ONE OF the brightest lights of the showband era, “Joe Mac”, who is a founding member of showband favourites the Dixies, is to be given a civic reception in Cork City Hall.
Mr McCarthy (74) previously received a civic reception in Cork in 2004 to honour what was then his 50th year in show business.
The Dixies played their first gig in 1954 and played all over the world, topping the bill at Carnegie Hall in 1964. The showband, originally called the Dixielanders, proved a star attraction nationwide and they successfully took their style of dance hall entertainment to Europe and the US.
In 1964, the band signed with Pye Records and quickly recorded two top 10 hits. In 1968, they had their biggest hit with Little Arrows, which reached No 1 on September 7 and stayed in the charts for 20 weeks. The group recorded 27 singles in all.
In 1969 and 1970 the Dixies went to Las Vegas, where they worked residencies in the Desert Inn casino.
Mr McCarthy was profiled in the RTÉ series A Little Bit Showband, which was a nostalgic look back on this period in Irish life.
Joe Mac was drummer and co-vocalist with the Dixies. His physical antics and big personality made them one of the biggest draws in the ballrooms, and Joe the “clown prince” of the showbands.
In his personal life, however, he experienced great joy as well as great tragedy.
His son and daughter-in-law died in a car crash, which meant that Joe and his wife Ann raised their granddaughter Amy from when she was just a few months old.
Lord Mayor of Cork Cllr Michael O’Connell says the citizens of the city are “rightly proud” of the achievements of Mr McCarthy, who still performs gigs in the city and beyond.
The date for the civic reception will be finalised in the coming weeks.