The Shillelagh Sisters – Give Me My Freedom
CBS – A 4217 [1984]
Give Me My Freedom / Teasin’ Cheatin’ Man
The Shillelagh Sisters formed in 1983 with Jacquie O’Sullivan (vocals), Lynder Halpin (double bass), Mitzi Ryan (drums), and Patricia “Trisha” O’Flynn (saxophone). Halpin and O’Sullivan’s boyfriends were Boz Boorer and Phil Bloomberg of the Polecats.The group also originally included Helen Shadow (Johnson Family, Killer Brew) on guitar. She was eventually replaced by Boz Boorer (although the label did not want him to figure in the video clips or the TV appearances, probably to keep the “girls group” image intact).
The Shillelagh Sisters gained a cult following playing Rockabilly-tinged tunes with wild energy bordering on Punk sometimes which caught the attention of CBS who signed them. In April 1984 they released the first of their two singles for CBS produced by Phil Bloomberg (who also managed the band).
Sadly, whereas the band sounded like an eighties answer to the Collins Kids (listen to their Peel sessions), the label favoured a more radio friendly sound.
The A-side is a cover of a relatively obscure 1967 Northern Soul track by the Glories, an American girl group. The song is catchy and driven by O’Sullivan’s superb voice, which is perfectly suited to the material, but the very ’80s production somewhat spoils the overall effect. A completely unnecessary club remix version of over six minutes was also released by the label (despite a short but good guitar solo by Boz Boorer).
More successful is the swinging Teasin’ Cheatin’ Man propelled by Lynder’s powerful double bass (who also composed the tune) halfway between Rockabilly and the Sisters groups of the 40s (Andrew, Dinning and others), still with an eighties touch that works better than on the A-side.
Fred “Virgil” Turgis
