HE may be turning 80 today but ex-showband musician and Newry man Mickey Doran can still play a decent Guitar Boogie Shuffle.
Mr Doran, one of Co Down’s best-known musicians, was the lead guitarist in the Hilton Showband throughout the boom era, playing to packed houses across Ireland, the UK and the US.
Although the band called it a day in recent times, after almost half a century on the road, the grandfather still does some charity appearances.
Speaking after a family party at his son's home to mark his big day, he recalled how his signature act was the shuffle during which he used to play the guitar with his teeth, a bottle or any items members of the audience would pass onto the stage.
He said: "Yes, I can still do it but I don't play that often any more. I am a happy man just to be alive. I love music and the guitar and I love my life and my family."
Mr Doran, who played "five nights a week for about 20 years" at the height of the band's success in the '60s and '70s met a lot of country stars, but the highlight was being introduced to Tom Jones at the Flamingo Ballroom in Ballymena.
"We were on before Tom Jones and I had played the boogie shuffle," said Mr Doran. "Tom was very impressed with it and he sent a request for me to go and get my photo taken with him, which I did.
"I also met Hank Marvin and the Shadows when they came to the Ulster Hall. We were on the same bill as a lot of the big stars.
"They were wonderful times and I enjoyed every minute of it."
In the latter days of the band, Mr Doran, who also worked as a dental technician, was one of three remaining original members, the others being vocalist Ricky McVeigh and bass guitarist Tommy Tohill.
The Hilton can also take credit for the marriage of football star Pat Jennings who met his wife Eleanor Toner, a vocalist with the band, at one of their dances in Newry Town Hall.
The 'match' made front page news in the 1960s.
The band also performed regularly on RTÉ radio and television and at their first TV performance on the station in the early 1960s they were presented with an award for Best Young Showband.
Despite having notched up experiences other people could only dream of Mr Doran said the weekend birthday celebration at his son Michael's home was "one of the highlights of my life so far".
"It was a wonderful party, with a great crowd and all the grandkids there. It was a day I'll never forget," he said.
