to win a few converts from my regular blog audience to the wonderful world of Newfoundland/Atlantic Canada folk music! :)

Anyway, thanks for the link and the recommendation - I've been thinking that I should buy a Ryan's Fancy album, but I didn't know which one to get... till now. Thanks!

[lynda]

Point noted, Brendan, and no worries. Converts won for great music or sports or political talk are all good in my book. I'd never been much of one for blogs (reading them or writing in them) till I got this one on the go and wound up hearing from people I'd never have heard from any other way. It's turning out to be quite an intriguing form of interaction and connection.

Though I will certainly grant that of all possible topics, Newfoundland music doesn't usually rate high on the familiarity scale with many folks. All the more reason to be glad for the spreading of the word.

I think you'd really like Ryan's Fancy's Songs From The Shows CD. Some of the tunes on it are ones you might not expect or even be familiar with (not much of the "pub standards," as it were - though there are a few tunes on it that any GBS fan will find familiar), but songs lovely and unique in their own right. The Wild Goose and Fear a'Beatha are two of my own favourites.

[C.J.]

Lynda did you make it to St. John's through the blizzard Monday? I couldn't tell from your last comment where you are now.

Carole

[lynda]

No, we got screwed by Air Canada - far more than by bad weather - and didn't get in to St. John's until Wednesday night. Could have been worse; AC originally had us on the late Thursday night flight.

Good thing I like Halifax so much since I wind up spending quite a bit of unplanned time there. And the delay did give me some time for thinking, especially since I seem to have managed to pick up a flu bug somewhere on that odyssey trying to get to Halifax from TO, so I didn't feel like doing much other than thinking.

Still don't. We got in, shovelled out the car and the driveway and I went to bed. That's mostly where I've been since I got here. It's where I am seriously considering returning to right now.

As I said, lots and lots of time to think. Oh, and to work on a few photos too. I have a perfect "A Face You Can't Help Loving" picture of Alan I am going to put up as soon as I feel good enough to sit up long enough to do the entry. I'm only up now because I'm medicating myself with caffeine.

I don't think I'm going to make either the hockey game or the JSB show tonight. Not unless they all want to come over and have a party in my bedroom.

[Barry Parsons]

Thanks for the post - my own thoughts on Dermot are at http://www.barryparsons.blogspot.com

He will be missed.

[lynda]

Hello, Barry, and thank you. I read your post too. Good words and sweet memories - thank you for sharing both. I've had that same feeling of witnessing a master at work, a pair of masters at work, no matter where it was I was watching Dermot and Fergus play.

I grew up in Los Angeles and have lived in San Francisco and Seattle; over the past years I've seen nearly every "greatest of the great" performer play live. It takes very much to impress me, and those two men certainly did just that, time and again. Integrity, dedication, professionalism...and love.

Yes, Dermot will most certainly be missed. Almost as much as he will be remembered, but I hope nowhere near as much as his memory and his music will continue to be treasured.

I'm glad you got the chance to be there at the NSO show. Here's hoping you have the chance to come back home again soon.

[A.]

Thanks for all you wrote about Dermot. I appreciate it alot.

A.

[lynda]

You're very welcome, A. Thanks to you in turn for taking the time to comment.

Lynda