Ireland In 50 Albums, No 19: Sacred Heart Hotel, by the Stars of Heaven

The 1986 album came after the band were championed by John Peel and signed to Rough Trade by Geoff Travis 

The Stars of Heaven's finest moment was Sacred Heart Hotel. 

In Rough Trade: Labels Unlimited, Rob Young writes that the records released by the Stars of Heaven on the famed record label, “displayed crafted songwriting in a gentle, Celtic country mode that echoed the pastoral side of The Byrds.” 

As Young’s description suggests, the Stars of Heaven sounded nothing like other Irish bands in the mid-1980s. They shared a love of Big Star, Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons. They had listened to Almost Blue, Elvis Costello’s covers album of country music songs, and wanted to emulate it.