In 1990, Luka Bloom released his fifth album, Riverside. The album was recorded in New York and contained a number of songs about his life in the Big Apple such as Delirious and Hudson Lady.
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1991 was a big year for Bloom. He recorded another album, The Acoustic Motorbike, which was released the following year. He also won over Dutch fans at the PinkPop festival by cycling on to the stage with his guitar strapped to his back.
Many people feel this show saw Bloom beginning to crack the European market.
In 1993, he was invited by Lou Reed to take part in a songwriter’s night at the Bottom Line in New York. Also performing at the gig to celebrate the club’s birthday were Reed, David Byrne and Roseanne Cash.
Returning to Ireland
Bloom recorded his seventh album, Turf, that year. He had returned to Ireland to record it and performed in front of an audience in order to capture the atmosphere of a live performance … although the audience were asked not to make a sound.
Fans had to wait four years for his next album, Salty Heaven, which was released in 1998. Bloom had spent much of that time touring across Europe, America and Australia before heading back to Ireland to get back in touch with his roots.
He spent time writing songs in a cottage by the trees and rivers in Birr, Co. Offaly. Joe Jackson of the Irish Times said in his review: “Not just a wonderful album but an album filled with wonder. And that is a real accomplishment.”
Keeper of the flame
The year 2000 saw Bloom release an album of covers called Keeper of the Flame. Up to then he had always written his own material, but he wanted to record an album of songs that were special to him.
He said: “Rather than covering these songs as a novelty, I was determined to convey my love of these songs and the artists who created them.”
Becoming an independent artist
The following year, Bloom became an independent artist and released a compilation of his early work called The Barry Moore Years, which was made available exclusively on his website. He followed it up in 2002 with an album of new material entitled Between the Mountain and the Moon.
His next studio album came in 2004. It was called Before Sleep Comes and contained a collection of mellow songs for people struggling to get to sleep. In 2005 he released another album, Innocence, before embarking on a mammoth tour of Europe, America and Australia.
Critically acclaimed recent albums
Following his world tour which lasted 18 months, Bloom headed to France to mix tracks for his next album, Tribe.
In 2008, Bloom released his thirteenth studio album, Eleven Songs. It was recorded at Grouse Lodge recording studios in County Westmeath. With this album he wanted to return to the raw energetic feel of his early work. It received several five star reviews from critics.
In 2010, Bloom releases a greatest hits album with a twist – Dreams of America. It consisted of 12 of his classic songs but all had been re-recorded to create an acoustic album.
Luka Bloom
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