Hall of Fame rocker to be given title of Honorary Cork Person 

At his 2012 induction into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame, it was stated that he had "singlehandedly initiated the Psychedelic Revolution"

Donovan and his wife Linda Lawrence will be bestowed with the title of 'Honorary Cork Persons'. Photo: Gavin Browne

A rock icon who was one of the first musicians to highlight climate change is to make a rare public appearance when both he and his wife will be bestowed with the title of 'Honorary Cork Persons'.

Many younger people will not be aware of the name Donovan but will have heard his hits, while those of an older vintage will affectionately trot out the lines of such classics as, Catch the Wind, Sunshine Superman, Mellow Yellow, Universal Soldier, Colours and Hurdy Gurdy Man.

'Donovan' Leitch and his wife, Linda Lawrence, have been quietly living in North Cork for several years and they're to receive the accolades for their long-standing presence in the county.

At his 2012 induction into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame, it was stated that Donovan had "singlehandedly initiated the Psychedelic Revolution" with Sunshine Superman, an album which he created at the age of 19.

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Two years later Donovan was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and he's received numerous other prestigious awards over the years.

These have included The Ivor Novello Award for Songwriting for his first song 'Catch the Wind', and Broadcast Music Inc.’s, Icon Award, for his 'unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers.'

Last May, Donovan released the song 'I Am The Shaman' to mark his 75th birthday, the video for which was directed by the renowned American film director, David Lynch.

Donovan is considered a significant influence on The Beatles’ music, such as Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, after having become a tutor to them in India and showing them many of his finger-style techniques and unique descending chord patterns that became characteristic of many songs on the White album, in particular.

He's also credited with writing some of the first songs highlighting the need to act on climate change.

The husband and wife team recently released an album entitled Eco-Song, which features 21 songs about climate change, and is dedicated to the young climate activist, Greta Thunberg.

In 1968, Donovan told the world to listen to Mother Nature’s wake-up call through the lyrics of his song ‘Atlantis’; “wake-up, wake-up… as the elders of our time choose to remain blind”.

Very recently, inspired by young people's climate marches, he wrote ‘Slow Down World’, an eco-themed opera for schools, which can be downloaded for free from his website.

Donovan’s work can also be found in many hit films and TV series such as Goodfellas and The Simpsons. He has composed scores for films such as Poor Cow, Brother Sun-Sister Moon, and The Pied Piper.

Meanwhile, Linda, a collage artist, works closely with her husband on his continuing music career, while also being active in fighting climate change with the creation of an animated children’s television series with an ecological theme for pre-teens ‘Tales of Aluna’, and the promotion of Transcendental Meditation.

Married to Donovan for 52 years, she worked on the Eco-Song album over recent years and dedicated it to Greta Thunberg and her followers.

Her critically acclaimed book, ‘Luna Love’, a large format photographic memoir of her and her husband’s life, was released two years ago to mark their 50th wedding anniversary. The book can be viewed by visiting LindaWeb.Me.

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