The Fleadh Mór Tramore - The 30th Anniversary Special
The Fleadh Mór Tramore was one of the biggest music events Waterford had ever seen and took place today in July 1993 at Tramore Racecourse. It was one of the most memorable festival weekends Waterford has ever had, featuring international music superstars like Bob Dylan, Ray Charles, and Joan Baez.
The event was overseen by Mean Fiddler, an organisation founded by Waterford man, Vince Power, in London in 1982. The Mean Fiddler Group, which went on to excel at numerous other renowned festivals including the Reading Music Festival among others, established Fleadh Mór back in Power's hometown of Tramore. The goal was to combine respected Irish and foreign rock, folk, country, and traditional artists to produce the fabled "Lisdoonvarna vibe." Due to Vince Power's connections with Tramore Racecourse, the location was chosen.
Younger Irish bands including Energy Orchard, Power Of Dreams, The Pale, Emperor Of Ice Cream, and a handful of Waterford acts like Soul Reazon and Miss Brown To You were booked at the Fleadh by local Deise music veteran Bruno Browne.
The festival's ticket cost was fairly affordable £25 each day. Acts like Christy Moore, who was just one component of this massive musical collaboration, were selling nights for this sum at the time. You'd be excused for thinking how it could possibly go wrong with so many more top-tier acts on the schedule. This is the story of the sweat, blood, and tears that went into creating the Fleadh Mór and the legacy that lives on to this day.
The Fleadh Mór Tramore – The 30th anniversary on WLR was funded by Coimisiún na Meán, with the Television Licence Fee.
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