Luka Bloom
Luka Bloom |
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Luka Bloom (born 23 May 1955, in Newbridge, County Kildare, Ireland as Kevin Barry Moore) is an Irish folk-rock singer-songwriter. He is also the younger brother of Irish folk singer Christy Moore.
"Luka Bloom" name
In order to avoid the pressure of being related to Christy Moore, Bloom adopted the pseudonym "Luka", which is taken from the title of Suzanne Vega's song "Luka" about child abuse. "Bloom" refers to the main character in James Joyce's Ulysses[1]. Bloom is, however, very forthcoming about being Christy Moore's brother.
Music style
Bloom's style of guitar playing is very distinctive. In his early career (when still known by his real name of Barry Moore), Bloom used a fingerpicking style. However, tendinitis in his hands forced him to adopt a heavy and fast strumming style which is the one he still uses and is often credited with his success. He usually plays in the DADGAD tuning and plays his electric acoustic guitar through a bass amplifier and chorus pedal to produce a warm, haunting tone. In more recent years he has performed his sets entirely with a Spanish guitar with softer strings than his steel-strung electric acoustics: this has mellowed his tone somewhat. It is possible his change in guitar choice is related to his tendinitis (see also albums below).
Touring
Bloom began his career in the United States by playing small clubs in Washington, District of Columbia and later in New York City. He was a frequent performer in New York's Greenwich Village at the Red Lion, where he played with Eileen Ivers backing him on fiddle during his "Irishman in Chinatown" tour. (Ivers would also appear on the Riverside album.) His guitars were often introduced by name at gigs.
Bloom toured America frequently through the 1990s, although his current touring schedules take him mostly to Europe.
Albums
Bloom's early albums showcased his frenetic strumming style, including "Delirious" the debut track on Riverside, and his penchant for thoughtful cover songs, an affinity that he maintains even in more recent work. He had previously covered LL Cool J's I Need Love and Elvis Presley's Can't Help Falling In Love on the album The Acoustic Motorbike.
Released in 2000, Keeper of the Flame was an album of cover versions featuring renditions of ABBA's Dancing Queen, Bob Marley's Natural Mystic and the Hunters and Collectors' Throw Your Arms Around Me among others.
Bloom's 2004 acoustic mini-album, Before Sleep Comes, was recorded while he was recovering from tendinitis. He stated that the purpose of the album was "to help bring you closer to sleep, our sometimes elusive night-friend."[2]
Bloom released his album Innocence in 2005. Some of the songs feature a new found interest in Eastern European Romany music and other world music. The album features a more classical guitar and the resonant plucking associated with that style of instrument. In his previous work he relied on steel-stringed guitars that created his distinctive style.
In 2007 he released Tribe, a collaboration with County Clare musician Simon O'Reilly, with O'Reilly composing the music and sending the recordings to Bloom for him to complete with lyrics and singing.
A DVD titled The Man is Alive was released on 20 February 2008. It features concerts filmed in Dublin and at his home in Kildare, a question and answer session with fans, the documentary "My Name is Luka" and a CD of music taken from the two performances.
"Eleven Songs" was released in September 2008, featuring an expanded ensemble of instrumentation, giving the album a distinct sound within his catalogue.
Discography
Barry Moore albums:
- Treaty Stone (1978)
- In Groningen (Barry Moore & Eamon Murray) (1980)
- No Heroes (1982)
Luka Bloom:
- Luka Bloom (1988)
- Riverside (1990)
- The Acoustic Motorbike (1992)
- Turf (1994)
- Salty Heaven (1998)
- Keeper of the Flame (covers project) (2000)
- The Barry Moore Years (compilation) (2001)
- Between the Mountain and the Moon (2001)
- Amsterdam (live) (2003)
- Before Sleep Comes (2004)
- Innocence (2005)
- Tribe (2007)
- The Platinum Collection (compilation) (2007)
- The Man Is Alive (2 DVD + 1 CD set) (2008)
- Eleven Songs (2008)
- Dreams In America (2010)