John Mac Nally
A Life In Song
A Life In Song.
John Mac Nally's charming biography, A Life in Song, co-authored with New York writer Antonia Felix, chronicles the life of the artist from the country lanes of Dublin to the world's most celebrated concert halls.
John's heartwarming story is told in the informal and entertaining style that characterises his on-stage personality. Anecdotes from his school years provide a light-hearted beginning to the singer's story. He takes us from these formative boyhood years through yarns of his bread-and-butter cabaret appearances during his university education on to tales of travel and performance, people and music.
Share in a remarkable and insightful collection of some of John's favourite photos from the family album as the story is told by the man himself. A Life in Song is an enchanting read that is a must for any fan.
Here is an extract from John's biography:
"On a cold winter's evening, it's a lovely thing to have an Irish coffee. I feel it's my duty as an Irishman to share the secrets of preparing the perfect cup of Irish coffee:
Fill a stemmed glass three-quarters full with hot coffee. Next, pour in a
spoon of sugar, brown if available. It's important to stir until the sugar
has completely dissolved, because this is what makes the cream float on
top. Then add a nip of Irish whiskey. You can use either pouring cream
or whipped cream. The traditionalists use pouring cream, poured into the
coffee over the back of a teaspoon. If you've made the coffee correctly,
the cream will not sink. The magic of the drink is sipping the mixture of
hot coffee, whiskey and blended sugar through the cool cream.
Even more than the traditional drink of Ireland, is is my absolute duty as a singing Irishman to share the story behind what is probably Ireland's most famous piece of culture. Wherever and for whomever I sing, my most requested song is the beloved "Danny Boy."
I never grow tired of singing this song. Most people think it's a love song and it is, but not in the sweetheart -to-sweetheart sense. It's about the love of a father for a son. A man is saying goodbye to his youngest son before the boy goes off to war. His two older sons have already been killed in battle. The father fears that he may die before he ever sees his son again and asks the boy to kneel and say a prayer at his graveside if he is dead when he returns. "Danny Boy" is a rare and moving song that never loses its luster for me. I don't know how many times or in how many places I've sung it, but it never fails to touch my or those who hear it."