The Pacifics Showband
Formed after several musicians left the Earl Gill Orchestra and the Royal Olympics (resident of the Dublin Metropole Hotel in 1950s) to form an independent group, the Pacific Showband scored a series of hits throughout the 1960s. From 1964 to 1970, the band issued 20 singles across Pye Records and Tribune Records.
Members included:
- Vocals: Seán Fagan and Peter Law
- Trumpet: Freddie Martin and Austin Halpin
- Trombone: Seán Fagan
- Drums: Marty Fanning
- Organ/Piano: Shay Curran
- Sax/Clarinet: Sonny Knowles, Jim Malone and Paddy Reynolds
- Bass: Harry Parker
- Guitar: Jimmy Dumpleton, Dave Murphy, Paul Keogh and Dermot Woodfull
The group achieved remarkable success, standing out on stages throughout Ireland in their signature attire—bright red blazers, sharp white slacks, and red-and-white striped ties. Their popularity was reinforced by frequent chart hits, primarily fronted by trombonist and lead vocalist Seán Fagan together with saxophonist and singer Sonny Knowles.
Sonny Knowles was born in the Liberties and moved to Drimnagh at the age of seven years. He went to school at Our Lady of Good Counsel School and then moved into the music business with his older brother. He frequented Our Lady’s Hall, Mourne Road, Drimnagh both as a weekly dancer and then as an entertainer.
Jimmy Dumpleton, Guitarist with the Pacifics hailed from Mourne Road and was a regular entertainer in Our Lady’s Hall, Mourne Road, Drimnagh.
From 1964 to 1966, the Pacific enjoyed several successful chart runs. With lead vocalist Seán Fagan, they scored hits with “She Wears My Ring” and “Distant Drums”, while Sonny Knowles led “No One Will Ever Know”, “No One Knows”, and teamed up with Fagan on the duet “I Only Came To Dance With You”.
Additionally, Fagan cut Irish-language tracks for Gael Linn including “Féirín Nollag” and “An Tiún Agus Tú”, and Knowles competed in the National Song Contest with “The Menace From Ennis”. Managed by Mick Quinn, the group launched a major UK promotional drive in 1964, which featured a November cover appearance on the New Musical Express alongside the Capitol Showband. They featured on RTE’s “Showband Show”, placed in the top ten Irish showbands in the 1965 “Spotlight” readers’ poll, and achieved a unique milestone in Irish music history: becoming the only showband to back a singing nun on record by providing the backing tracks for Sister Mary Gertrude’s 1965 single, “My Auld Killarney Hat”.
Lineup shifts occurred within the band toward the end of the 1960s, mirroring wider trends among showbands. Following Sonny Knowles’s departure to play with Dermot O’Brien’s group, Naas-born Peter Law (Lawlor) stepped in as lead vocalist. The band eventually relocated to Canada, rebranding themselves as Dublin Corporation. Knowles later built a thriving cabaret career, earning the moniker “The Window Cleaner” due to his characteristic hand gestures while performing, and served as a regular singer on RTE’s popular series “Live At Three” over several years. Meanwhile, Seán Fagan made a comfortable life in Canada. Dermot Woodfull, previously with Sugarshack and brother to John and Brian of The Casino/Indians, tragically lost his life in a Canadian car crash. Peter Law passed away in 2016.
Vocalist Peter Law joined the lineup in 1968. The band launched their initial tour of Canada the following year, returning for multiple subsequent tours before relocating there permanently in 1971 and adopting the name Dublin Corporation. Under this moniker, they achieved Canadian chart success with “Melting Pot” and “Come and Join Us,” and put out the 1973 album Limited through Arc Records. While they did not release any further recordings, they continued performing as a touring act for several years. Outside of the group, Law and his wife Barbara Dixon (from the pop trio Maxi, Dick and Twink) shared lead vocal duties for Sweet Chariot.