Michael O'Brien Biography

I was born close to the village of Bodyke which is near Scarriff in east Clare, the youngest by ten years of a family of five with two brothers and two sisters. I grew up on a farm where we all did our share of the work and attended the local national school where I was part of the school choire and also the local church choir.

My first introduction to music came from my father who at one time played the violin which was still in our home. My vain efforts to play this instrument were soon abandoned as the scratchy sounds soon became a great source of annoyance to the entire household, even the poor old dog ran out when I started.

I had finished secondary school when I got my first guitar and after learning a few chords I very soon found that I could strum along and accompany myself singing a few songs that were popular at the time. This gave me great encouragement to continue. At this time after leaving school I worked for a short time in a piano factory where I found a new interest which was to play the piano.

I spent a all my spare time while I was there learning to play songs and tunes that I knew so eventually I got some proper piano lessons which gave me a good start.

As both my sisters were nurses I too decided that this was going to be my profession in life. I first trained and qualified as a Psychiatric nurse after which I qualified as a General state registered nurse. During this time I played with different bands and enjoyed writing my own songs and was fortunate enough to take home the winning trophy from a few song contests that I had entered.After some years playing the local scene I picked up the courage to record my first album titled "The Cliffs Of Moher" which was taken on board by "Failte Records" in Dublin. On this album was a song called "The Veil Of White Lace". This song became a number one hit for me which consequently changed my life and launched my singing career.

Philomena McGovern Biography

Philomena McGovern is a name that has a long association with country music as she made quiet an impact on her own local scene for many years when she and her sister Maureen had their own band, receiving much acclaim and were very much in demand. Coming from a musical background Philomena was born and reared in Swanlinbar Co. Cavan where she grew up and worked until her early twenties. Living in that part of the country that is synonymous with country music it is not surprising that Philomena took a keen interest in music and singing from an early age. During her school years she studied piano and guitar at which she became quiet proficient and from time to time played with many of her musical friends around Fermanagh and her native Co. Cavan. Soon after leaving school Philomena and her sister formed their own band and recorded their first album titled “Sweet Briar Country” which was purely for their own pleasure but nevertheless they picked up a lot of airplay on the local Breffni Radio. This new exposure made them very popular on the home front and gave Philomena the experience necessary to move to better things.

In the early nineties Philomena and her family moved to Galway where she got involved in the fashion business and was manageress of a very popular boutique for many years. While at the same time not neglecting her music she soon established herself as one of the most sought after entertainers around. A new band was formed and in response to a great demand for tapes and CD’s of her songs at the many venues that she and her band played at, Philomena was prompted to go to a recording studio where she recorded a new sixteen track album which was later released as a very scenic video and also included her own band.

This new album titled “ Tonight I’ll Throw A Party” was very well recorded and with each song delivered in a clear distinctive voice that left you in no doubt that Philomena was indeed a talented country singer and was now destined to take her place amongst the best in the business.

This new album soon caught the attention of a long established record company “A-One Music” based in Glasgow and they subsequently signed her to their record label. With a great selection of songs this album received a lot of airplay on all the radio stations that in the past were responsible for making household names of many of today’s top singing stars.