Magic Nights

Fifty years after his debut LP, Christ Moore's latest solo offering sees the Irish icon trawling though his live back catalogue for a two-disc set of 26 never-before-released recordings. Drawn from appearances across Ireland and the UK, Magic Nights proves a perfect companion to 2017's similarly sourced On the Road, adroitly showcasing Moore in his element: before a live audience. Start with the second disc where the accent is on soul-bearing intimacy.

There's a gripping account of Jackson Browne's ‘Before the Deluge’, haunting Appalachian accents on the fretful ‘Only Our Rivers Run Free’ and the forlorn ‘Missing You’. Moore's take on Trent Reznor's ‘Hurt’ dilutes Johnny Cash's valedictory anguish with keening regretfulness. And oh, to have been there for the knowing winks and silky playfulness of ‘Johnny Jump Up’ with its momentary, crowd-pleasing lapse of memory. Marked by greater variety, the first disc boasts a searing take on Charlie Murphy's ‘Burning Times’ recorded in Belfast and dedicated to journalist Lyra McKee and a softly stirring ‘Spancilhill’ with the Glaswegian audience singing along with quiet rapture. Moore aficionados will find much to please here in a blend of familiar songs and some welcome surprises. Kudos, too, to engineer David Meade and producer Jimmy Higgins for clarity of sound and engaging atmosphere.