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”, and he also wrote the first version of “Angels” with 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”, he’s back with a new record; a strong, well-defined and immaculately produced 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 itself 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 was attended by a crowd of 1500, and recorded for TV by an independent production company.
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 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 this last song, 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.
The album can be listened to in it’s entirety, downloaded or the special edition, Kilt-covered CD can be purchased from http://www.rayheffernan.net . Though he lives and dedicates himself to a life as a modern bard in a foreign land, Ray Heffernan brings the Grand Canal Band to Ireland in the new year to showcase these new songs to his own tribe.
