Black 47 to play Newton for the last time

NEWTON — Twenty-five years ago, Larry Kirwan was getting ready for his first gig with the Irish Rock band Black 47. Now Kirwan is getting ready for the band's last go-around to promote their final album, "Last Call."

The group, which played that first gig in the Bronx in October of 1989 will disband this fall, of their own volition.

Black 47 will hit Newton as one of the stops during their the final tour on Saturday, March 1.

Disbanding
"We've never sounded better. We've done what we set out to do, not just with the music either," Kirwan said. "We have been able to promote our political causes as well. We just felt like it was a good idea. It is 25 years to the week. We wanted to control breaking up. We are all still in good health and we are all good friends."

Kirwan is an original member of the band, along with Geoff Blythe (saxophones), Fred Parcells (trombone/whistle) and Thomas Hamlin (drums). Joseph Mulvanerty (uilleann pipes/flutes/bodhran) joined in 2000, and Joseph “Bearclaw” Burcaw (bass) came aboard in 2007.

A quarter of a century in any industry is a long time but in the music business it is an eternity. There are bound to be countless memorable experiences.

"There are so many memories," Kirwan said. "Probably the most memorable would be Farm Aid, with Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson."

Over their career, Black 47 has played more gigs at Shea Stadium than The Beatles, appeared multiple times on Leno, Letterman and O’Brien, starred in a movie with their fans Matt Dillon and Danny Glover, helped spring the Guilford Four and the Birmingham Six from British prisons and saved an Irish immigrant church from the wrecking ball, according to a press release.

So after the final note is played this fall what does the future hold? Well even Kirwan isn't sure.

"I don't have any plans," he explained. "We didn't decide this so that we could do something else. We have this new album that we are focused on. Maybe as it gets closer I will have more of an idea. I have two musicals in New York now but after this I don't know. In the music business it is a matter of doing what you do so opportunities arise. It's very week to week."

But before any of that happens, the band has the Newton show.

Newton Theatre
The show will be "pure Black 47," said Kirwan. "We have never done the same show twice in 2,500 shows. We encourage people to tape or record our shows. We all have an improv background and I guess we never lost that."

As one might expect from the last tour, the show will encompass the band's entire career.

"We have 14 albums and we will probably do a song from each one," Kirwan said. "This is our final album and people have said it is the best so far but the show will be a mixture of both old and new. We tackle songs differently each time we play them. They are never static and over time they develop into different beings."

The show begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $29. The Newton Theatre is located at 234 Spring St., with box office hours Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.