Sir Henry's - Dance Venue

Dance Venue

As dance music became more popular and the demand for small venue live gigs decreased Sir Henry's became a venue for the "Sweat" night, started in 1988 by Shane Johnson and Greg Dowling. The Sweat night was to become one of the top clubs in Europe in the early 1990s, ably supplemented with the addition of the Back Bar with DJ's such as Donkeyman (Mark Ring) and Stephen Grainger (Stevie G) providing the entertainment and much needed relief from the frenzy of the main room.

Three-night long weekenders, with line-ups like Carl Cox, DIY, Laurent Garnier, Shades of Rhythm, Justin Robertson, Jon Pleased Wimmin, Billy Scurry playing side by side.

Over the 1990s Sweat built up a huge international reputation, being variously described as "a gorgeous blend of underground house" (i-D), a "deep house frenzy" (The Face) and "the best music on that side of the Irish Sea" (DJ Magazine). The night was one of Muzik magazine's ten best of 1998/99 and was named best regional club on three occasions at the Smirnoff Dance Club Awards.

As with anything, it evolved, the club evolved, the sounds evolved, and the crowd evolved with it. By the mid 90’s Sir Henry’s had become a house haven playing host to some of genre’s most beloved regularly, Kerri Chandler, Jovonn, Joe Claussell, Jerome Sydenham, Roger Sanchez, Glenn Underground, Boo Williams, Cajmere, Gemini, Derrick May, Kevin Yost, Migs, Rasoul, Fred Everything, Erik Rug, Harri, Needs, Calum Walker, Ralph Lawson, Charles Webster, Kevin MacKay, Herbert, DJ Deep, Mike Pickering, Graham Park, just to name a few.

None of the above DJ's will ever forget the first night they played in Sir Henry's - and many of them are on public record claiming the atmosphere in the club was quite unlike any other they have ever played in.

Short independent films such as "120 bpm" and "The House That Cork Built" have paid homage to the Club as the focal point in Irish House music. Coupled with this is the emergence of Fish Go Deep (Greg Dowling & Shane Johnson) as one of the premier house acts in Europe. Their latest single, "The Cure & The Cause", recently hitting the top spot in the British dance charts.

The venue also hosted the well-known alternative club night Freakscene for many years. A night that won countless awards, year after year, thus keeping other stiff competition off the top podium.

The venue was seen by many Corkonians as transcending nightlife to become an integral part of the fabric of the city and is remembered with affection. For example, legendary Cork hurler Brian Corcoran devoted a section of his autobiography, every Single Ball, to the venue, saying it was the only nightclub in which he truly felt comfortable.Corcoran, Brian (November 2006). Every Single Ball. Mainstream Publishing. ISBN 1-84596-200-1.

The flyers and posters, designed by John McMonagle and crew of Raven Design, were obsessively collected by most regulars as souvenirs and in most cases, to fill in the blanks of the previous weekends.

The regular monthly 90 minute compilation tapes 'Sweat' as well as the yearly best of compilation mixes were eagerly awaited by the Cork public. Some of the most sublime dance tracks ever played in the club feature on those mixes and are much sought after in 2008.