Those who had the good fortune to see and hear Johnny Loughrey perform on stage were never in any doubt about his place among the legends of country music in Ireland and the UK. The man from Newtownstewart in Co Tyrone brought the Midas touch to his years on the circuit.The Manchester-based singer was only 59 when he died of cancer in 2005. His passing caused an outpouring of sadness and grief among the country music fraternity on both sides of the Irish Sea. Johnny was the ultimate professional who sang from the heart and who put his own stamp on every song he recorded over a 15-year period.
Those who had the good fortune to see and hear Johnny Loughrey perform on stage were never in any doubt about his place among the legends of country music in Ireland and the UK. The man from Newtownstewart in Co Tyrone brought the Midas touch to his years on the circuit.
The Manchester-based singer was only 59 when he died of cancer in 2005. His passing caused an outpouring of sadness and grief among the country music fraternity on both sides of the Irish Sea. Johnny was the ultimate professional who sang from the heart and who put his own stamp on every song he recorded over a 15-year period.
Johnny Loughrey lit up many a stage with his passionate performances of real country music. He had a special fondness for the songs of Marty Robbins and Merle Haggard and his renditions of Big Iron and Today I Started Loving You Again are absolutely in the top league.
“I never went on stage any night without believing that I could improve on any song I had ever sung before. You have to have a passion and a love for what you do and pour your heart into the songs,” he told me after a show around 2003.
Johnny was one of the ultimate professional country singers with a massive love for what he did and an enduring fondness for what good country music is all about.
One of the top men for many years with the Kennedy Construction Company based in Manchester and founded by Joe Kennedy from Doocastle, Co Mayo, Johnny’s other love was always country music and he branched out part time to follow that dream. His recording of The Black Sheep became hugely popular with the Irish in the UK as well as on the newly licensed radio stations here in Ireland.
Johnny was on his way and sometime later, Kevin McCooey from Castleblayney, who was also manager of Big Tom and The Mainliners, took over the diary. Soon Johnny and his band were doing regular shows all over the country and pulling in big crowds. Country fans recognised the quality and sincerity of the man from Newtownstewart.
The magic of the Johnny Loughrey legacy has been captured in a new four-pack release which features all 11 of Johnny’s albums as well as a 19-track DVD of the songs of the legend from Tyrone.
Martin Butterworth from irishmusic.co.uk – the largest retailer of Irish country music on the internet, has just released The Johnny Loughrey Story which is a real treasure for fans of the genial singer.
The first collection features three albums released between 1990 and 1993 under the titles The Black Sheep, Old Photographs and Broken Engagement. The second collection (Volume 2) documents the 1994 to 1997 years with Through the Years, Do You Know and The World of Johnny Loughrey.
Volume 3 features the DVD entitled The World of Johnny Loughrey as well as CDs of The Cold Hard Truth and Run for the Border. The final collection, Volume 4, has his last three albums from the years 2001 to 2005 under the titles of Walking in the Sunshine, Wine and Roses and All Together Now.
The new release can be purchased as individual volumes or as the entire package. Fans of the late legend will snap up this collection by one of the true purveyors of real deal country music.
Full details on The Johnny Loughrey Story can be found on irishmusic.co.uk or at
0044 161 929 5224.
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