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I wasn’t even there to see them that night.
I first saw The Frames at a Lollapalooza secret show at Chicago’s Metro in August 2006. I’d gone to the gig to see Nada Surf and, despite my general adoration for bands from that part of the world, didn’t know any of this other band’s songs, only that they were from Ireland.
It was my first time traveling to a music festival, my first time in the Windy City. I was following friends around, trying to see as much music as possible. This was back 20 years ago, when I could spend an entire weekend doing this without feeling like I’d been chucked off the Cliffs of Moher.
Nada Surf always put on a great live show every time I’ve seen them perform, but it’s The Frames that I will remember the most from that night.
Their lead singer performed with such passion as the band turned intimate songs into a cathartic group experience. Such is the Irish way. By the time we all sang along to “People Get Ready,” I was a fan.
People all get ready
‘Cause we’re breaking down the bands
Rewrite what’s gone already
And see it through with angry hands
And what has gone before us
Is a lot, is a lot
And who’ll be there to ignore us
When you’re not, when you’re not
And we have all the time in the world
To get it right, to get it right
And we have all the love in the world
To set alight, to set alight
Just look up, just look up
Glen Hansard, the lead singer of The Frames, died in a motorcycle crash this week in Dublin. He was 56. He spent his final night performing music, just as he had spent thousands of nights before.
Walk down Grafton Street in Dublin, and you’ll pass street musicians plying their trade. Live music is a quintessential part of Irish culture, and while nothing beats a trad session in a pub, there’s no easier way to catch a performance than on the streets.
From my first visit to Dublin onward, I’d always try to watch a bit of the buskers. Every now and then, a performer will make it beyond this famous street. The vast majority will not. But those who do will always remain a part of it. Glen Hansard surely was.
His career took him beyond Dublin, beyond The Frames, to Hollywood fame. Yet despite winning an Oscar for “Falling Slowly” from “Once,” with Markéta Irglová, whom he also performed with as The Swell Season, he always returned to Ireland. Every Christmas, he would lead busking gigs for the Dublin Simon Community homeless charity, a cause that was dear to his heart.
Subsequent trips to Ireland have become all the more poignant in recent years. Each time I visit, I have my own memories to add to the pile, many having to do with music, whether it’s in a pub or a tour bus playing something from a local favorite. Increasingly, these songs are from performers who are no longer with us.
The voices of Ireland’s musicians, such as Dolores O’Riordan, Shane MacGowan, and now Glen Hansard, echo across the island, with the already emotional meaning of their music taking on additional weight following their departures. Each one brought Ireland to the world, and the world has returned its love.
And we have all the love in the world
To set alight, to set alight
Just look up, just look up
People all get ready
