Wolfe Tones on the way back to Derry for Millennium Forum concert

“It was a dream come true,“ says  72year-old Wolfe Tones member Tommy Byrne.

“I was a young lad in my late teens, touring the country to any fleadh that was going.  Hiking, staying in hostels, the guitar was never far away.

“I had a love of folk song from childhood, but that developed into a love of American Folk song, Joan Baez was one of my favourites.

“The folk song captured the story of the day, it told it in a way that was incomparable to any other medium and I loved that.”

It was August 1964 when a 19 year old Tommy Byrne met with three fellow Dubliners at the Fleadh in Elphin, Co. Roscommon.

Little did he know that he was about to embark on a career that would span at least 54 years and one that would see him become one of the most iconic ballad singers of his generation.

“The lads asked to me to join them in a group they had going at the time.  There was no permanent name to the group, the Robert Emmet’s had been mentioned at one time.

“We were all patriotic, proud to be Irish and proud of our country’s ballad heritage.

“Theobald Wolfe Tone was the father of Irish republicanism, it seemed to fit well with four teenagers who had a love of singing the patriotic songs we learned at school.

“And so The Wolfe Tones were born.

“I had a full time job as a messenger in Guinness in Dublin, I didn’t pack the job in immediately though. Until the late nights getting home from gigs and early morning starts eventually came to a head, I’d a decision to make.

“So I decided to leave the security of what was considered to be a job for life in Guinness in those days, and throw my lot in with The Wolfe Tones.”

“This was the era of the showband.

“We used to get gigs opening for different showbands around the country.

“I suppose busking on a street in Killarney gave us our first break.

“By nothing more than luck, a Canadian film crew had passed our way and decided to record some of our songs. We made an impression, and were asked to record later in Dublin. The next thing we knew, we were featuring in a TV show in North America.”

When asked about his first journey to perform in the north, Tommy instantly recalls his first visit to Derry.

“Some of my earliest memories of travelling to the north involve Derry.

“The Stardust shows many years ago now definitely stand out.

“I think it was the Stardust when we first performed the Ballad of Joe McDonnell, the reaction from the audience was unbelievable.

“The People of Derry were always very hospitable and friendly towards The Wolfe Tones, and even to this day, the reception we receive in the Millennium Forum blows us away every time.”

When asked how long The Wolfe Tones journey can continue for, Tommy Byrne is philosophical.

“We’ve been blessed with the career we’ve had, 54 years, where did they go to! There are so many highlights, but most important are the people we’ve met along the way.

“I’ve had a wonderful life because of music and The Wolfe Tones, if it was to end tomorrow, I’d have nothing to complain about.

“We’ve slowed down our touring schedule big time, it’s at a more comfortable level now, and as long as we have our health, and as long as people want to listen to our music, I hope we’ll find a stage somewhere to perform.

“One thing is for certain, we’ve more years behind us than ahead of us!”

To see The Wolfe Tones on the concert stage, the Millennium Forum on August 12 is your chance.

Tickets costing £25 are available from 028 7126 44 55 and online at www.millenniumforum.co.uk.