Related Stories

• Great team effort for Pad O’Donovan fund
  
  
• Support for new playground for Fermoy town park
  
  
• Lourdes supporters gather in Conna
  
  
• Ulster Bank’s Information Evening
  
  
• Hero Teacher award for Mitchelstown native
  
  
• Dogs being abandoned on motorway
  
  
• Shannon battles through
  
  
• Town Council to write to Justice Minister in bid to have Fermoy courthouse used more
  
  
• Call on Justice Minister to rescind decision to move army reserve to Mallow
  
  
• Teagasc Moorepark benefit from scientific research funding shareout
  
  
• Founding father of Araglin hurling passes away
  
  
• No funding for Ballinderrig Bridge
  
  

Country singer Lana Gibson from Ballyduff who’s just released her debut single. Photo: Provided

When you consider that Ballyduff woman, Lana Gibson has been on the fringes of country music for over two decades, it's hard to believe she's only now getting around to releasing a debut single.

Lana Gibson is the stage name adopted by the woman who's well known by her own name in the village she moved to, after marrying local man John O'Keeffe. The couple have a son and daughter, Simon and Ursula.

John is involved in the local community council and Lana also helps out at community events. She's also raised money for various charities over the years and continues to do so, especially for the Irish Cancer Research Society.

Lana has loved country music from as far back as she can remember, her early influences being Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, Tammy Wynette and George Jones.

She started singing at a young age and taught herself to play the guitar. She began her musical career by entering local talent shows. She went on to enjoy moderate success with John in the band 'Two of a Kind', playing pubs and small dance halls around Munster. They became a very popular support act for some of Ireland's top country bands, playing a mixture of country and middle-of-the-road. Lana also founded a local church folk choir.

In 2001 she went on to front a band called The Ranch Hands. After they split in 2003 Lana performed briefly with the Showband All Stars and the Fender Band. She got an opportunity of a lifetime in 2004, while on a trip to Nashville she was introduced to Lee Ann Womack's band and got to perform with them. Over her long career Lana has performed on stage in Nashville and St. Louis in the US, in England and Australia.

She formed The City Limits Band next and performed pub gigs, private functions and weddings up until late 2009 when her husband John, who played lead guitar in the band, became ill.

'Now Or Never'

"The economic downturn hit at that time and many pubs and bars gave up having live bands," Lana explains as the reason for the demise of the City Limits Band. She's decided it's 'now or never' with the debut single, a cover version of 'Crazy Arms', a song first released in the early 1950s and sung by Patsy Cline and Jerry Lee Lewis among others.

The single was circulated to radio stations throughout the country in the past couple of weeks and is already receiving airplay. A DVD to showcase Lana and the single was shot in The Log Cabin bar in Ballyduff on Monday.

Lana knows more than most the importance of holding on to a dream and is hoping her debut single will win her the acclaim that will allow her to take her music to a wider audience.

blog comments powered by Disqus