B-Side the Leeside: Mic Christopher - Live At The Lobby

Mic Christopher by Patrick Glennon
Just before midnight on September 20, 2001 an enthusiastic chorus of “Happy Birthday” rang out in the upstairs function room of the Lobby Bar in Cork. The recipient of the good wishes was a young Dublin man wearing a broad smile and a beanie hat pulled low over his head. He was to turn 32 the next day. Two months later, he would die tragically.
Mic Christopher was on the path to becoming one of the great Irish songwriters of his generation. He had unassuming manner yet was held in near awe by peers such as Glen Hansard and Mundy. Christopher, they believed, was a unique talent. And anyone who saw him in the Lobby on Union Quay 20 years ago could only have agreed. They would have shuffled into the cool autumn night, the air carrying just a hint of a chill, certain they had seen a coming star of Irish music.