A successful partnership is built on trust. One man that knows this all too well is Derek Turner. For the best part of a decade, Derek has forged a bond with Mark Dearey and together, the two of them have built up the Spirit Store in Dundalk as one of Ireland’s best music venues.

Recently voted the ‘Best Music Venue for the Rest of Leinster’ the store has grown in popularity over the years. But whilst awards like that from the Irish Music Rights Organisation are gladly welcome, Derek admits the real rewards are those to be seen on gig night.

“When you work so hard on something and promote a gig for months, to see it all come together is a fantastic feeling. When you see the band enjoying themselves and the crowd getting into it, it’s a real pleasure. You then realise that is what you worked so hard for over the last few weeks.”

Next year, the store will celebrate its tenth anniversary, something which seemed a million miles away when it opened a decade ago.

“When Mark and a partner bought the store, Mark approached me and said told me he wanted to open a pub down in the docks and promote original music. I jumped at the chance to be the promoter and venue manager but a lot of people thought we were mad in the head.

“But there is a great deal of trust between me and Mark. Trust is the be all and end all of a business relationship and to last this long shows the strength of it. But it is not only trust, as we see eye to eye on certain things. We want to promote stuff for the good of Dundalk and make it a real credit to the area and we also do not want to rest on our laurels.

 ”Another thing is the Spirit Store has fantastic staff. We try to get staff that are interested in music and will generally like working here so that helps.”

Along with the Spirit Store, Derek runs Tumbleweed Studios in Bridge Street Dundalk.

“It has been open for nearly 12 years now. We have done so many albums and many of them with a lot of local bands. Right now, The Flaws are doing new material along with Sanzkirt and Red 12. We are delighted to be able to help local bands like this and with my job in the Spirit Store, it enables me to see bands who have potential so I certainly do get some spin offs. The only bad thing though is, I do not get much time with the studio as I am busy with the store, but Jason Varley, the engineer at Tumbleweed does a fantastic job.”

Booking the right band for the right night is crucial, something Derek has spent ten years perfecting, but the hardest part of the job is saying no.

“We are probably doing 230 shows a year. But for every show that I book, I probably have to turn down eight or nine shows because we do not have the dates for them. Some nights, I might make the wrong choice, but when you get it right, it is a great pleasure to see. Some of the highlights from the years have been Christy Moore, Ron Sexsmith and once we did a gig that was organised on the Friday and played on the following Monday. It sold out and it was fantastic to be able to pull it off.”

But although the economy is in a recession, Derek reckons music will be the last thing hit by it.

“We want to keep on going like we are at the moment. We are booked solidly till Christmas and I think although people are tightening their belts, they still have to go out and enjoy themselves. We feel as though for now, it will not affect us because at the end of the day, people need to enjoy themselves and they seem to enjoy coming here. We respect the bands, respect the audience, have a good PA and I think that respectability and warmth has put us in the position we are today.”

Gary McLaughlin

Reporter: The Dundalk Democrat & Dundalk Life Editor