'Staying home for Christmas' - Classic seasonal hit given topical reworking

(Above) Singer Finbar Coady with the 'Facemasks'

Well known local singer Finbar Coady and a group of friends have released a topical re-working of a Christmas classic for charity.

While Finbar has been a professional musician for 20 years, it was his friend Declan Smith who came up with the idea a few weeks ago to do something for the Peter McVerry Trust by reworking the Chris Rea Christmas song Driving Home For Christmas.

Declan, Finbar and a few friends, put their socially distanced minds together and quickly came up with a new set of lyrics for the song, which was first released as a single in 1988 and since then has become one of the most played Christmas songs in the world.

The video for the aptly named Staying Home for Christmas, which is performed by Finbar and his friends (AKA Finnbar and the Facemasks) was shot on a recent weekend around some of Mullingar's best known sights by Tiernan O'Rourke.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner, Finbar said that he and his friends wanted to do something that would put a smile on people's faces after what has been a difficult year for many people.

“People seem to enjoy watching the video. It's nice and light, it's inclusive, it's Christmasy. There is so much maudlin going on. We said let's be part of something bright. That's why the video is so gaudy. I was at the Joe Dolan statue at 9am on a Sunday morning dressed like a Christmas tree. The idea was to raise a few smiles and a few bob for the Peter McVerry Trust.”

For professional musicians such as Finbar, the year 2020 has been one to forget. With the roll out of a vaccine hopefully around the corner, he's hoping that he will get to perform in front of crowds as soon as possible next year.

His most recent project, Under the Influence of Leonard Cohen, a tribute show to the late Canadian singer songwriter, has earned him widespread acclaim. He is scheduled to perform the show in Mullingar Arts Centre on January 7.

After the most challenging year of his musical career, he is adamant that the gig will go ahead.

“This time it is going ahead audience or not. I will either live stream or record it,” he says.

For the moment, he hopes as many people as possible with watch the video of Staying Home for Christmas and more importantly donate a few euro to the Peter McVerry Trust.

Here is a video of Finbar singing one of Cohen's best loved songs.

People can donate to The Peter McVerry Trust here: https://www.idonate.ie/fundraiser/11394447_finnbar--amp--the-facemasks-fundraiser.html