Dublin natives
Keith Roberts (vocals, guitar) and
Paul O'Toole (vocals, guitar, mandolin, harmonica) formed
the Young Dubliners in the early 1990s after meeting one another in a Los Angeles pub.
Roberts had been tweaking some Irish ballads of his own and opted that a band would be in order.
O'Toole obliged, as well as
Brendan Holmes (bass). They introduced their hearty rock sound on the Rocky Road EP in 1994; their first studio album
Breathe appeared a year later, as well as new member
Charles Waltz (violin). Their live shows had a jam-like appeal, similar to the vibes of
Phish and the
Dave Matthews Band, therefore, the band excelled. The live effort, Alive Alive O, was released in 1998, but
Waltz left for other musical opportunities. Founding member
Paul O'Toole also departed, but by 2000
the Young Dubliners had expanded into a septet and independently released the critically acclaimed
Red on their OmTown label. Actor Gabriel Byrne got the band to write the theme song for his short-lived television show Madigan Man. Their life on the road kicked into high gear, too. The Young Dubliners spent most of 2001 touring Europe with
Jethro Tull. They also performed at the 2002 Olympics ceremony in Salt Lake City, Utah. That same year,
the Young Dubliners scaled back to a five-piece with
Roberts,
Holmes, the returning
Waltz (violin) and newcomers
Bob Boulding (guitar) and
Dave Ingraham (drums).
Absolutely appeared in June and a joint American tour with
Seven Nations and
Great Big Sea followed. In 2005 the group released Real World, which featured an appearance by Tull frontman Ian Anderson. ~ MacKenzie Wilson