Showbands in Ireland

The Irish Showbands were a major force in the Irish famous music, particularly in the local places, for twenty years from the mid-1950s. The Showbands played in dance halls and was loosely based on the six or seven piece Dixieland dance ensemble. The basic showband list include the standard dance numbers, cover versions of pop music hits, ranging from country and western to jazz standard, and rock and roll. Key to the showband’s success was the way to learn and perform songs presently in the record charts. They sometimes played Irish traditional or Ceilidh music and a few included self-composed songs.

source of picture: www.irish-showbands.com