Like mother, like son!

Andreas Durkin grew up singing with his mam Kathy - the key performer on his stage! 'I remember the Millennium evening well, it was the evening I had my first gig ever in Cronin"s of Ballinagh with our group Cheap Whiskey,' says Andreas. But he had been lighting up the stage since an early age with his mother. 'I used to go around with Mam the length and breadth of the country, I"d always end up getting on stage to sing with her,' says Andreas, adding that he would always sing The Working Man, the song that remained in the Irish charts for 26 weeks and was the best selling single in Ireland in 1990-91. Well this working man may have inherited some of his talents from his mother, but he"s carrying the Durkin name on merit too. Two weeks ago the Ballinagh native had a successful launch night in the Farnham Arms Hotel in Cavan, for his first album, The Land across the Sea,. 'The night was a great success,' said Andreas. 'The venue was the Farnham Arms... the reason being that a lot of the country artists, including Daniel O"Donnell and my own Mam started out in Ho Down Club, as it was known back then.' The night was packed with entertainment, as Pat Treacy opened the show on the violin and the Dublin City Dancers took the stage. Paddy Cole, TR Dallas, Simon Casey, Gary Gamble, Eamonn Gillespie were among the performing artists. Not to mention Cavan Rose wannabe Fergal (the Gunner) Brady, who had the women going mad! Andreas says the other artists made the night, as the variety of talent drew a huge crowd. 'When Joe (Finnegan of Northern Sound, who was MC) introduced me it was a great buzz. Family were so supportive, even at the launch. They performers such as Paddy Cole were all there. I"d met them through Mam years before but I"ve worked with a lot of them since, including Paddy, so I gained their support on the night as an individual artist,' says Andreas. When asked what traits he shares with his mother, he replied: 'Personality-wise we"re quite similar. As for singing I"m a little bit huskier than she is,' he laughs. 'I suppose you do pick up things, she has influenced me a lot and you pick things up within a family, whether it be mother, brother, sister or father. Most people would say harmony works well. With Mam and me this is true, we kill each other off stage, but I"m so proud of her. It"s like Joe Finnegan asked me if I think I will ever be known as Andreas Durkin or always as Kathy Durkin"s son. I replied either way it"s good for me, it won"t be putting me down or doing me any harm at all,' says Andreas. As a child Andreas suffered a life threatening illness and spent three years in Crumlin Hospital for Sick Children, so it"s not surprising his greatest achievement to date is all his hard work paying off in the form of his first album. 'When I was really sick the doctors said I might not make it to the age of three. I was born with a threatening condition - basically I had no oesophagus. I spent three years there and in that time my mam turned into a nurse. While I was in hospital she learned how to play the guitar,' says Andreas. So a life in music was always on the cards. On the launch night, a raffle raised €1,935 for Crumlin Hospital. 'It was amazing to give something back. When I was in, there were five babies sick with me, two had similar conditions and the other three were very sick. They were all transferred to different hospitals. 'I stayed in Crumlin and I was the only one who lived,' says Andreas, adding that he will make the trip back soon to donate the cheque to the hospital. This young performer shows no signs of slowing down and against all odds has people all over the globe experiencing the Durkin charm. 'I"ve done a lot with Tony Kenny in America as I was the musical director of his show,' says Andreas. What has been the biggest venue or the most memorable moment to date? 'In West Palm Beach we played in the Kravitz Centre. We had two shows and it was amazing to play the piano to both shows of 2,500 people. 'The crowd get you going, if the crowd are with me, it"s a huge buzz. If you can get them to respond it"s a bonus. You see people getting up on stage and falling flat on their face. It"s all about the crowd,' says Andreas. So the Cavan crowd must be good! Already, this young star is working up a name for himself with people in Ireland and abroad showing an interest for his eclectic mix of music, which ranges from Irish to country, western and popular. 'People who follow me keep in contact by email, a sort of a fan base, although I don"t like using that word, I"m not Daniel O"Donnell...,' laughs Andreas. His schedule is already booked to the end of November with a number of gigs in America and his band mate Paul McIntyre getting married at the end of this month. 'We"re booked up till the wedding and then I"m off to America for 10 days, where I"ll play four or five gigs on my own. Then home December 12 when all the Christmas parties and gigs will be in full swing, so it"s busy.' The new album has classics such as Hills of Donegal, Golden Silver Days and Summer In Dublin and a live track recorded in the US. With record company Ceol on board, the albums are on the shelves nationwide, including Multisound in Cavan. 'It"s great. I"d just like to say a special thanks to all at the Farnham and Oliver, Ann and Mickey, who helped make my night a great success,' says Andreas. Since 2005 he has toured America, the UK and parts of Europe with his Mam as well as around Ireland with Cheap Whiskey. Andreas has also entertained on numerous Caribbean cruises. Next month he returns to American to perform on his own. With one album under his belt who knows what"s next for Andreas? Contact 087-7738551 or andreasdurkin@yahoo.com