Aslan’s final single with their late frontman Christy Dignam was recorded during the pandemic, shortly before his health deteriorated. It’s a cover of The Fields of Athenry – the 1979 Pete St John ballad which, depending on your perspective, is an unofficial national anthem or a self-pitying dirge that deserves to be put out to pasture.
But the song’s merits are beside the point. Aslan bring an epic polish to the recording, Dignam’s vocals giving the release a shiny stadium rock gloss. It’s Aslan as their most uninhibited and emotive.
What’s most impressive is how thoroughly the group conjure the “Aslan” effect on a track, which every Irish person can, for better or worst, quote by rote. Billy McGuinness and Joe Jewell’s guitars have a twinkling U2 quality. Yet the ultimate driving force is Dignam, who imbues in the lyrics a ragged earnestness. He gets under the surface of this boilerplate tune and makes it feel fresh and urgent.
Aslan’s Fields of Athenry came together during a lockdown get-together McGuinness has revealed. “We got the instruments out, and we were playing Aslan songs – and that threw us into a frame of mind of, ‘What could we do now?” he told the Mirror.
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[ ‘A true legend of Irish music’: Christy Dignam, frontman of Aslan, dies aged 63Opens in new window ]
“Something for Christy, as a tribute to Christy, and as a thank you to the fans for their 40 years of support ... It was the last time we were in the studio with Christy and our last ever recording. Little did we know then that it would be.”
Dignam died on June 13th following a diagnosis a decade previously of amyloidosis, where proteins build up around the organs, and myeloma, a cancer that attacks the bone marrow.
Aslan were never global superstars. But they were a band that Ireland took to its heart. That’s partly because of songs such as This Is and Crazy World. The public also identified with Dignam and his struggles. He overcame childhood abuse and drug addiction, and poured his pain and courage into his music.
“He kind of had everything, which is really annoying,” said Bono on the day of Dignam’s funeral on June 17th. “He was so beautiful, this beautiful man with his devilish laugh and smile and then he sang like an angel and wrote these lyrics. These incredible lyrics.”
Aslan have indicated they will continue to play together in some shape or form, though they acknowledge that without Dignam, “it will never be Aslan in its truest form again”. With a rich catalogue, a cover of Fields of Athenry will have little impact on the singer’s legacy. But he is in fine voice. Whatever about the song itself, how moving to hear him one last time.
