Dick Tracy & The Green Disaster were formed by three school friends Domhnall MacDermott, (vocals), Willie Doherty (vocals), Gerry McCauley (guitar) in 1977. They later recruited Seamus Cassidy (guitar), Tony Vail (bass) and John Coyle (drums) to complete the original line up of the band who made their live debut at St. Columb’s College Social in the same year.

Domhnall was to befriend Phil Chevron guitarist with the Radiators From Space after one of their Dublin shows which Domhnall had travelled down to Dublin to attend. This resulted in the Green Disaster obtaining several support slots with the Radiators including one notable gig at Jordanstown Poly where the audience were verbally assaulted by MacDermott and responded by throwing seats at the band. A support slot with Horslips also followed at Culdaff with others penciled in if all went well. However, things went too well for the Disaster, who blew out an amp or two during their set and received an encore. Horslips didn’t ask them back!

Back in Derry/Londonderry the band approached Declan McGonagle then administrator at the Orchard Gallery with a view to staging punk gigs at the venue. Given the green light the band played what was to be the first of many memorable gigs at the venue including the fondly remembered “Come And Feel The Noise” concerts.

There followed an assortment of line up changes over the next few year which saw the following personalities join at various times Colm McKeever, Tommy Olphert,  Ciaran McLaughlin and most notably Domhnall’s brother Feargal came in on bass. The ethos of the band never changed though, which was to drink, play and have fun doing it. From the early 1980s on though, gigs were sporadic.

The final incarnation of the band was Domhnall MacDermott vocals, Gerry McCauley guitar, Mickey Griffiths (ex Idol Threats) on drums and Niall McKeever bass. They continued to perform occasionally in the late eighties and early nineties until the untimely death of Domhnall MacDermott on 5th September 1994 at the age of thirty five. The turn out at his funeral showed just how well liked and influential the larger than life character was.

The band’s “back catalogue” comprises of one studio tape of the infamous “Kevin Mahon” a tribute to the Derry City player (listen below). Sadly tracks such as ‘Action Comics’ were never committed to tape.

Domhnall’s brother Fergal “I played bass in the band from 1978 until 1993. I was sacked in 1987 because I committed the unforgivable crime of learning to read music. Several months of serious drinking soon wiped this from my memory and I was allowed back into the band on the condition that we only played songs that I didn’t know. Some of the best times of my life, never to be forgotten.”