.........And later
From Dublin, Brendan
moved "down the country" to Tuam, where he hooked up
with Gerry and the Ohio, one of Ireland's best known
bands. The band was started when Gerry Cronin and
trumpet player Ollie Maloney left the Johnny Flynn
band to go out of their own. However, soon after,
Gerry and Ollie split up and Gerry, as the band
owner, made some drastic changes letting the entire
band go, except sax player Paraic Potter and
keyboard player Billy Potter.
Brendan was brought in along with three other musicians to form
the new band. The photo at the right was taken just a few months
before Brendan moved on, and by that time, Billy Potter had left
the band. Left to right: Eamon Mangan (trumpet), Brendan (bass),
Frankie Coughlan (guitar), Gerry Cronin (vocals), Paraic Potter
(sax), Frank Clancy (keyboards), and Walter Lynch (drums).
The band was managed
by Pat Creighton, brother of famous promoter Andy
Creighton and took the country by storm. In fact, the band
continued on the road until well in the 1980's. Sadly, Gerry
passed away in 1988. Paraic Potter went on to join Ballina's
Jack Ruane Showband and today plays with Sligo based band,
The Jazz Ladds. In the early 1970's, Frank Clancy took his
Farfisa Organ down the road to the Galway based Magic and the
Magic Band, which were formed from the ashes of Murphy
and the Swallows. Brendan continued on his quest, which
brought him back to his home in Limerick.
Once back at home,
Brendan joined forces with former band mate, Billy Brosnan, with
whom he had originally played in The Ambassador 7. They formed
the Wee Four Showband, which played around Limerick and the
surrounding countryside, but as a four piece didn't really play
the showband circuit. (Left to right) Brendan on bass and
vocals, Billy Brosnan on guitar, Harry Hockedy on drums, and
Teddy McCoy on accordion.
Around 1971, the local Parkway Hotel was in the process of
expanding its function room to attract larger dinner dances.
Paddy Ryan, then bar manager for the hotel, realized there was a
potential to draw bigger crowds with bigger names. Paddy then
decided to form the Parkway Orchestra. Over the years, its
members included the late Mick Henchy, Tommy Cantillon, Frank
Phelan, Joe Cantillon, who is now a parish priest in the US, the
late Aidan Darcy, Declan Bourke, Charlie Foley, Gerry Ryan,
Micky Sheedy and Brendan on bass.
The Parkway started to book larger and larger acts, and
eventually attracted stars like Roger Whitaker, Rolf Harris, Val
Doonican, Lonnie Donegan, and The Bachelors. Recounts Paddy, "it
is a tribute to the talent of the Parkway Orchestra that many of
these acts came without any musical director or their own
backing. The orchestra were readers of music and this was very
important. They backed people like Rolf Harris."
Brendan stayed with the Parkway Orchestra for a number of years,
playing for local dinner dances, backing International stars,
and playing for resident dances in the hotel's large function
room. The Parkway became one of the main cabaret venues in the
country over a 15-year period through the seventies. Eventually
though, Brendan got the urge to hit the road" again and in the
late 70's he teamed up with Tommy Drennan and his All Star band
until he finally left Ireland for the United States in 1986.
