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Pete St John

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Pete St John
Born31 January 1932
Dublin,Ireland
Died12 March 2022
Genresfolk
Websitehttp://www.petestjohn.com/

Peter Mooney(31 January 1932 – 12 March 2022), known professionally asPete St John,was an Irishfolksinger-songwriter. Born inDublin,Ireland,[1]he was best known for composing "The Fields of Athenry".[2][3]

Life and career

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St John was born inInchicore,Dublin in 1932.[4]Educated atSynge Street CBSand trained as an electrician, he emigrated to Canada before returning to Ireland in the 1970s.[5]

He wrote "The Fields of Athenry" in 1979, and it has been recorded by several artists, charting in theIrish Singles Charton a number of occasions.[6]A recording byPaddy Reilly,which was released in 1982, remained in the Irish charts for 72 weeks.[7]

St John also composed a number of other modernballads,such as "The Rare Ould Times"and"The Ferryman",which have been recorded by several artists, includingThe Dubliners,James Last,Paddy Reilly,andMary Black.[8][9]A version of "The Rare Ould Times", as sung byDanny Doyle,spent 11 weeks in theIrish Singles Chart,reaching No. 1 in 1978.[10]St John's songs, including "The Rare Ould Times" and "The Ferryman", sometimes express regret for the loss of old certainties (for example the loss ofNelson's Pillarand theMetropole Ballroom,two symbols of old Dublin, as progress makes a "city of my town" ).[11][12]

St John won several awards, including theIrish Music Rights Organisation"Irish Songwriter of the Year".[1][8]He died in Dublin on 12 March 2022, at the age of 90.[8][13]After his funeral Paddy Reilly andGlen Hansardperformed 'Fields of Athenry' at Beaumont House in Dublin as a tribute.[14]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ab"Songwriter Pete St John Honoured".imro.ie.Irish Music Rights Organisation.22 December 2009.Retrieved11 January2018.
  2. ^"Pete St John: Fields of Athenry songwriter dies aged 90".bbc.com.BBC News. 13 March 2022.Retrieved14 March2022.
  3. ^Monaghan, Gabrielle (1 May 2011)."Fame & fortune: Pete St John".thetimes.co.uk.The Times.Retrieved11 January2018.
  4. ^Creedon, Seán (December 2020)."Pete St. John – The Man Who Wrote The Fields Of Athenry".irelandsown.ie.
  5. ^"'Fields of Athenry' composer Pete St John dies aged 90 ".irishtimes.com.Irish Times. 13 March 2022.Retrieved14 March2022.
  6. ^"Irish Charts - Search - Fields of Athenry".irishcharts.ie.Irish Recorded Music Association.Retrieved12 March2022.
  7. ^"Facts and Figures — Longest in the Charts".The Irish Charts.Irish Recorded Music Association.Archivedfrom the original on 27 December 2008.Retrieved21 September2008.
  8. ^abcCrowley, Sinéad (12 March 2022)."Fields of Athenry songwriter Pete St John dies aged 90".rte.ie.
  9. ^"Works".petestjohn.com.Pete St John Official Site.Retrieved11 January2018.
  10. ^"Singles Charts – Placement Search – Rare Ould Times".irishcharts.ie.Irish Music Rights Organisation. Archived fromthe originalon 11 January 2018.Retrieved11 January2018.
  11. ^Murray, Cormac (4 April 2015)."Urban Re-wiring – Dublin's Silicon Docks".Architecture Ireland (Journal).Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland.Archived fromthe originalon 11 January 2018.
  12. ^"The Ferryman – lament for passing of Dublin tradition".Irish Music Daily.Retrieved14 March2022.
  13. ^"Pete St John, songwriter who was loved in Ireland for Fields of Athenry and Dublin in the Rare Auld Times – obituary".telegraph.co.uk.The Telegraph. 15 March 2022.
  14. ^Paddy Reilly and Glen Hansard, Fields Of Athenry,video on YouTube, 4 April 2022
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