Paddy Casey

Like a young Bob Dylan playful Boho hobo type, but without the Chaplinesque cheeky-chappy schtick), Paddy Casey shuffles onto the stage behind his big purple guitar and officially christens this newest of live music venues in the extreme west of the country (indeed the continent!).

Alone and acoustic, Paddy starts to belt them out with that strong, mature voice and accomplished strumming style. The true mark of quality songwriting comes through when songs are at their most naked, stripped of all studio trickery and jiggery-pokery – just the basic accompaniment and vocal.

Openers ‘Can’t Take That Away’, ‘Would U Be’ and the stunning ‘Fear’ (which NME called “Paddy at his poignant best”) set the tempo and the mood for the evening. The two singles from Amen (So Be It), showed the two sides of the man – the whirling, swirling rush of ‘Whatever Gets U True’ and the plaintive, seductively charming ‘Everybody Wants’. Tonight, delivered back to back, they are triumphant celebrations of success achieved on the artist’s terms.

A mesmerising reading of Prince’s ’80s society-bashing classic ‘Sign O’ the Times’ has the crowd grooving like they haven’t grooved in a while.

He lies and tells us that ‘It’s Over Now’, before returning for an encore of ‘Rainwater’, ‘Goodnight’ and ‘Anyone That’s Yet 2 Come’. By now it’s clear; Paddy Casey is a young man with a huge talent and a lot to say.