Richard "Dickie" Rock (born 10 October 1936) is an Irish singer.[1] He experienced much success on the Irish charts during the 1960s, but has continued on as a popular live act as well as occasionally hitting the charts ever since.
Dickie Rock | |
---|---|
Birth name | Richard Rock |
Born | Cabra, Dublin, Ireland | 10 October 1936
Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
Instrument(s) | Vocals |
Rock was born in the North Strand, Dublin and raised in Cabra on Dublin's Northside.[2]
Between 1963 and 1972, he was one of the frontmen of the Miami Showband[2] (who were later in the headlines due to the Miami Showband killings incident). He had 13 top ten hits with the Miami Showband, including seven number ones.[3] Dickie Rock and the Miami Showband were the first Irish artists to go straight into the number one spot with "Every Step of the Way" in 1965.[4] During his time with the Miami Showband, Rock attracted the kind of mass hysteria normally reserved for The Beatles.[5]
In 1966, he sang for Ireland in the 1966 Eurovision Song Contest with the song, "Come Back to Stay".[2] He entered as a solo artist and finished joint fourth (with Belgium).[6] This song also became a number one hit in Ireland.
Rock went solo in 1973, although still performed occasionally with the Miami Showband after this.[2]
Rock continued to tour well into his eighties. Following a third RTÉ documentary (one in the 1960s, another in the 1980s and another in 2006) about Rock and his place at the forefront of the Irish showband scene, he received a lifetime achievement award in October 2009. In 2019, he announced his final tour would be held in October that year.[7] In 2021, at the age of 84, Rock retired from showbusiness due to hearing problems.[8]
Rock married his wife Judy (née Murray) in 1966.[9] Judy died in April 2022 several weeks after contracting COVID-19.[10][11]
Judy Rock, the wife of Irish showband legend Dickie Rock, has passed away in a Dublin hospital. Mrs Rock (75) was being treated at St Vincent's Hospital for several weeks after contracting Covid-19, but she sadly died earlier this evening... It comes as last month both Dickie and Judy contracted Covid-19. Dickie Rock (85) was very unwell and said he was suffering from flu-like symptoms, but he was able to recover at home. However, Judy required hospital treatment and was eventually taken into the intensive care unit.