Jimmy MacCarthy announces first live gigs in over a decade in intimate Cork venue

MacCarthy has not performed live since 2015 but he will reunite with his ex-Southpaw bandmate for four nights

Jimmy MacCarthy will return to the stage for the first time since 2015

Singer-songwriter Jimmy MacCarthy has announced his return to performing with a four-night residency in an intimate Cork music venue.

MacCarthy has not performed live since 2015 but after a suite of upcoming gigs in Ballincollig, he will perform two more previously announced shows in Cork and Dublin.

Over four Mondays from late May, MacCarthy will join his ex-Southpaw bandmate Declan Sinnott and The Electric Horsemen at The White Horse in Ballincollig.

They will perform some of MacCarthy’s best-known songs during the residency. He wrote tunes including  Ride On, No Frontiers, Missing You, Katie, and Mystic Lipstick.

"These shows will truly be special nights for long-time fans of both musicians who remember their many performances together throughout Ireland in 1979, and a chance to hear all of Jimmy’s popular compositions," MacCarthy's website states.

The gigs will take place on May 25, June 1, June 8 and June 15. Tickets are now on sale for €24.54 from Eventbrite.

Jimmy MacCarthy will perform two further shows in Cork and Dublin after his nights at The White Horse

On October 1, MacCarthy and his band The Acoustic Horseman will take to the stage of Cork Opera House with special guests Nollaig Casey, Steve Cooney, James Blennerhassett and Paul McAteer. He will perform his iconic songs and share the stories behind them.

The same line-up will perform at the National Concert Hall in Dublin on October 14.

MacCarthy, 73, was born in Macroom and discovered a love of music at a young age, getting his first guitar at seven.

In the late 1970s, he formed the band Southpaw with ex-Horslips guitarist Declan Sinnott, as well as members Johnny Campbell, Dave Whyte and Teddie Moynihan.

In the 1980s, he became a solo performer and began to focus more on his songwriting. His songs have been performed by the likes of Christy Moore, Mary Black, Mary Coughlan, Maura O’Connell and The Corrs.

In 2013, he was inducted into the IMRO Academy. He previously told the Irish Examiner about how he overcame "crippling stage fright". He married his wife Chen Qiumei in 2020.