LAWRENCE — When retired Lawrence fire Lt. Edward Murphy Jr. and the Kahuna Irish Band perform at the Jeff Ness Scholarship benefit tomorrow night, they'll be honoring a city firefighter who was killed in a motorcycle accident four years ago.
But when Murphy sings and plays the music to the Fireman's Prayer, he also will be paying tribute to his late dad — retired fire Lt. Edward Murphy Sr. — and the 61 other "48ers" who were appointed to the department on March 8, 1948.
"We just put out a one-song CD to celebrate their 60th anniversary — which we'll be observing on Saturday night," said Murphy, 59, a 30-year-veteran of the Lawrence Fire Department.
"I wrote the music to the Fireman's Prayer in 1977, and it was sung at my dad's funeral in September 2005. After the funeral, my sister Susan asked me to make a single CD of it. Well, it's just come out, and we'll be singing at the scholarship benefit," he said.
The scholarship benefit to honor Ness is set for 7 p.m. at Relief's In, 92 Tremont St. Murphy and the band will also perform Sunday, after the St. Patrick's Day parade, at the Lawrence British Club, 80 Cambridge St. and again at the British Club on March 17. Both events will help raise money for the scholarship fund set up for Greater Lawrence children. Ness, 45, was a 14-year veteran of the department assigned to Engine 7 at the Park Street firehouse.
But the single CD that Murphy is selling is dedicated to his father and the other 48ers, perhaps the largest group of city firefighters ever hired.
"I want the new firefighters in Lawrence and the people of Lawrence to know who the 48ers are, because they were a special group and there are very few of them left," Murphy said.
"They were 62 World War II veterans appointed on the same day who expanded the department by more than 40 percent, up to 204. I was appointed with eight guys, and that was considered big," he said.
The year they joined — 1948 — wasn't the reason why they were nicknamed "the 48ers." It was because the department went from a 70-hour work week to a 48-hour work schedule that year. The firefighter's work week was scaled down to 42 hours in 1972, where it remains.
Murphy, who retired two years ago, has developed a reputation as a singing firefighter, musician (he plays the guitar) and songwriter. Several years ago, he received a special service award from the state fire marshal in recognition of the many firefighters' funerals where he sang throughout the state.
In 2003, he produced a CD called the "Maltese Cross," which contained nine firefighter songs, many which he wrote. That CD included the Fireman's Prayer, an old passage of unknown authorship for which he wrote music.
The jacket to the CD dedicates the song to "The 48ers ... 60th Anniversary ... 1948-2008" while also noting the life and years of service (1948-1982) of Murphy's dad.
"They were a special group," recalled Murphy, who got to work alongside his father during his first six years with the Fire Department.
Murphy's career was filled with numerous commendations and highlights, including Firefighter of the Year twice and once sharing in Massachusetts Firefighter of the Year with the entire Lawrence Department.
"But the highlight of my career was working with my dad for six years," he said.
His father was assigned as lieutenant to the rescue boat attached to Engine 3 on South Broadway.
Murphy recalled that his father was involved with numerous rescues on the Merrimack River.
CDs for The Fireman's Prayer or the "Maltese Cross" are available through the Web site www.firefightermusic.com
