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Bio:
Tommy Vella was from Dun Laoghaire and played with The Pickford Set.
He teamed up with drummer Barry Teeling to form Freewheel with the first lineup shown above
circa 1967-68.
The band underwent numerous changes:
Liam McGuinness (ex The Pickford Set) replaced Peter Dowling as singer.
Sean Creighton replaced Pat McCabe on bass.
And Terry Murray replaced Barry Teeling.
Freewheel were known for their multiple lead singers, vocal harmonies and their
ability to play in different styles. They played regularly in the St Georges Hotel on Parnell
Square and the Ierne Ballroom.
They played clubs like Seezers and the Revolution Club.
They often played 'relief' slots for showbands in the bigger ballrooms such as
the TV Club in Dublin and the Top Hat in Dun Laoghaire.
They were mentioned in Pat Egans Beat Column in Spotlight Magazine on a number of occasions
and made his top ten bands of 1972.
The band's biggest gig was the peace mass held in Mullingar Cathredral in 1971 where
they played in front of 1000 people.
Tommy Vella & Barry Teeling went on to play in the band Jason.
Barry later joined Chateau.
Freewheel may have changed their name to Cable at some point.
In the 1990s, Tommy Vella, Kevin Ball and Tony O'Reilly played together as Hat Trick
who had a successfull following in the pubs and clubs.
Help!: We need your help to complete this entry. If you can tell us more about this band then please do! We welcome any corrections, missing details, connections to other bands, where are they now, etc. We also need photos, scans, copies of releases or live or demo recordings, and any other memorabilia gathering dust in the attic. If you can help, then please get in touch.