Anybody remember him at the first Bardney festival in 71, one man and a guitar holding 30000 people spellbound, I've been a fan forever.
We were invited to the Letterkenny festival in 81 with the cloggies, a great time to represent England during the hunger strikes just after a couple had died. We had no bother except a bit of stirring from a showband which roused nobody. Even in the local IRA bar, we were invited to join "tis a great loife". But there was a tension in the air from the "men with guns".
Tom played the main concert, avoiding any politics except he sang "Peace will come" as an encore. The memory of it still makes my hair stand on end, the whole audience rose and bellowed the song, big Irish farmers and nuns all crying openly, how Tom lasted as long as he did, I don't know, but he left the stage in tears. If you see him, ask him if he remembers it, I'm sure he will. I always will.
That night, every banner and photo in town just went, the fear had gone for a while.