diZasteroid

WECOME TO MY LOONIVERSE

Started piano bout 8 but no conviction. Moved to guitar as I found that the accompanying amplification helped the noise travel further afield. Music to my ears. By late teens I could mimic serious rock + jazz solos from record. Neighbours were clearly impressed and regularly waved. Some with fists. I could see their mouth movements but the volume drowned their praises. Late 70s I was a young speedleedfreek in Dublin bands. 15 minuters like freebird were cool. Any excuse for a blow. Did cabaret too. Sweet Caroline with the likelihood of a wild hendrix solo. Appreciated 0. On occasions I put the singer off. Then the time in a Dub pub where I ended the night with a rocked up national anthem. A coke bottle with remaining contents was flung at the band - clattering across a tiled floor spewing foam in all directions accompanied by a shout of play it f'''n' straight ya bollix!! I stood to attention then ok. Hendrix got away with it! Mind you not to the Irish one. ADHD on guitar.. DeeJayed for a while. 1980 did a band stint in a the Taj Mahal Hotel, Delhi for a few months. 1984 meself +2 jazzies won a Bewleys busking competition in Grafton St. Gypsy stuff. Got a Waterford Crystal trophy for our troubles. Gave us confidence to embark on a 2month busking crusade of France. Well breton musicians inundated Ireland with their brand of celtic. We simply inverted the compliment. After all my guitar hero was Django. 1987 I produced a record called I cant Dance for a group from Bray Co Wicklow called Its A Secret who were Ger Doyle and my friend Cojo. It hit the dutch top10 with a bit of help from Sky Tv. Around that time I produced two album tracks for Dublin artist Stano.
Then things got a bit hairy. Got married: kids: successful illustration design biz: big house in town: no time for music: financial pressure: Lost the business, house, marriage but I'm still the proud father bit.

MANY THANKS BIT: The singers who kindly donated their time: Niamh Collins, Bree Harris, Maureen Smith (MoMo), Godfrey Chimganda (PureTone), Sarah + Willie Byrne, Colm Jones (Cojo), Magda Joyce. Internet collabs: Aflie, Cory Carlson (Czheck Productions), Shoobadooba, QuinTon, Gwenevered, Dimitri Wijesinghe, Cassandra Allen, Thad Wheeler. I thank John + Holly COAB (Christ on a Bike) for doing two great remixes of Waterdance.

FURTHER THANKS TO: The artists who gave kind permission to sample or remix their material. I want to thank Alex Gunningham and the Purple Gang. I remixed an oldie 45 that brought back happy childhood memories. Recently I decided it was time to do a HIT on it. I sent it to them and thankfully they loved it. It looks like being released shortly and it has been promised airplay on a few radio stations already. More on that in the near future.

Also Paul Tarnopol (Brunswick records) Marshall Thompson (ChiLites), Cherry Lane Publishing (Quincy Jones), Steve TinTin Kipner, Johnny Violent (Ultraviolence), Cham, Mari Wilson, Paul Evans and his record label, Gilbert OSullivan, Chris Frantz (Talking Heads), Jonathan King, Dr Lonnie Smith, Staalplaat Records (representing Muslimgauze), Dr Jack Stamp + Gary Olmstead (Ozone Percussion Ensemble), J Steez, Demetrius.

No words are enough to thank Colm Jones (Cojo) for his endless support for my laboured effort - especially in recording all my home singers. Without his input this project may never have left the ground. Right now the distance between my project and the ground below has reached almost a full centimetre !!

Also a mention for 'the head' a friend of old - Philip Begley for much help along the way. Any problem with the mac and he's on it...