Frank and Walters: New radio documentary pays homage to Cork band
The Frank and Walters in 1992 on the set of EastEnders when they were in London to play Top of the Pops. Picture: Dan Linehan
Standing imposingly on the banks of the River Lee, Cork City Hall has witnessed many significant musical events in its history. Rory Gallagher performed there in 1974 during his famous Irish Tour. The Prodigy headlined in 1993 and 1994 and Björk in 1995.
But no other band has arguably had a history so deeply entwined with Alfred Jones's 1936 neo-classical structure as Cork indie institution the Frank and Walters, who played two historic shows in the 1,100-capacity main auditorium in 1993 and just last Christmas. Between those two dates, they made an impact in the indie rock world, went on where they met Paul McCartney, suffered through a period of self-doubt, and then came roaring back as their jangling 1993 hit was reborn as a Cork terrace anthem.
That journey and those two gigs are now chronicled in a gripping valentine to the Franks by documentary maker Paul McDermott, featuring interviews with the group and other figures from Cork music and broadcast on RTÉ Gold on St Patrick’s Day.
“The Franks are one of those bands that have found a whole new audience because of advertising and soundtrack work and all of that — there’s a Roy Keane advert at the moment that’s using ” says McDermott. “Sure enough, I went along to that gig at Christmas time. It was young and old. It was extraordinary. They're still giving it 100%; they seem to be enjoying it. And, my God, I've seen them so many times over the years. That most recent gig there at Christmas time was one of the best I've ever seen.”
Having cut his teeth as a DJ at the iconic Sir Henry's club in Cork in the 1990s, McDermott has become one of the leading chroniclers of Irish rock history. He has made documentaries about cult Cork post-punk figure Finbarr Donnelly (of Five Go Down to the Sea and Nun Attax) and 1980s' outfit Stump and their charismatic leader, Mick Lynch, in addition to hosting a popular podcast about iconic Irish LPs, However, he is upfront that this Frank’s documentary is personal — a celebration both of the legacy of his favourite musicians and also of how much they meant to him as a fan.
He recalls being fresh out of school in the 1990s when the Franks burst onto the alternative pop scene with their early EPs — and that enthusiasm endures, as is clear from interviews in the new documentary with Franks singer Paul Linehan and drummer Ashley Keating.
“For a kid from Cork, hearing local bands make this fresh and incredibly catchy music was a moment never to be forgotten. I was DJing, I was watching the Franks. I was at that last gig before they went off to London. I was at the first gig in Henry’s when they came back from London in October 92, just when [their debut album ] was released.”
With their joyful, playfully catchy songs, the Franks were always going to be successful. However, the point McDermott makes in his documentary is that they benefited from a thriving artistic community in early-1990s Cork, including journalist and gig promoter Shane Fitzsimons’ influential columns (the equal of anything you might read in the or ) and riotously readable and opinionated fanzines run by figures such as printworks owner Jim Morrish, aka Jim Comic, and Morty McCarthy, later drummer with Sultans of Ping.
McDermott’s documentaries make for an enthralling listen, but have the secondary purpose of preserving musical scenes that might otherwise pass out of popular memory. His 2018 oral history of Cork band Microdisney, helped rescue them from the obscurity into which they had been criminally cast and, following the death of lead singer Cathal Coughlan in May 2022, stands as the definitive account of their rise and fall. It is also credited with leading Microdisney to reunite for a series of concerts that have acquired a bittersweet quality following Coughlan’s passing.
“We were asked to compile a Five Go Down to the Sea compilation album a couple of years ago. That would not have happened except for the Donnelly radio documentary years earlier. What’s remarkable, then, is to hear stories about young bands in Cork finding out about Five Go Down to the Sea from that compilation. There’s a lovely kind of circular thing happening here — it is important to mark it,” he says.
“We know that Five Go Down to the Sea didn't sell any records in their heyday. But that’s not the point, is it? The point is that these are important things that should be remembered and should be marked. The Microdisney documentary came about at a perfect time. Seán [O’Hagan, Microdisney co-founder] was kind in some of the things he said about it — if I never did anything again, I would be happy in the knowledge that something I was involved with led to one of my favourite bands getting back together. I got to see one of my favourite bands because I've been doing these kinds of documentaries.”
He has a deep respect for all the musicians he has interviewed and profiled — but acknowledges the Franks are different, and that We'll Always Be Shouting For You (a lyric from their song ) is, above all, a labour of love.
“I’m very much wearing my heart on my sleeve with this one. I make no apologies for that. They put a smile on my face. Thankfully, we have certain things we can depend on: that’s how I look at it. I’m not trying to make this out to be something bigger than it is. But in these cynical times, it is nice that you get people as genuine as Paul and Ashley. It’s hard to be cynical about them. You can’t — what you see is what you get, and the songs speak for themselves.”
- is on RTÉ Gold at 8pm St Patrick’s Day
