This article is from page 4 of the 2006-04-18 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
BRUCE Springsteen could be in line for a surprise Clare concert in the near future, The Clare People can exclusively reveal. This is according to Jim Aiken, head of Ireland’s largest promotion company, Aiken Promotions. The company are currently promoting the New Jersey rocker’s sold-out concert in the Point Depot in Dublin next month.
Mr Aiken also revealed that the Lisdoonvarna Music Festival in its former glory will never again take place, but that a revamped festival could take its place in Lisdoonvarna or elsewhere in the county.
“To revive the old festival would be impossible. It would be just too hard to get planning. But there is no reason why a new festival cannot be designed,” said Mr Aiken. “If Paddy Doherty and Christy Moore came on board, I would be more than ready to listen.”
Aiken Promotions attempted to revive the music festival in Lisdoonvarna in 2004 but were forced to relocate to the RDS in Dublin when planning permission was refused by Clare County Council.
While he refused to criticise Clare County Council directly, he did say that planning permission was the main stumbling block to resurrecting the festival and commented on “the fantastic endorsement that Galway City Council has given” for the recently-announced Andrea Bocelli concert.
“We attempted to revive the Lisdoonvarna festival but it is very difficult,” continued Mr Aiken. “Look at Bruce Springsteen’s new album. If he decided to do a folk festival and someone asked me where to go with it, I would say Clare.”
Interestingly, Mr Aiken also indicated that he would be interested in bringing big-name performers to Clare if the GAA go ahead with plans to build a new stadium capable of hosting major events.
“Nobody can predict what way music is going to go but, in the future, I can see a lot of venues hosting more than one type of sport, along with musical events,” continued Mr Aiken. “You need to have a good audience that appreciates music and a venue that is the right place for the right act.
“It is the way music is developing. It is also a business decision. People like coming to the West of Ireland and this just gives them one more reason to do so.”