Ireland-related category
Link to here:Rearcross
Rearcross Hall in Co. Tipperary, Ireland, was demolished recently, after being, for many years, the main venue for dances and all forms of entertainment in the region. Three houses now stand on the site of the old building, which was constructed by voluntary endeavour in the 1930s, with the job completed within a few weeks. Of the dances that were held there, the annual "Legion of Mary Social", as it was known, was the event to be seen at. Other dances were "poor men's affairs", compared to the lavish Legion dance, where everyone turned up in their finery. It was the district's equivalent of Royal Ascot. For any man seeking friendship, romance, or "maybe something more", The Old Hall in Rearcross was the "in" place to be, when The Legion of Mary held their annual jamboree. There was "something for everyone in the audience", on those magical nights. An overseas visitor, touring Ireland, found himself in Rearcross on one balmy [and barmy] 1960s night, when The Legion hooley was centre- stage. So impressed was he with the night's merry-making, that, on his return to The United States, he composed the following verses, in praise of what he had experienced.
"A Magical Irish Night": "I have just come back from Ireland/ And I feel I'm in a trance/ For in a little village there/ I saw a magic dance/ I knew 'twas something special/ When I first walked in the door/ And saw the local people/ Ecstatic on the floor/On stage, the peerless *Rimshots/The greatest of their kind/Played sweet and mellow music/A tonic for the mind/ The ladies were so graceful/ Enchanting and so tall/ Showing off a proud demeanour/ As they stood against the wall/ Such beauty as I witnessed/ Will inspire me all my days/ And had I the skill of Shakespeare/ They'd be honoured in my plays/ That night I first saw Molly/ Whom I always will adore/ Though I also will remember/ Lovely Nora from Foilmore/ I stayed the night in that fair place/ In a storied little pub/ Where the locals served me wisdom/ More nourishing than grub/ The pub was called The Congo/ And they came from near and far/For the purest of strong whiskey/And the banter in the bar/Next day I headed onwards/To an Inn not far away/It was just below the church-yard/If you felt the need to pray/I asked the joyful barman/For a pint of Irish stout/And watched with satisfaction/ As he poured the nectar out/ I have sampled liquid treasures/ In many famous lands/ But nothing of the quality/ Produced by that man's hands/Now I'm back in Yonkers/But my thoughts are far away/In a place where classy ladies/Can be seen by night and day/Where your glass is never empty/And a bed for you to stay/Smiles will always greet you/The mood is never grey/It's a little piece of heaven/I wish I was there today!". Mentioning The Legion of Mary reminds me that everything of any worth in the parish in those times centred around that body. In fact, The Legion of Mary, Muintir Na Tíre, and The Dramatic Society were, in reality, the same thing. They were a bit like The Holy Trinity: three organisations condensed into one. As well as their own never-ending endeavours, The Legion[as they were affectionately known], were available round-the-clock to offer advice and encouragement to lesser-mortals, who might be thinking of organising a humble event of some sort. It was encouragement from The Legion that kept many a lesser organisation in a state of vibrancy, when the going got tough. All sporting activities, both adult and juvenile, in Rearcross from 1971-1983 were organised by The Legion of Mary, and its sister organisations. Their involvement in parish work was primarily of the "hands-on" variety, complemented by verbal encouragement. In fact, there was a well-known local "saying": "When the going gets tough, get going to The Legion". Organisations and individuals always thought of this when they encountered problems of any kind. The Legion put smiles on people's faces at all times, agus beidh siad buioch go deo. It was the most sombre day in Rearcross's history when The Legion decided that their work was completed, and the time had come to disband. Nobody could believe it. People just walked around for days in a zombie-like stupor. Eventually, the sad and bitter truth had to be accepted: our beloved Legion was gone. We shall not see its likes again.
- The Rimshots were amongst the leading showbands in Ireland during the 1960s and 1970s. They were amongst the "babe-magnets" of the entertainment industry of the time. When people heard that The Rimshots were coming to town, it created more excitement than if The Beatles had been booked to appear. A sure sign of any performers magnetism is the ability to attract "groupies", and The Rimshots were pestered by them wherever they went. But, being good christian young men, they never succumbed to the temptation that surrounded them everywhere they went. On the night they made their only Rearcross appearance, the local babes went wild with lust-fuelled excitement. They had never before witnessed such pelvis-thrusting on the local stage and, God love them, they weren't able for it. It was a night of swooning and fainting, with panties and bras flying in all directions. And any men who have the power to make mountainy women swoon and faint with un-restrained happiness, possess a truly rare gift, which should be treasured always. Usually, you'd find more life in a head-of-cabbage which had been left, for 30 years or more, under the searing heat of The Sahara Desert. The following morning, when the hall-owner[ Mícheál sna Portach], arrived to "sweep-up" after the night's merry-making, his eyes were assaulted by the sight of a mountain of female under-garments. He must have thought he had entered a parallel universe. For months afterwards, everyone talked of nothing but The Rimshots, the first celebrities to set-foot on Rearcross soil. Of course you can't please everyone, and some didn't approve of the charismatic troubadours. One man, on entering a pub the-morning-after-the-night-before, was asked by a neighbour: "well Jack, did you go to see The Rimshits last night?" Honest to God, the cruelty and ingratitude of some people is truly astounding! Some members of The Rimshots were nurses, so when the babes would faint, one of the lads would jump from the stage and administer mouth-to-mouth resusitation. Sometimes, when the babes became conscious again, and saw one of their heart-throb heroes stooped over them, the excitement would have been just too much, and they'd fall back into unconsciousness.