Description
French Windows features eleven original tracks from the former voice of Scullion - Sonny Condell. Sonny's astute lyricism and low pitched vocals glide gracefully over a semi-ambient rock-based sound.
As songwriter and driving force behind legendary groups Scullion and Tir Na nOg, Sonny Condell occupies an almost unrivalled place in the Irish musical landscape. He has been an integral part of the Irish music scene for the past thirty years, from his beginnings improvising on old oil barrels and singing with cousin John Roberts in a County Wicklow farm shed. Performing as Tramcar 88, they recorded two singles before Sonny left for Dublin where he teamed up with Leo O'Kelly to form the highly influential Tir Na nOg. The two moved to London in 1969, where they were based for some five years and released three albums on the Chrysalis label to widespread critical acclaim. During this period, the pair toured extensively, sharing the bill with acts such as Cat Stephens, Jethro Tull, Procul Harum, Steeleye Span and Supertramp.
In 1975, Sonny returned to Ireland and recorded the solo album Camouflage (widely regarded as Ireland's first and most important traditional & jazz cross-over album). Following a series of celebrated sessions in Dublin, he formed seminal group Scullion with Philip King before recording the ground-breaking album Scullion in 1979. The group proved hugely popular both in Ireland and further afield and went on to release a further three albums. In 2000, Hummingbird Records released the compilation album Eyelids Into Snow celebrating the music of Sonny Condell and Scullion and featuring classic tracks from the previous three decades.
Sonny continues to combine solo work and occasional performances with both Tir Na nOg and Scullion and has made a series of highly regarded solo albums including Backwater Awhile. Thirty years on, long after he begun the journey that saw him influence a generation of Irish songwriters, Sonny Condell remains a formidable musical force and one of Ireland's most respected writers and performers.
"French Windows sees Sonny's muse reaching new heights of creativity". Rock 'N' Reel.
Wishful Thinking; Long Dark Evening; They Don't Say; Tea In A Field; Jericho; Into Stars; Telephone; Tell My Heart; Hungry For You; A Dust Of Frost; French Windows.