• Sign-up for UlsterMusic.com

  
  

  Enter your email address:

  
  

• Buy music by Ulster artists

• This is UlsterMusic.com

  UlsterMusic.com covers music-making throughout the 9 magical counties of the province of Ulster, be it indie, electronic, emo, dance, metal, musical, rock, blues, jazz, country, christian, folk, traditional, orchestral, choral, pop, punk, etc. UlsterMusic.com: the no.1 indigenous music business intelligence e-zine for musicians, songwriters, producers, promoters, management, labels, retailers, fans and groupies. sign-up/subscribe/register now for a weekly salvo of "most-read posts" straight to your personal e-mail inbox. you can unsubscribe anytime...
  
  ps: Tom is NAY my pal, ken?
  http://www.myspace.com/ulstermusic
  
  

• Most Read Posts

  • Blues and jazz swamp Belfast city
  • Music and beer? Try Hilden Festival
  • Richard Murray album: Desert Wind
  • Guitar workshops in Belfast
  • The joy of jewel boxes
  • Mecon invades Belfast: Klaatu Barada Nikto
  • Annie Lennox covers Ash song

• Classified Advertisements

  
  

  

  ↑ Grab this Headline Animator

  
  

Andrew Thompson interviews Co. Monaghan’s Gráinne Duffy for UlsterMusic.com; photographs by Robin Cordiner: Gráinne Louica Duffy may not be a name you are too familiar with, but - believe me - watch this space. I first heard the name late last year on a local radio station, and thought, mmm, sounds interesting. They played a track and I made a mental note to catch her if she was playing anywhere around Belfast. I managed to see and hear her for myself on a cold Thursday night last December in Belfast’s Rotterdam Bar. There were about 20 people in the bar that night. Last Thursday - April 10 - was a different story… “The Rott” was now comfortably full, and I managed a back-bar interview with the woman herself before the show started:

UM: How did the band get started? GD: I had been working with another band, Shanco, and at the same time writing some of my own material, so when the opportunity came to record this, I went into the studio with Ronnie O’Flynn and Paul Sherry, and it all just seemed to fall into place. Ronnie played drums and bass, and Paul added a second guitar. Richard Nelson came along with lap, pedal steel and dobro, and Belfastman John McCullagh played keys.

UM: Considering you produced your first CD yourself, what are your general feelings regarding marketing and management? GD: I feel it is important to do the graft yourself, that way you retain control, and you don’t end up doing things you don’t want to do just to advance your career. Let the thing grow organically, do the work yourself, meet the people yourself and learn as much as you can along the way. Word of mouth is the best recommendation.

UM: What’’s happening across the water, are you on the “Blues circuit”? GD: Paul Charles helped to set up a recording session with the BBC, which went really well, and should be coming to the screens over the next few months. He came down to the recording session and also made it to a gig in the Rotterdam last month. [Paul Charles started as a music journalist with City week, and went on to success as a manager in London with the likes of Fruupp: as well as handling some of Van Morrison’’s affairs he handles Loweden Wainright - AT]. I’m also booked to appear at Glastonbury this year.

UM: Who are you listening to currently? GD: I’m a big fan of Keith Richards. I love his raw energy, and the fact that he is still writing melody driven songs. I also love Americana, and what people like John Mayer are doing, in bringing guitar based music to a younger audience. In terms of singing styles I love Bob Dylan, because its more about the feeling and conviction than being chromatically correct. Rory Gallagher is another example of what you se is what you get. A great player who never compromised his integrity for commercialism, he had a great heart and was always true to himself.

UM: What do you think makes a good song? GD: Its all about the groove and a decent melody, being able to get the phrasing right, singing behind or in front of the time signature, and bending notes, in a way that feels natural. That sounds easy but it takes a lot of work to get the thing just right.

Gráinne Duffy grew up with country music, she still loves it today, and cites Gillian Welsh, Keith Urban, and Brad Paisley amongst those she enjoys listening to. Her latest CD - Out of the dark - is a modern classic. She has been compared to Bonnie Rait and Mary Coughlan, yet I found her voice to be unique amongst her contempories: smokey, gutsy and raunchy all in one… When this girl starts singing, you stop what you are doing, and listen, its that good. And I almost forgot to mention: she has a degree in music, and plays a mean lead guitar too!

Catch Gráinne Duffy at this year’s Blues On The Bay Festival in Warrenpoint, and keep your eye on the Rotterdam’s listings. She will be back.

Website: http://www.grainneduffy.com/

Comments