Joe Dolan’s 1964 TV Shock: Ireland’s Star Is Born!
In 1964, a young Joe Dolan, the butcher’s son from Mullingar, County Westmeath, stepped into the spotlight and captured Ireland’s heart. At just 24 years old, Joe, the youngest of eight siblings, had already been making waves in the local showband scene with his group, The Drifters, formed alongside his brother Ben. But it was in September of that year that Joe’s star truly began to rise, thanks to a chart-topping single and a television appearance that showcased his undeniable talent.
Joe had been balancing a day job as a compositor apprentice at the Westmeath Examiner, but his heart was in music. He’d grown up playing the washboard to accompany his sisters’ singing, later picking up the guitar and honing his voice in local pubs. By 1958, he and Ben had formed The Drifters, playing covers of American hits in dancehalls across Ireland. Their big break came in 1964 with their first single, a cover of Del Shannon’s The Answer to Everything. The song soared to number 4 on the Irish charts, marking Joe’s first taste of national success.
Hot on the heels of this achievement, Joe and The Drifters were invited to perform on RTÉ’s The Showband Show, one of Ireland’s earliest music television programs, which aired in the mid-1960s to showcase the country’s booming showband scene. This was Joe’s first major television appearance, a moment that brought his high tenor voice and charismatic stage presence to a wider audience. Dressed in a sharp suit, with his hair slicked back in true 1960s style, Joe belted out The Answer to Everything with a power and charm that left viewers spellbound. His voice, a blend of velvet and thunder, and his Elvis-inspired energy on stage made him an instant favorite. Fans later recalled how Joe’s performance seemed to light up their black-and-white TV screens, a glimpse of a star in the making.
The television appearance amplified Joe’s growing fame. The success of The Answer to Everything and the exposure from RTÉ led to more bookings across Ireland, solidifying The Drifters’ place in the showband circuit. It also caught the attention of Pye Records, one of Britain’s major labels, which would later release Joe’s music, including hits like Pretty Brown Eyes in 1966 and the international smash Make Me an Island in 1969, which topped charts in 14 countries.
Joe’s 1964 TV moment was a turning point, proving that the boy from Mullingar had the talent to take on the world. His brother Ben later reflected, “That year, we knew Joe was something special. The whole country started to see it too.” From that RTÉ stage to international stardom, Joe Dolan’s journey had truly begun, earning him the slogan that would define his career: “There’s no show like the Joe show.”
