On Culture Night, Friday 22 September, musician Eoghan Burke will perform a set in Athlone Public Library that includes his new song, When The Carnival Returns, which was commissioned as part of Westmeath County Council’s Decade of Centenaries programme. The song explores stories from the Civil War in Westmeath.
In writing the song, Eoghan was partly inspired Westmeath County Council’s Historian in Residence Blog, especially the articles dealing with the story of Richard Bertles and the carnival that took place in Athlone during September 1923, only months after the end of the Civil War. Eoghan explains: ‘I was contemplating the mindset of the people during this chaotic eleven months. Some were directly involved in the conflict, some were everyday people, just waiting for the carnival to return. I found the story of Richard (Dickie) Bertles fascinating as I currently live in Drumraney and his death seemed like a big moment, shocking Westmeath people on both sides. The song explores these desperate days, when neighbour against neighbour, father against son, tragically took up arms against each other, with the final line stating “No one ever wins”.’
The song was recorded with producer Ross Rooney who was involved in Eoghan Burke’s previous four albums and features Adam Downey on drums. The video to go with the song was made by John Fogarty of Making Shapes Design.
Content Last Updated/Reviewed: 13/09/2023