As producer of U2, The Cure and the Manic Street Preachers, Mike Hedges had long harboured a secret and surprising dream: he yearned to give the whistles-and-bells treatment to a recording of the Latin Mass.Though it was somewhat at odds with his image as a rock producer, it was something he had hankered after ever since his days as a Jesuit choirboy.
He ran his idea past Nick Raphael, managing director of Sony's Epic Records, who was less than enthusiastic. But, on a whim, Raphael decided to humour Hedges and sent out some talent scouts.
When one of them, Liam Bradley, the drummer for Van Morrison and Ronan Keating, mentioned that he had seen three singing priests on Irish television, Raphael, the man credited with steering Charlotte Church's career, became marginally more interested.
Reluctantly, he agreed to listen to their demo tape on which the two tenors and one light baritone sang church classics such as Abide With Me and Pie Jesu. Instantly, he was wowed. "It was haunting, evocative, the hairs stood up on my neck, I got goose bumps on my arms," Raphael recalls.
In true rock and roll style, the Sony MD pulled out his chequebook. "Gotta have them," he told his executives. "Sign them up."
Then he called Hedges. The producer, whose dream had been of a stirring baroque Mass, was appalled. "Three singing priests? Blimey, that's a bit tacky," he thought. "We've had the Three Tenors, the Three Singing Gypsies… now this." Then he, too, listened to their tape. "I went nuts," he says. "This rich, wonderful sound filled the room."
The only problem was that Father Martin O'Hagan, his brother Father Eugene, and Father David Delargy had absolutely no intention of giving up their day jobs.
Lifelong friends who had met 35 years ago at a Belfast boarding school (where their joint love of the ministry and music earned them the affectionate nickname Holy, Holy and Holy) and had completed their seminary training together at the Gregorian University in Rome, the trio were busy, active priests in the diocese of Down and Connor in Northern Ireland.
Their first commitment, they calmly explained, was to their parishes. In fact, such was their devotion to the priesthood that they said they would need some time to think about it.
For Fathers Martin, Eugene and David, their faith and their pastoral duties would always come first. And so they struck a deal: parish work would always take priority over performing, and the £1.4m deal Sony was offering would, mostly, go to charities.
"It's been the ideal solution, and we've been bowled over by the response we've had," beams Father Eugene, clapping his hands. "I think at first Mike Hedges thought three singing priests was a bit naff. But when he heard our music, he loved it."
The first CD from The Priests, as they have been called, is already being cited as a possible Christmas number one, and will be released later this month in a staggering 32 countries, including the United States, Mexico, Brazil and Australia.
Recorded in several locations – including the Vatican, where they were accompanied by the resident choir – it is essentially "God's greatest hits", an arresting mix of spiritual and uplifting religious music, from Ave Maria to Panis Angelicus. Catholic, you could say, with a small c.
And the priests themselves, exuberant and warm, are the very antithesis of the rather traditional image of the po-faced, overly pious and sanctimonious parish priest – "the chap that mothers scare their kids witless with," laughs Father David. "You know, when she says to wee Johnny: 'If you don't behave yourself, I'll get the parish priest on you.' "
Their own tastes in music are fairly catholic, too. Father David was recently bopping to Bruce "The Boss" Springsteen in Dublin, and Father Eugene is a huge Tina Turner and Sting fan. "We have been known to do a few Flying Picket numbers in private," he chuckles.
For Father David, 44, from the parish of Hannahstown, Father Eugene, 48, whose parish is Ballyclare and Ballygowan, and Father Martin, 45, who preaches in Cushendun, the decision to accept the Sony contract was simpler than it might seem for men of the cloth. They openly confess to having their own agenda.
"We are aware Sony sees this solely as a commercial enterprise," says Father Martin, without a hint of criticism. "They aren't in this to get more people through the church doors. They are in it to get more people through the doors of HMV. But that's fine, there's nothing dishonourable in that. We have different reasons, and they accept that.
"For us, much of it is about helping build more bridges between the church and the modern world. If we can encourage and inspire people to think more about their faith, and the meaning of faith in this modern world, well, we'll have achieved something."
So far they haven't been fazed by being besieged by the paparazzi, trailed by television cameras or asked for autographs.
"There's always someone to bring you down to earth," says Father David. "A while back, we were telling an older priest and he said: 'Fancy that. Fame. And at your time of life.' And there's always the jokers in the parish who will laugh and say: 'Remember where you came from'. Or, when we discuss which charities would be the best to benefit: 'Remember charity begins at home, Father'.
"Our own parishioners are tickled pink. I think some are rather proud that the singing priests come from their parish. And that means we have a lot to live up to.
"The fact that there are three of us in this helps. If one of us is maybe showing a glimmer of vanity there are two others to tease it out of us. People still, I think, feel that bit of respect for priests – although I firmly believe that is something that has to be earned, it's not a right. So we don't get mobbed. Though we do get asked for autographs."
But Father David is aware that in modern Britain issues such as respect and morality are on the wane. "There has been an element of 'vulgar Britain' creeping into behaviour, admittedly. I think it's linked to people having a greater sense of economic independence these days," he says.
"Moral codes are no longer abided by, people affirm themselves because they have the money – or the credit – to buy more. Along the way, morality and standards get ditched. The individual has been put at the centre of things and people are losing their moral conscience.
"That said, young people today are under enormous pressures, and every day in our parishes we see shining examples of young people wanting to help their community."
The Priests, though, don't want to be seen as merely as some "good news" story for the Catholic church at a time when its congregations are falling and its moral authority has been sorely tried by several scandals.
"We are in this to 'put out into the deep', as Pope John Paul II used to say," says Father Martin. "In a way, we have pulled ourselves out of our comfort zone to engage with more people. We were given a talent and we want to use it in what ever way we can for the Christian faith. But we certainly don't see ourselves as the saviours of the Catholic church."
But it's not the first time the priests have been called on to help in a crisis.
Throughout their years in the ministry in Northern Ireland, all of them witnessed at first hand the human cost of the Troubles in Ulster. Three of Father David's churches were fire-bombed, and each had to bury numerous parishioners who were killed during the violence.
"Even in the most violent phase in Northern Ireland's recent history, music was always something that brought people together," says Father David.
"Anything that makes more people think, and think deeply about their faith can only be a good thing. We want to use our talent in a positive way. If that's through music, so be it."
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(Source: TTCUK)