For a few years in the 80s, it seemed that Mama’s Boys had it made. The McManus brothers - Pat on guitar, John on bass and vocals, and Tommy on drums - were as tight as a power trio could be, having honed their hard rock sound as kids in rural County Fermanagh. And as a powerful live act, they held their own on the big stages, opening for Thin Lizzy, Scorpions, Bon Jovi and Iron Maiden.
What these boys never had was that one great album or hit single that could lift them into rock’s premier league. But as this 5-CD box set illustrates, there was genuine potential in the music they made early on.
