LIMERICK ROCK BAND ‘REFORM’
When we associate bands with Limerick, we immediately think of Tommy Drennan and The Monarchs or Denis Allen and his band or perhaps the lesser known Berwyn Showband. Gimik was a six-piece outfit that included a young and unknown John (Jon) Kenny and of course, Limerick in 1990s saw Dolores O’Riordan & The Cranberries rise to international fame.
But it mustn’t be forgotten that in there too was the super 3-piece band, ‘Reform’ who made huge strides in both the rock/ beat scene as well as mixing it with the Irish showbands. With regard to the latter, they were truly unique being able to attract big crowds as a 3-piece, considering this was seen to be strictly the territory of the six, seven and eighty-piece showbands of the time.
Reform started out in 1968 as a four-piece with Don O’Connor (drums, vocals), Noel Casey (bass), Joe Mulcahy (rhythm guitar) and Willie Browne (vocals, lead guitar). Willie was seen as the band’s front man and he, along with Don and Noel had been with The Colours Showband. They played their first gig as Reform when they were part of a concert in Amharaclann na Feile in the city centre (now the Belltable Arts Centre) and for their first official ‘gig’ in 1968, they travelled to Kilkee in Co Clare
Towards the end of 1970, Noel Casey exited the band. This move saw rhythm player Joe Mulcahy take over on bass and from here on, they remained as a three-piece.
Music columnist and club deejay Pat Egan, stated in his column on Spotlight Magazine (the Irish music ‘Bible’) that Reform were ‘Ireland’s most popular pop rock band, going on to state that in every dancing venue outside of the ballroom circuit, ‘the Limerick band are the biggest draw’. “Having checked ten country venues about who were the most popular group for dancing, the Reform came out on top,” he wrote. This was in 1971.
The following year they were featured on Ken Stewart’s ‘Ken’s Club’ programme on RTE radio and a short time later, came under the umbrella of manager Oliver Barry, who also had The Freshmen and Wolfe Tones on his books.
A major plus for the lads came in February 1973 when their self-penned composition ‘ I’m Gonna Get You’ was voted No 1 in the RTE television programme ‘Spin Off’ and later that year, having been produced by Billy Brown of the Freshmen, ‘I’m Gonna Get You’ was released on the CBS’s Young Blood label. While ‘ I’m Gonna Get You’ made the Irish charts, just barely missing a top ten spot, their follow-up single in April 1974 (‘One For The Boys’), failed to make it into the charts.
1978 saw them take part in the National Song Contest with their own composition ‘You Gotta’ Get Up’, only to be pipped by Colm Wilkinson who went on to represent Ireland in that year’s Eurovision Song Contest with ‘Born To Sing’. However, the band’s recording of the song made the Irish Top Ten, making it all the way to No 3.
The band continued to perform in venues all over the country up until 1984. They recorded a medley of Buddy Holly numbers that year to mark the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the star’s death, when they were invited by the Limerick Rock ‘n’ Roll Club to top the bill at their Buddy Holly Convention.
2014 saw their first ever collection of music realeased on CD for a project spearheaded by Paddy Brennan of Limerick Rock and Roll Club, keeping the band’s legacy alive in the archives of Limerick music.
Paddy, who was a fan and friend of the band since their humble beginnings in 1968, said of them: “They were Limerick’s top band - locally and nationally - in the 70s.”.
“They were a very tight band, renowned for their harmonies, reminiscent of Crosby, Stills & Nash, they put a lot of work into their arrangement, especially the harmonies. They were a band that were able to rock like Status Quo as well.”
While the band were seen mainly as a heavy rock band, this writer liked their quiter songs such as the Crosbie, Stills, Nash & Young hit ‘Teach Your Children’ to name just one. Irishshowbands.com records that Reform played their final gig on August 31, 1984 in Killorglin, Co Kerry. Nice to know that their music is being kept alive in their native city.