The Band Of Moonlight Love was first formed back in 2004 to perform a small tour of shows in the Netherlands. Robin joined forces with fellow West Seventies member Mick Morris and the two recruited Adrian Hart on fiddle, who at the time was also playing alongside Robin in the group Gael Slí.
The line-up saw Robin and Mick both sharing vocals, guitar and mandolin and they quickly found a warm, rich harmonising sound in their performances together which went on to charm audiences all across Europe. The flexibility of their musicianship and their diverse musical tastes brought many styles of music into the melting pot, from original material of their own to Irish trad and to folk music from all over, from old time country to classic pop, rock and Americana, and more besides!
The Band expanded to a full line-up in order to play larger festivals and also to record material, and this saw new members joining up to bring many new tones to the musical palette.
The line-up became more of a collective, centred around the core of Robin and Mick, with fiddle, concertina, whistle, bodhran, drums, bass and banjo all entering the mix.
The Band Of Moonlight Love has become a wonderful, musically strong and diverse vehicle which has seen Robin and Mick together bringing their music as far as a Bavarian castle and a Norwegian civil service staff canteen, along with famous festivals such as the Electric Picnic in Ireland, Skagen Festival in Denmark and the Balver Hoehle Irish Festival in the Balver Caves in Germany.
In addition, the band has collaborated on many of Robin’s studio recordings.
Robin and Mick still love to play music together, for fun or for performance, and they play concerts together every week in Dublin as well as regular shows elsewhere. (Keep an eye out as they have a habit of turning up just about anywhere…)
Many musicians have served time in the ranks of the Band Of Moonlight Love, bringing experience gained from playing with acts such as the late great George Michael, The Waterboys, The Dubliners, the show Riverdance and many more.
Alongside Robin and Mick, these also served:
Adrian Hart
Cian Loughnane
Sharon Hussey
Ian McTigue
Ailbhe Nolan
Brenda Castles
Steve Walters
Ronan Conroy
Sarah May Rogers
Fiach O’Connor
Liz Coleman
Courtney Cullen
Liam Mulvaney
The band name? It came from a mondegreen!
Check out the Band Of Moonlight Love on Facebook for regular updates