On the Town: A once-off concert at Dublin's Vicar Street drew scores of music lovers to its doors this week. Artists such as Jerry Fish and the Mudbug Club, BellX1, Simple Kid and Turn were all on the bill.
"It's a snapshot of the music of our times," said producer Philip King, looking around at the assembled musicians backstage.
The concert, which raised money for Trust, the social service for homeless people, was held to celebrate the launch of the second television series of Other Voices - Songs from a Room.
It drew a full house, including Liz O'Sullivan from Athlone and her friends, Lorraine Johnson, Anita Glynn and Cathy Breen. They were there to hear performances from a number of the artists featured in the series, which was filmed in a 200-year-old church in Dingle last December. The series "enabled something to happen", said King. "It archives the music forever. That's what our work is about." For the musicians, he said: "I think it's opening a door for them . . . There's a variety of different voices here. This year there are more bands, there's a broader scope musically."
Backstage the members of Turn - Ollie Cole, Ian Melady, Martin Quinn and Alan Lee, who are just back from a tour of Eastern Europe, waited with some of the other groups, such as The Tycho Brahe and The Jimmy Cake, for their signal to go on.
First up to perform was the Dublin singer Declan O'Rourke starting with his song, Your World. "When I just wanted to run away, you took my hand and you made me stay," he sang. "Your world is where I want to stay. You're my girl is what I want to say." And thus began the memorable night.
Other Voices - Songs from a Room 2 will be broadcast on RTÉ Network 2 on Tuesday at 11.20 p.m.