WAKING NED

SHAUN DAVEY

Rating:

Original Review: Ah, Ireland. The Emerald isle, ballybegorrah, leprechauns, kiss the blarney stone and tickle me shillelagh. This is the sound of Eire, all right - to the rest of the world, at least. Despite actually being born and raised in Dublin, composer Shaun Davey has managed to pander to every single Gaelic music stereotype in existence in his score for Waking Ned (the "Devine" part of the title was omitted when it was released in England), a comedy about a dead man who wins the lottery.

To give the film it's due, Waking Ned does have a considerable amount of rustic charm, and boasts energetically enjoyable lead performances from sprightly pensioners Ian Bannen and David Kelly. The plot, to make it sound a little less sick, is actually about a man from the village of Tullymore in southern Ireland who wins the Irish Lottery and promptly dies from shock before he can cash in his ticket. Enter the two wily protagonists who, upon finding the late Mr. Devine's body, decide that his vast winnings should be spread evenly amongst the villagers, and set about trying to persuade everyone to play along with their scheme to outwit "the man from the city".

Parts of Waking Ned are so much like Braveheart it's difficult to tell yourself that you're not listening James Horner's Oscar-nominated masterpiece. The similarities are so strong that he could have acted as a ghost-writer for the majority of this score's quieter moments and you would never know the difference. The lush, textural Irish style is extremely popular in Hollywood at the moment, and Shaun Davey (who previously wrote the scores for the film Twelfth Night and the popular British TV series Ballykissangel) is only too happy to oblige with music that drips with Gaelic pathos. Uilleann pipes, pennywhistles, fiddles, bodhran drums and acoustic guitars leap from every corner of the score in cues which alternate from driving traditional tunes to misty, mysterious atmosphere tracks accompanied by dreamy vocals.

'Jackie's Theme', the Braveheart-ish one, is a faraway and romantic sounding tune for a soft whistle, a bed of strings and John McSherry's solo pipe, opening the score in mysterious fashion in 'Let The Draw Begin' so that you are left in no doubt as to which part of the world you are in. Repeat performances in 'An Angel Will Cry' and the deeply moving 'Lux Eterna, My Eternal Friend' allow the score to develop a welcome counterbalance away from all the lively shenanigans that surround it. A spiritual secondary theme, the Latin-inspired 'Lux Eterna', is first heard during 'Cursing In Heaven', and acts as sort of leitmotif to accompany the dear departed Devine on his unexpected journey.

However, the music of the mist-shrouded moors is somewhat overshadowed by the many pull-out-all-the-stops jigs, in which pipes and drums thrash out a series of marvellously active and vibrant scherzo to accompany the camera zooming over the tops of the deep green pastures and craggy coastline of County Kerry. Noticeably spectacular examples of these include the second half of 'Let The Draw Begin', the rampant 'Michael's Ride' (the "naked old man on a motorbike" scene) and the foot-tapping 'The Witches Reel' and 'Tullymore Polka'. Some pure comedy moments occur in 'Red Herrings' courtesy of some mischievous interplay between guitars and recorders, while 'Maggie and Finn' offers some soothing, pastoral romance. The soaring finale, 'The Parting Glass', features the finest rendition of the main theme, as well as a meaningful hymn penned by director Kirk Jones, bringing the score to a resounding close.

In addition to the score, there are several appropriately placed songs dotted around in the CD, including actor James Nesbitt's rich and amusing rendition of 'The Ballad of Ned Devine', and the cracking dirge 'Fisherman's Blues' by The Waterboys, who had an international chart hit the other year with the song "The Whole of the Moon", and who remind me very much of the 1980s Scottish rock band Deacon Blue.

As much as people may say that "Oirish" diddly-aye music is becoming too much of a cliché in Hollywood at the moment, no-one can deny that the effervescent sound and spirit makes for a truly marvellous listening experience. Waking Ned is no exception. By composing Braveheart, The Devil's Own and Titanic (!) in this style, James Horner certainly has a lot to answer for.

Track Listing: Running Time: 62 minutes 13 seconds

Decca 460-939-2 (1998)

Music composed by Shaun Davey. Conducted by Fiachra Trench. Orchestrations by Shaun Davey. Featured musical soloists John McSherry, Nollaig Casey, Artie McGlynn, Liam O'Maonlai, Noel Eccles, Gary Kettel, Paul Clarvis, Raymond McCormac and Shaun Davey. Special vocal performances by James Nesbitt, Ian Bannen, Liam O'Maonlai, Rita Connelly and The Voice Squad. Recorded and mixed by Austin Ince. Edited by Bryan Masterson. Mastered by Mary Kettle. Album produced by Shaun Davey.


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