Places, Everyone!…..Venue #14/50: Slane Castle in Slane, County Meath, Ireland

It is not everyday that you can go to your favourite rock concert venue and enjoy high tea or stroll the manicured grounds of a 1500 acre estate. But you can do all of that and more at one of the more picturesque concert venues in the world at Slane Castle in Ireland. Located about a half-hour’s drive north of Dublin, Slane Castle presides over the town of Slane in County Meath. Although the castle itself is hundreds of years old and steeped in the history of the area and the family who owned it for generations, it wasn’t until 1978 that Slane Castle came to the world’s attention as a concert venue. Not surprisingly, it was an Irish band, Thin Lizzy, who headlined the inaugural Slane Castle rock concert. *(Pictured above). In the time since then, some of the biggest names in the world of modern music such as Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, U2, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Metallica and others have all stopped by to perform at the naturally occurring amphitheater that exists just below the castle proper. The concert grounds can accommodate up to 80,000 people, which should give you some sense of the scope of the open land that surrounds the castle. I imagine that it must be a lovely, tranquil spot during non-concert times. For that reason, many couples have gotten married on the grounds of Slane Castle. Many others book suites of rooms that are available for hire and make their dream of living like a royal for a while come true. Still others make day trips to simply hike on the trails that meander through the area. But for us, we are here to rock! There will be no frogs croaking by the pond for the music lovers of the world. It is time for the show to begin. Enjoy!

Any mention of the connection between Slane Castle and live rock concerts begins with Thin Lizzy’s triumphant show in 1978. The mid-to-late 1970s was a time of transition in the world of music. Punk, New Wave and Alternative music was on the rise, especially in England and Ireland. A classic rock machine like Thin Lizzy had made a name for itself in the years prior to that with a string of hits such as “The Boys Are Back in Town”, “Jailbreak”, “Waiting for an Alibi” etc., combined with the star-like antics of frontman Phil Lynott, helped to make the band the pride of Ireland. Having Thin Lizzy headline that first rock concert seemed like a no brainer. However, since it was the first concert ever at Slane Castle, there were some bugs to work out. Only 18,000 fans showed up to watch a day-long festival that also included acts such as a very young U2 premiering songs like “Gloria” from their upcoming album Boy, as well as a band called The Bureau that was made up of members of the former Dexys Midnight Runners after that band had split up. However, when it was time for Thin Lizzy to take the stage, Phil Lynott appeared out of the sky via a helicopter, as a true rock star would do. The band gave a good account of themselves and, just like that, the venerable Slane Castle had been christened as a music venue of note. ***I can’t find any clips of the band playing live at that first show but there exists a news report that you can read here and a fan-created audio only slide show that you can watch here.

If you are an Irish band then it probably goes without saying that Slane Castle would be a place you would want to perform at sometime during your career. U2 are most definitely an Irish band and, as such they have played at Slane Castle on several occasions in addition to that inaugural show and have a long history with the venue as a performance venue but also as a recording studio, as you shall soon see. I would imagine that for bands like Foo Fighters or Metallica, playing at Slane Castle is probably just another venue for them, if we are being honest. It is entirely on another level for an Irish band to come home, as it were and play before an audience composed of people who share the same history and life experiences as members of the band. Many of U2’s songs, especially from their early days, contain charged political references that play differently in Ireland than they do in the rest of the world. While U2 can rip into a song like “Sunday Bloody Sunday” in the middle of the U.S. midwest at Red Rocks Amphitheatre and create an instantly iconic track, it is altogether a different experience for them to play the same song in an area not far removed from where the real events happened, for people who may have actually had family members involved in the violence of that very real day in Irish history. ***As a brief aside, one of my favourite U2 moments (as well as an example of how the cultural history of a region can change the intensity of an audience’s reaction) happened just down the road in Dublin in 2017 when they opened their show with “Sunday Bloody Sunday” and blew the roof off of the stadium they were playing. I wrote a previous post about the background of this song that you can read here. It will be helpful in appreciating the opening moments of that Dublin show. You can watch that clip here. FYI: the song starts just after the 2:00 mark.  You may already be aware that their excellent album The Unforgettable Fire was recorded at Slane Castle, mostly in the King George IV Ballroom (which is known for the excellence of its acoustics). The band members actually lived on location for much of the recording sessions. *You can watch a documentary about that recording session here. In 2001, they recorded a live DVD that was a sort of homecoming for the band, you might say. The band’s Slane Castle show wasn’t as politically charged as the atmosphere would be in Dublin in 2017 but it was still a typical, high octane affair that brought out the best in the band and in the audience, too. From that concert, feel free to watch clips here, here, here and here for “One”,“Beautiful Day”, “Where the Streets Have No Name” and “New Year’s Day”. Enjoy.

