Biography
From Limerick… four teens going on twenty… formed while the members were still in secondary school, knowing that when they graduated there weren't going to be any jobs and this might be a way out. Limerick; a decaying industrial seaport in the southwest of Ireland, a city with a bad reputation but a rich musical heritage… where opera sung in Italian can still be heard in bars after mass on Sundays.
After a spurt of rock 'n' roll activity in the mid '60's when a handful of bands made it from Limerick to London and quickly disappeared, the city sank into the musical doldrums. Now in the early '90's there is once more a quiet explosion of bands; namely Touch of Oliver, The Hitchers, They Do It w/Mirrors and The Cranberries (whose singer Dolores O'Riordan supplies guest vocals on the Touch of Oliver song "Carousel").
Diarmuid, Brian, Willie and Hugh were listening to Primal Scream and REM and writing their own songs fast and furiously. Their original five song demo found its way into the hands of Tom Prendergast himself a fellow Limerickian. As he boarded a plane at Shannon to return to the U.S., tears filled his eyes and when he landed at JFK he offered them a contract.
The resulting album was recorded after school hours in the following months. It shows a musical maturity way beyond their years. Lead singer Diarmuid ("Dear Mud") O Sullivan is a gifted singer and writes songs you'll remember after one listen. The name of the band comes from a historical tale when Ireland was under English rule and landlords oversaw the collection of rent from tenant farmers. If the taxman caught up with you it was known as being "touched by Oliver". Now it's your turn to be touched.
Band members:
Diarmuid O Sullivan - vocals & guitar
Hugh Mulqueen - lead guitar & backing vocals
Brian Corr - bass, keyboards & backing vocals
Willie Banks - drums
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