County Tipperary stroke survivor triumphs over adversity to record music album

Liam Dwyer recording one of the songs for Heartfelt with Gay Brazel on guitar. The CD was recorded in Gay's studio in Carrick-on-Suir. Picture Anne Marie Magorrian 

Eleven years ago Carrick-on-Suir singer and former Independent councillor Liam Dwyer suffered a serious stroke that left him barely able to speak but he has overcome that huge setback to record a CD called Heartfelt at the age of 77.
Heartfelt has been a labour of love for the former showband frontman from Ard Mhuire, Carrick-on-Suir and a shining example of how he has triumphed over adversity.
When the CD goes on sale in Carrick-on-Suir and Clonmel next week, it will be the culmination of over two years of recording and preparation.
The album is filled with an eclectic mix of folk, country and pop ballads along with songs closely associated with his native Tipperary, Waterford and Kilkenny.
Liam says the 14 songs he sings in Heartfelt are not the lively pop anthems people normally associate with him. They are slower ballads about themes such as love, loss and emigration. He feels the album’s title, Heartfelt, describes many of the songs on the CD.
He has recorded some songs in tribute to his two great friends from Carrick-on-Suir - bass guitarist Stephen Travers, who survived the 1975 Miami Showband massacre, and folk music legend, the late Liam Clancy of the Clancy Brothers. “When I see the job now done, I look back and realise it has given me a new lease of life. It was something I always wanted to do,” he says.
Seeing the cover picture of Heartfelt with Liam sitting proudly on Seskin Hill with a panoramic view of his hometown behind him and hearing him singing on the CD, it’s hard to believe that 11 years ago a devastating stroke left him with little movement on the left side of his body and his speech seriously diminished. He recalls it was a long road back to recovery but he was determined not to let the stroke beat him.
During those dark days, he remembers a friend in the music business, John Duggan of the two-piece group, The Partners, visited him and told him that if he ever recovered his health he should go and record a CD. He has dedicated the Waterford song he sings on Heartfelt, Lovely Déise, to John, a former Waterford hurler who passed away in 2019.
Meanwhile, the late Liam Clancy encouraged him to return to the folk songs he sang back in school at the Monastery CBS in Carrick.
“He told me ‘I think your voice is more suited to folk’ and asked me to think about it and suggested I sing a couple of his songs,” recalls Liam, who in 1983 recorded a CD of Irish folk songs called Liam Dwyer Sings Irish Classics.
He never thought he would record again until Stephen Travers approached him in 2018 to record a peace song he had written, The Calling. It has become the signature song for the Truth and Reconciliation Platform (TaRP), which Stephen co-founded in 2016 to promote peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland. At the time, Stephen was making the Emmy-nominated Netflix documentary about the Miami Showband massacre and Liam also recorded the Clancy Brothers’ famous ballad, The Parting Glass for the programme.
He is featured singing the poignant song with Stephen, Des McAlea, the other survivor of the massacre, and folk singer Tommy Sands in the documentary’s closing scene. Afterwards, Stephen urged Liam to consider recording folk songs, and with further encouragement from another great friend and Carrick based musician Gay Brazel, he embarked on the quest of recording an album for the first time in close to 40 years.
The Parting Glass is one of four ballads synonymous with Liam Clancy that feature on Heartfelt. The others are the haunting Aghado and The Roseville Fair and the Tom Paxton hit The Last Thing On My Mind.

Ralph McTell’s It’s a Long Way From Clare to Here, and another Tom Paxton song Rambling Boy, are other folk ballads on the CD.
Liam also sings two songs composed by Stephen Travers.
They are Annie, a song about emigration Stephen wrote while he lived in England and The Daisy Fields, a song of love and heartbreak about a young single mother whose lover dies. Liam sings it as a duet with well-known Carrick singer Mala Raggett.
As his beloved Carrick-on-Suir is situated at the confluence of three counties, Liam has recorded his own cover versions of Tipp’s anthem, Slievenamon, Kilkenny’s Rose of Mooncoin as well as Waterford’s Lovely Déise.
Heartfelt also features Liam singing some other well-known ballads like Tim Hardin’s A Reason to Believe and Jimmy McCarthy’s Bright Blue Rose.
Liam recorded the album in Gay Brazel’s L.B. Studio at his home in Carrickbeg. Gay accompanies Liam’s singing on guitar and other instruments and also did backing vocals on the album while local photographer Tom Grace snapped the CD’s beautiful cover photo. A photo of a cot fishing boat on the River Suir taken by Carrick man Hugh Faulkner adorns the CD’s back cover.
Declan Aungier from Rathangan, county Kildare plays the piano accordion while Ballyneale musician Tony Egan, who Liam has performed with as part of a music duo for many years, plays the piano on The Last Thing on My Mind recording.
It will be a proud moment for Liam when he sees the CD he has worked so hard to record on sale. His message to people, who have suffered a stroke or other debilitating illness, is not to give up and keep fighting.
“Keep the struggle going,” he urges. “And if you fail, at least you can say to yourself that you tried.”
Heartfelt will cost €12 and will be on sale in Super Valu in Carrick-on-Suir and Golden Discs in Clonmel from next Monday.
Part of its sale proceeds will be donated to Dementia Ireland.

Liam ‘draws the audience into the heart of his songs’

Stephen Travers has written a beautiful tribute to his great friend Liam Dwyer on the sleeve of the Heartfelt CD.
The Carrick-on-Suir born musician, who was seriously injured in the horrific Miami Showband massacre in 1975, describes Heartfelt as “one of the most aptly titled Irish albums of the year”.
He wrote that Liam Dwyer was just like the late Liam Clancy - “a skilful, musical storyteller, who draws the audience into the heart of his songs”.
Stephen remembers visiting Liam in hospital in Clonmel after his stroke and is full of admiration for how he has fought his way back to recover his health and record this CD.
He remembers Liam during his showband days with The Sinners and The Movies, the two bands they set up and performed in together in the 1970s. “He was a great man to pick songs and he was a real dynamo on stage with The Sinners and The Movies.”
Stephen is delighted Liam recorded two of his songs for Heartfelt. He recalls he wrote Annie in 1982 after he and his wife emigrated to England. “I got this awful feeling, we might never come back. As I often do, I exorcised the feeling by writing it down in a song.” Thankfully, he did return to live in Ireland but he noticed the song always resonated with audiences he performed it to in the UK, US and Australia.
The Daisy Fields, meanwhile, focuses on the cruel way society treated single mothers in the past. Renowned Carrick-on-Suir singer Mala Raggett performs the song with Liam. “When Liam said to me there was a song he would like to sing with me, I was only too delighted. It’s a lovely duet,” she says.
Like Stephen, Mala remembers Liam as the best band frontman around in his heyday and she is thrilled he has not let age hold him back from bringing out a CD.
“Another man would have the slippers on and be sitting in front of the television. Liam is not like that,” she quips.
Gay Brazel was honoured Liam recorded the CD at his L.B. Studio, named after his beloved daughter Laura, who passed away in April 2020.
He accompanied Liam on guitar and other instruments and when a serious shoulder injury prevented him from playing music, he performed backing vocals for the album.
Heartfelt is the first full CD to be recorded at the studio based at Gay’s home in Carrickbeg.
“It was a pleasure to work with Liam on the CD.
“He is a very easy going, funny guy.
“It was a learning curve for me and I learned a lot from Liam. I am delighted to have been a part of Heartfelt and wish Liam every success with it,” he adds.

Also read: 

Aisling O'Connor leads Carrick-on-Suir's Stable Lane Digital Hub enterprise