Bridge over troubled waters
Yesterday marked the opening of a new bridge in Mullingar, named in honour of the town’s greatest son Joe Dolan.
Joe Dolan
I met Joe a couple of times in my youth, and I know his brother Ben. While I wasn’t into his music I recognise talent (more than Simon Cowell and weepy Cheryl) and Joe had it in spades. Through his artistry over many decades he brought joy to hundreds of thousands of people. Success breeds success, and everyone knows that among those who caddied for Joe was a young Michael O’Leary who even then was probably dreaming of ruling the skies.
I do feel, however, that Joe would be appalled at a bridge being named after him. There was the really sickening display of the official opening, carried out by Noeleen Dempsey, who took the opportunity to remind people that it was fast approaching that time of the year when he’d be off on the piste again. “From Aspen we’ll probably go to some nice Caribbean island, from where I can control Ireland’s transport better than if I was really there, an’ once again there can come blizzards and snow storms and yez will have to be diggin’ yourselves out a ten foot snowdrifts, an’ I won’t give an earwig’s fart”. I suppose the event was also attended by examples of pond life from the local Destiny’s Mercenaries, including Camillus “Rocky” Glinn and Wiggy, while the local blueshirts were no doubt there in force along with the requisite panoply of over-paid, over-fed, bureaucratic filth. Where were all the political puppets when, an indecently short time after Joe’s death, hundreds of thousands of euro was being clawed back in allegedly underpaid tax, to pay Senator Callely’s travel expenses?
I so recall Joe’s participation in a tribute show hosted by BB Baskin for former taoiseach Albert Reynolds. Joe’s comment about Albert will stay with me forever. “Albert Reynolds is probably the daysentest fella in the racket oops I mean the business.”
As for the title of this post, I’m sure I heard Joe sing the song./
