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Michael McLoughlin and Anna Caleb singing 'I am the Bread of Life' during the last papal visit in 1979

'He was like a rockstar': Tipperary singer recalls John Paul II's electrifying Galway mass in 1979

“I just remember thinking ‘I can’t screw this up, I’ve got to get this right’.”

“WHEN THE MAIN man arrived, there was a lot of excitement to see him,” Michael McLoughlin recalls of Ireland’s last papal visit.

“We had the best seat in the house for one of the most important people in the world, and there I was, a young lad from Tipperary, sitting in the middle of it all.”

In 1979, less than a year after becoming pontiff, Pope John Paul II spent three days in Ireland on what was one of his first trips abroad.

Over 2.5 million people – three-quarters of the country’s population at the time – attended events across Ireland to see the Pope in the flesh.

But McLoughlin got closer than most at the Youth Mass at Ballybrit Racecourse in Galway, where John Paul II uttered the most memorable line of his visit: “Young people of Ireland, I love you”.

“I was picked to sing a solo,” he tells TheJournal.ie.

“There was about 100 young people who had been assembled to sing in a choir for the Galway mass, and I was one of them.”

Folk groups

McLoughlin explains that the opportunity came about while he was a member of a church folk group in his native Thurles in Tipperary.

These groups, in which young people sang folk songs at Mass to replace traditional hymns, were incredibly popular around the country at the time.

When organisers were planning the Youth Mass in Galway during the summer of 1979, they issued a call for members of the groups to help form a choir of young people to sing at the event.

Two people from the Thurles folk group responded, and McLoughlin was one of them, taking part because he was living in Dublin at the time.

“About 100 of us assembled over a couple of weekends in Dublin to rehearse,” he recalls.

“At least half the choir was made up of people from these folk groups because they were so popular at the time.”

Religion - Pope John Paul II Visit - Ireland - Galway's Ballybrit racecourse - 1979 Pope John Paul II says mass at Ballybrit Racecourse in 1979 PA Images PA Images

During rehearsals, it emerged that one member of the choir would be required to sing a solo after Communion.

The audition process involved the musical director picking out singers one-by-one and asking them to perform a verse of the hymn ‘I am the Bread of Life’.

“He liked the way I sounded,” McLoughlin says.

“But he wanted me to do it as a duet with another girl – Anna Caleb, who went on to become a professional soprano. She was a serious singer, whereas I was more of a Big Tom type.”

Mosh pit

On the day of the Mass, McLoughlin travelled on the bus alone from Thurles to Galway, carrying a special “high-tech” pass he had been given to gain access to the altar.

“This thing consisted of a piece of cardboard with your name scribbled on it and a photograph stapled to the cardboard,” he laughs.

“There was no thumb prints or barcodes or anything like that.”

As the 300,000 mass-goers began to descend upon Ballybrit Racecourse, however, the Pope was 75km away in Clonmacnoise in Co Offaly.

McLoughlin explains that the choir’s first engagement of the day was to warm up the crowd ahead of his arrival.

He also recalls how two “famous” members of the clergy MC’d events ahead of the mass: Bishop Eamonn Casey and ‘singing priest’ Father Michael Cleary, both of whom gained infamy years later when it emerged they had fathered children.

Sept 1979_2 McLoughlin's high tech security pass for the Youth Mass

When the Pope finally did arrive, the atmosphere was electric.

“He was like a rockstar,” McLoughlin says. “It really felt as if we were backstage at a Bruce Springsteen concert.

“Our passes were that good, it would have been like being in the mosh pit of a gig. We got to see him very very close, probably within about 30ft.”

Relief

Eventually, after weeks of rehearsals and hours of singing for the exited crowd, McLoughlin’s moment came.

He and Caleb took the stage as the Pope tidied the altar after Communion, staring out into an endless sea of people as they began to sing.

“I was absolutely shitting myself,” he recalls.

“I was conscious of all the people there, and the fact that millions would be watching on TV, along with the whole town of Thurles.

“I just thought ‘I can’t screw this up, I’ve got to get this right’.”

Despite the initial fear, McLoughlin’s anxiety subsided as soon as he began his performance.

“I didn’t really have time to stand there,” he says.

“We were well rehearsed, and knew we just had to get on with it.”

