by Rhea H. Boyden
The entrance hallway of Dublin’s club Number Twenty-Two is adorned with quite an impressive collection of black and white photos which give you an insight into the history of the clubs which were on this same location over the past 50 years. Number Twenty-Two opened its doors last November, but in the past System Nightclub, McGonagle’s and The Crystal Ballroom were located on this same spot. The walls are hung with excellent prints of Rory Gallagher, Van Morrison, The Virgin Prunes and Thin Lizzy, as well as photos of a very young looking Bono and Adam Clayton. All of these musicians performed or made their debut at the iconic McGonagle’s club in the 70s and 80s. I am sure many who came to McGonagle’s would get a rush of nostalgia when looking at these photos. And while I am not a Dublin native and was never at these clubs in my youth, it was a nostalgia for the classics of the 80s and 90s that had drawn me to attend Flashback which has now been running on Fridays for a little over a month at Number Twenty-Two.
Flashback is a sister gig to the recently premiered Glitterball club night on the same location. It is presented in association with the expanded PHEVER: DJ agency headed up by DJ/Producer Dean Sherry who is the weekend promoter and booker with Number Twenty-Two. Flashback Fridays showcases an excellent selection of expertly remixed and classic tunes from the 80s and 90s presented by a team of talented Djs. I was not disappointed as I walked down into the club and heard DJ Tom playing the music I had danced to in the late eighties and early nineties, including hits from Dire Straits, Gloria Estefan, Madonna, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Micheal Jackson, Simply Red and The Pretenders. The music is accompanied by an excellent visual and lightshow created by Christian Boshell of bakroom visuals.
DJ Tom
One of the reasons I was also very much drawn to the Flashback event is because it is also attempting, alongside the faster-paced dance music, to bring back the slow dance set which was a feature of many Irish night clubs and discos in the late 80s and early 90s. When I was 17 and 18 I lived in Bantry, West Cork where my friends and I would go to our local club Amadeus. The slow set was a highly-anticipated part of the evening giving you a chance to dance intimately with someone you liked. I spoke to DJ Tom and he told me he had also DJ’d at Amadeus back in 2001. On the night I was at Flashback he also played Falco’s hit ‘Amadeus’ which made me smile from ear to ear and brought memories flooding back to me. Naturally this was a song that was played frequently in our West Cork club of the same name. I was curious to know what my friends thought of a slow set revival and what their favourite slow set songs were from our teenage years and so I turned to Facebook for feedback. The response was overwhelming. My friends posted all their favourite classic songs from both the slow and faster-paced sets and also posted many comments with their memories of our exciting teenage years. My friend Flora Wieler from school in Bantry said: ‘I cringe and blush when I think about it, but I loved the slow set – my favourite songs were ‘Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me’ by George Michael and ‘I Will Always Love You’ by Whitney Houston. Another good school friend of mine, Hannah Dare, added: ‘I remember the anticipation and the fear of the slow set. Girls on one side and boys on the other. Who would cross the divide?’ Hannah also told me that the opening bars of ‘Take my Breath Away’ by Berlin still gives her the shivers. Other favourite tracks were ‘Crazy for You’ by Madonna, ‘Careless Whisper’ by George Michael and ‘It Must Have Been Love’ by Roxette. These were the same three songs that DJ Tom played for his slow set two weeks ago.
PHEVER:TV-Radio DJ Gavin Duffy is another DJ who is featured at Flashback and last Friday he played hits such as ‘Holding Out For A Hero’ by Bonnie Tyler and ‘Dancing on the Ceiling’ by Lionel Richie. I asked Gavin about the slow set and he said: ‘People are a little shy and slow to embrace it but there is definitely interest and potential.’ I also asked some of the ladies at the club what they thought of the slow set. ‘I LOVE a slow set and I am married. I really hope it picks up,’ one woman told me. I also spoke to singles in their early forties who are very eager for a slow set revival. So far I have just been observing and taking notes but I also intend to go back to Flashback and have hopes of dancing a slow set with someone special. It seems that both singles and couples are eager to embrace a revival especially in an age awash with online dating and social media interactions. But while we await the slow set with the same nervous anticipation of our youth we can continue dancing to the large and superb selection of faster-paced classic hits that are delivered weekly by talented Djs in the lavish and inviting setting that is club Number Twenty-Two.
Number Twenty-Two is at South Anne Street in Dublin city centre – Just off Grafton Street.
Flashback opens at 11pm and admission is free before midnight – Smart dress, over 25s
Flashback Graphic logo by Christian Boshell
Photo of DJ Gavin Duffy by Mark Walsh
rheaboyden
Rhea Boyden 