Even though I owned The Unforgettable Fire album, the first time that I became aware that Slane Castle existed, let alone that it was a big time concert venue, was when the Red Hot Chili Peppers released a live concert dvd that was recorded there. I have always been a fan of the band but I am also aware of their reputation of being a band that plays hot and cold in concert and that as a ticket-buying member of their audience, you can never quite be sure of the quality of the performance you are going to receive when you arrive to see them play. I have heard stories of people leaving mid-concert because the guys were having an off night. But the opposite story can also be told. When the Red Hot Chili Peppers are on, they are a fantastic live band. It was that version of the band that was captured that night at Slane Castle. In the time since the release of the dvd in 2003, I admit to watching videos on YouTube from that show literally hundreds of times. One of the reasons that the crowd of 80,000 in attendance was so into the show was because that concert was part of a larger weekend festival, known as The Slane Festival, that also saw performances by U2, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age and P.J. Harvey! What a lineup!  If you are interested, here is a news report about that very show. All that I know is that many of my favourite videos of this band playing live come from that 2003 concert at Slane Castle. When the Red Hot Chili Peppers are on, they are easily one of the best live bands in the world. To get a sampling of that concert, click here, here, here and here for “Otherside”,”Californication”, “Don’t Forget Me” and “Can’t Stop”. Enjoy.

Metallica are a band with a big sound. They have a history of performing at some of the largest concerts in history, including one in Moscow for over one million people. So, while 80,000 is a far cry from one million, Metallica was still more than willing to stop by Slane Castle and put on their typical loud, high energy show. While the band played all of their hits, as one would expect, I want to pay particular attention to the song “Whiskey in the Jar”. I say this, in part because of the song itself but, also because one of the other things that Slane Castle is known for is that it is home to an excellent whiskey distillery simply known as Slane Irish Whiskey Distillery. However, the song also has deep Irish roots. It was originally a folk song about a highwayman and his love life made famous by The Dubliners and then by Thin Lizzy. Needless to say, the old pros in Metallica certainly know how to appeal to an audience, which they did by including this classic tune in the setlist of their concert at Slane Castle in 2019. From that concert, please enjoy “Whiskey in the Jar”, “One”, “Master of Puppets” and “Enter Sandman” here , here, here and here.     

The full story of Slane Castle is one that far predates its transition to becoming a first rate concert venue. The original Slane Castle was built in 1703 on land that has a long history of being conquered, confiscated and, generally speaking, traded among a variety of competing factions in the centuries prior to it being purchased by the Conyngham Family, who commissioned the castle and have lived in it ever since. The man who decided to transform Slane Castle into a concert venue was known as Henry Vivian Pierpoint Conyngham, the 8th Marquess Conyngham. There is obviously a more detailed version of the history of Slane Castle than that but I find the peerage system confusing so I will leave the actual names of Barons, Counts and Lords as being something that you can look up yourself if you are so inclined. For now, all that I know is that Slane Castle has evolved from being a refuge of the aristocracy and has become more a place of the people. If you like your music loud then, by all means, come to the Slane Festival and see your favourite bands in a beautiful setting. If rock concerts are a bit much for your sensibilities then drop by for tea and a stroll of the grounds. If your heart is filled with thoughts of romance then book your wedding there. Imagine how lovely your wedding photos would be! Finally, if you ever decide to act on your bucket list and tour Ireland, you can stay at Slane Castle and dine in a room with gilded decor while sleeping at night in a four-post bed. If you could swing it, why would you stay at a chain hotel when you could stay at a place like Slane Castle?!  If any or all of this interests you, please check out the official website for Slane Castle, which you can find here.

Thanks for coming along for the journey. If you have ever been to Slane Castle, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. If you have any other questions or comments about any of the Slane Castle concerts or other amenities, please let me know about that in the comment box, too. Finally, while I have a list of venues ready to go for upcoming posts, if you have any venues that you would like me to write about, let me know and I will make it so. For now, I thank you for reading my words and I wish you all a wonderful rest of your day. Take care. Bye for now.