As well as having the words on a sheet in front of him, he and Caleb also alternated verses, giving him some respite while the 300,000-strong crowd stood watching.

When they finally finished, McLoughlin says one feeling trumped all others.

“We were mostly relieved that we hadn’t screwed up. It was a daunting enough experience. I don’t know of any band nowadays who’d sing to that size of a crowd.”

In the days afterwards, however, he says he was “absolutely buzzing”.

Neighbours called around to congratulate his parents, while a local newspaper also asked to do a story about him.

“People were delighted for my family. I remember taking the next day off work and meeting people around the town, lapping up the little bit of fame that I could get.”

A changed Ireland

This year, McLoughlin says he’ll stay away from the Pope.

He no longer sings at Mass, and puts his voice to use by singing with a local group of friends instead.

“It really goes to show you much different Ireland is now,” he says of Pope Francis’ visit.

“Half a million people in the Phoenix Park might seem like a lot, but it’s only a fraction of the amount that were there in ’79.

“The time has absolutely flown by. I was 22 at the time, just starting life as an adult, and now I have grandchildren. It’s interesting to see how much has changed in that time.”

There might be more opportunities for the young people of Ireland these days too, but for McLoughlin, it’s unlikely the chance to sing in front of 300,000 people will arise again.

Then again, there are few for whom it will.

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    Mute Johnny
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    Oct 14th 2014, 10:58 AM

    Can never understand people who are willing to pay slightly more for peroni. It is definitely not a superior beer, is bland and hails from a region far from renowned for their brewing skills. so why fall for the marketing and the fancy tap?

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    Mute David Cullen
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:03 AM

    It’s a good bottle of beer, better than others on offer in most pubs. On tap it’s rubbish.

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    Mute Roland 303
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:05 AM

    Not a huge fan of Nastro Azzuro myself but Peroni red label is a class beer. Would be my number 1, followed by Starapramen and Budvar.

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    Mute jason bourne
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:05 AM

    I love peroni. Lovely rich smooth taste and I don’t seem to have as bad a hangover the next day for some reason. There are some places where it’s on a par, price wise, with hinekan, bud etc

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    Mute Johnny
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:06 AM

    But still worth paying a bit extra for? I’m not convinced.

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    Mute David Thomas
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:25 AM

    All these so called “premium beers” are often just the standard lagers in their own country. I have some Italian friends and they say peroni is one of the cheaper lagers in Italy.

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    Mute thetruth
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:38 AM

    Roland. Try morretti especiale. Blows the nastro out of the water. Fantastic beer

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    Mute Johnny
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:45 AM

    That’s completely true David. Seem to have a lot more red thumbs than expected. I can find no reason why it would be priced above Heineken or carlsberg. Or even carling/fosters for that matter. It’s pretty much the same style beer using similar techniques for mass production. It doesn’t use any special ingredients, maybe perhaps a bit more alcohol content but this shouldn’t be enough for the price hike. Perhaps I’ve turned into a beer nerd over the past years with my preference for German Weiss and local craft beers but even these compare in price more favourably than peroni and these are definitely far superior. I guess tastes vary so people will have their own opinion. I for one won’t fall for the marketing. Well at least not that marketing

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    Mute Shane Kinsella
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    Oct 14th 2014, 12:35 PM

    Peroni is a far a nicer beer than the usual shite we get over here, like the bud and Heineken crap.

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    Mute thetruth
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    Oct 14th 2014, 1:00 PM

    A few great beers ive come across in the last yr or so. St. Mels are lovely and so are mc graths. Very good craft beers

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    Mute Raymond Connolly
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:11 AM

    Beer….. My one weakness.

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    Mute Seán A Haon
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    Oct 14th 2014, 1:51 PM

    The cause of and solution to all of life’s problems.

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    Mute Very fond of
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:27 AM

    Bottle of Grolsch = a thing of beauty.

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    Mute Karl Johnston
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    Oct 14th 2014, 11:24 AM

    Italian beer……… hahaha haha. :-/

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    Mute tax slave
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    Oct 14th 2014, 12:03 PM

    Thy make great pizza them Italians but don’t know about there beer tho

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    Mute Range Rover P38
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    Oct 14th 2014, 2:03 PM

    Red Peroni = no hangover.

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