Cry Before Dawn: Gone Forever? The answer is a definitive ‘No’.
Almost 18 years apart — the acclaimed Wexford band Cry Before Dawn with two hugely acclaimed multi-platinum albums — have succumbed to fan pressure to reform for some very special concerts including one in the Set Theatre in Kilkenny, in Dublin’s Vicar Street, and at Wexford’s Opera House.
The Kilkenny gig is scheduled for April 16 next.
In 1986 Cry Before Dawn released their first single ‘Follow Me’ with Dawn Records, a song which landed them a deal with international label CBS.
The highly acclaimed debut album Crimes of Conscience spawned three hit records in Ireland: the trad tinged Gone Forever, the gutsy The Seed that’s Been Sown, and the anthemic The Girl in The Ghetto.
These instant classics paved the way for the “difficult” second album, Witness for the World, which in turn produced three major hits for the band: the politically informed ‘Witness for the World’, the Dylanesque ‘Last of the Sun’, and the beautiful melancholy of ‘No Living Without You’. Produced in Los Angeles the recordings had a different sound, but were still instantly recognisable, laced with Brendan Wade’s powerful vocals and intelligent lyrics, Pat Hayes’s pounding, insistent drums, Tony Hall’s delicate yet razor-sharp guitars, and Vinnie Doyle’s looping, virtuoso bass.
Cry Before Dawn have performed on many TV shows including RTE’s The Late Late Show and Kenny Live, as well as a memorable performance of Witness for the World in 1989 on the institution that was the BBC’s Wogan.
Cry Before Dawn had sold out tours all over the UK and Ireland on numerous occasions, even selling out the National Stadium in Dublin.
Steve Belton who played with the band for their final three years from 1989 and 1992 to be joining Brendan, Vinnie, and Pat on stage for the shows.
So it is with huge excitement that Cry Before Dawn will reunite to play The Set Theatre at Langtons on April 16. See www.set.ie for further details.
