Despite having played in Europe on numerous occasions, tonight is the first show in Ireland for Saskatchewan country singer-songwriter Zachary Lucky. The first of two shows on his whistle stop visit to Ireland before he heads on a two-week tour of Europe, Lucky charms the well-attended show with his relaxed storytelling and well-crafted Western songs chosen from his latest record THE WIND, as well as dipping into his 2019 album MIDWESTERN and his Covid-written record, the aptly titled SONGS FOR HARD TIMES.
Despite struggling with jet lag, Lucky is in chipper form from his opening introduction, ‘How are you doing, Dublin?’ followed swiftly by ‘How are you doing, Ontario?’ aimed at the significant Canadian presence in the room. Not surprisingly, the current affairs of the United States are mentioned, remarking how his 10-year-old daughter asks him, ‘What are all the dumpsters doing when she sees the Federal Agency trucks on the streets in the U.S.A.’ He may have only been in Ireland for a day, but he’s up to speed with the Budget announcement of today, which extends the basic income scheme for artists indefinitely in Ireland, joking that he might very well stay in Ireland.
Alongside the chatter and witty engagement, his vocals and guitar playing are top drawer. Material taken from his latest record include the autobiographical Ramblin’ Man (‘Well I've been from Tulsa, across that Great Divide. Only looking for one thing, a little peace of mind’), and Jasper, a tale of a fleeting encounter at a Tuesday night residency he once played (‘Then I heard her say ‘’they always leave me, those prairie boys they’re like the wind, they come around and then they’re gone.’’ And I wonder will she ever love again’). Also from that record is the delightfully simple song, John, written from the perspective of an ordinary man working a snowplough with nothing on his mind but thoughts of getting home to his wife and child. It’s very much a Saskatchewan-based song, and that devotion to Lucky’s home State is also aimed at in Sell All You Have, which is an ode to the numerous small farmers who were and continue to be forced to sell their homesteads to large corporations.
Two selections are taken from the SONGS FOR HARD TIMES, which Lucky notes, tongue in cheek, was described by his partner as the most depressing songs she had heard. Hang Me, oh Hang Me opens the set and also included is the Townes Van Zandt-written, Rex’s Blues. He revisits the MIDWESTERN record with what is very much a song of current times, Revelation Blues, and reminisces on his career with the introspective and set closer, Sometimes I Wonder (How I Got This Far).
A hugely entertaining evening that transported us all into the songwriting craft of Zachary Lucky kicked off with Dublin’s (also jet lagged, having arrived back from the United States the previous day) Kenan Flannery’s set of constantly engaging ballads. His songs ranged from a tribute to Elizabeth Cotton (I Love You Anyway) to a personal tale of a misconstrued date with a lesbian (Different Strokes) and the gentrification of his hometown (Cobblestones).
Review and photography by Declan Culliton