Ray Heffernan
He produced Declan O'Rourke's first demo. He gave Wallis Bird her first ever studio experience on his 2003 record “What You Feel, Not What You Drive”. He also wrote the first version of the worldwide smash hit “Angels” which became the career defining anthem for Robbie Williams, so this shouldn't be the first time you've heard of Ray Heffernan.
Often the catalyst for other artist's success and for a long time the ‘songwriter's songwriter’, Ray Heffernan is back with a new record; a strong, well-defined document of an Irish writer on an international stage.
“New Dress Woven”, a title inspired by the last two lines of Patrick Kavanagh's “Canal Bank Walk”, is a collection of 11 new songs by the Dublin songwriter, now based on the shores of Lake Orta in Northern Italy. From there, he flies the flag of Irish songcraft high in his new role as the singer, writer and front man of The Grand Canal Band. The 7-strong band is composed of some of the finest and best- known musicians in Italy and the album represents the union of their, and of Heffernan's, wealth of talent and experience. The open-air launch of the album on the night of the summer solstice last year was attended by a crowd of 1500, and recorded for Italian TV.
Like so many expatriate Irish writers before him, Heffernan's melodies and lyrics are coloured by his love for his homeland. From “Stardust”, which concerns itself with a love story in the context of the 1981 Dublin nightclub disaster, to “Gravediggers”, a heart-breakingly beautiful song about the historic Glasnevin pub, and “Amy's Answer”, a new take on Irish balladry and of story-telling within the song.
The new video for “Amy’s Answer”, a modern day re-telling of “Oisin in Tir na nOg”, was directed and produced by Emilio Uberti, who has worked with such Italian legends as Fabrizio di Andrè and Franco Battiato and even previously ventured into imagery for Irish songwriting with the late, and in his own right legendary, Mic Christopher.
Click here to see “Amy’s Anwer” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1U2KHT15R0