Christy Dignam
Encyclopedia
Christy Dignam is the lead singer of the popular Irish rock-band Aslan
. His career of over twenty-five years has been characterized by numerous successes on the Irish charts as well as recurring problems with drug addiction and recovery.
. He studied the classical art of Bel canto
singing with teacher Frank Merriman at the Bel Canto House School of Singing in Dublin, Ireland.
Dignam has been married for over 20 years to Kathryn and has a daughter Kiera,also a singer and grandson Cian and granddaughter Ava.
Show on 2FM in 1980. The Meelah XVIII songs "Toy Soldier" and "Meelah Pt. 2" were included on the Aslan triple CD, The "Rarities" disc from the "The Platinum Collection". Meelah XVIII musicians were Christy Dignam, Tony Talbot, Mick McKenna, Joe Jewell, and Gerry Conlon.
As Aslan singles "This Is", "Please Don't Stop", "Loving Me Lately", "Pretty Thing" and "Feel No Shame" began to become popular, Dignam's relationship with his bandmates was becoming strained due to his problem with heroin addiction. On Wednesday 7 September 1988, The Star
newspaper headlined "ASLAN: IT'S THE END" informing the public about Dignam's separation from Aslan. The remaining members of the band continued Aslan for some time with a new lead singer, Eamon Doyle, before the band eventually split. Dignam went solo with guitarist
Conor Goff, forming Dignam & Goff
.
However, on 11 July 1993 Aslan reformed, for what was supposed to be a 'once off gig' in Finglas
. With the spark reignited and with new material, Aslan continued and became one of Ireland's most successful and hard-working bands. Their studio albums include "Feel No Shame", "Goodbye Charlie Moonhead", "Here Comes Lucy Jones" and "Waiting For The Madness To End". They have had two best of albums "Shame About Lucy Moonhead" and the triple album "The Platinum Collection". They have had a best selling live album "Made In Dublin" and an official bootleg album (available at gigs) called "Aslan Live At The Olympia" which features appearances from Jerry Fish, Relish and Damien Rice
.
, Bob Dylan
, David Bowie
, T-Rex
, The Rolling Stones
, and John Lennon
as his musical influences. He has also been listed as influencing groups like Damien Dempsey
, Jerry Fish
, Damien Rice
, George Murphy, Rob Smith
, Alabama 3
and more.
He has entered drug treatment programs multiple times, including a stint in a rehab program in a Buddhist monastery, Wat Tham Krabok
, in Thailand
in 2004. This was featured in the documentary 'Heroin: Facing The Dragon'.
Dignam related his story of drug addiction in an autobiography entitled This is Christy Dignam written with journalist Neil Fetherstonhaugh and published by Merlin Publishing. One reviewer said it “should be required reading for anyone hovering on the edges of the drug culture.”
Aslan (rock band)
Aslan are an Irish rock band from Dublin who formed in 1982. Comprising Christy Dignam, Joe Jewell, Billy McGuinness, Alan Downey and Rodney O'Brien, the band has released five studio albums - Feel No Shame , Goodbye Charlie Moonhead , Here Comes Lucy Jones , Waiting For This Madness To End and...
. His career of over twenty-five years has been characterized by numerous successes on the Irish charts as well as recurring problems with drug addiction and recovery.
Life
Dignam was born in the Holles Street Hospital in Dublin in May 1960, and grew up in the north Dublin suburb of FinglasFinglas
-See also:* List of towns and villages in Ireland* List of abbeys and priories in Ireland...
. He studied the classical art of Bel canto
Bel canto
Bel canto , along with a number of similar constructions , is an Italian opera term...
singing with teacher Frank Merriman at the Bel Canto House School of Singing in Dublin, Ireland.
Dignam has been married for over 20 years to Kathryn and has a daughter Kiera,also a singer and grandson Cian and granddaughter Ava.
Singing career
Dignam formed an early version of Aslan called Meelah XVIII. Meelah XVIII created a recording for the Dave FanningDave Fanning
Dave Fanning is an Irish rock journalist, DJ, retired film critic and veteran broadcaster. He currently hosts The 11th Hour on RTÉ Two and two radio shows: Drivetime with Dave on RTÉ Radio 1 and The Dave Fanning Show on RTÉ 2fm. He also fills in for other presenters on RTÉ Radio, including acting...
Show on 2FM in 1980. The Meelah XVIII songs "Toy Soldier" and "Meelah Pt. 2" were included on the Aslan triple CD, The "Rarities" disc from the "The Platinum Collection". Meelah XVIII musicians were Christy Dignam, Tony Talbot, Mick McKenna, Joe Jewell, and Gerry Conlon.
As Aslan singles "This Is", "Please Don't Stop", "Loving Me Lately", "Pretty Thing" and "Feel No Shame" began to become popular, Dignam's relationship with his bandmates was becoming strained due to his problem with heroin addiction. On Wednesday 7 September 1988, The Star
Irish Daily Star
The Irish Daily Star is a tabloid newspaper published in Ireland by the Independent Star Limited. Independent Star Limited is a joint venture between Richard Desmond's UK based Express Newspapers Limited, which owns the British Daily Star, and Irish news magnate Denis O'Brien's Independent News &...
newspaper headlined "ASLAN: IT'S THE END" informing the public about Dignam's separation from Aslan. The remaining members of the band continued Aslan for some time with a new lead singer, Eamon Doyle, before the band eventually split. Dignam went solo with guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
Conor Goff, forming Dignam & Goff
Dignam & Goff
Dignam & Goff was the project of Aslan's frontman Christy Dignam along with guitarist Conor Goff in the early 90's before Aslan reunited in 1993....
.
However, on 11 July 1993 Aslan reformed, for what was supposed to be a 'once off gig' in Finglas
Finglas
-See also:* List of towns and villages in Ireland* List of abbeys and priories in Ireland...
. With the spark reignited and with new material, Aslan continued and became one of Ireland's most successful and hard-working bands. Their studio albums include "Feel No Shame", "Goodbye Charlie Moonhead", "Here Comes Lucy Jones" and "Waiting For The Madness To End". They have had two best of albums "Shame About Lucy Moonhead" and the triple album "The Platinum Collection". They have had a best selling live album "Made In Dublin" and an official bootleg album (available at gigs) called "Aslan Live At The Olympia" which features appearances from Jerry Fish, Relish and Damien Rice
Damien Rice
Damien Rice is an Irish singer-songwriter, musician and record producer who plays guitar, piano, clarinet and percussion....
.
Influences
Dignam lists Tom WaitsTom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, T-Rex
Marc Bolan
Marc Bolan was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist and poet. He is best known as the founder, frontman, lead singer & guitarist for T. Rex, but also a successful solo artist...
, The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, and John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
as his musical influences. He has also been listed as influencing groups like Damien Dempsey
Damien Dempsey
Damien Dempsey is an Irish singer and songwriter who mixes traditional Irish folk with contemporary lyrics to deliver social comment on the positive and negative aspects arising from Ireland's Celtic Tiger society.-Early life:...
, Jerry Fish
Jerry Fish and the Mudbug Club
An Emotional Fish is an alternative rock band from Dublin, Ireland. An Emotional Fish were formed in 1988, and consisted of Gerard Whelan , Martin Murphy , David Frew , and Enda Wyatt . Their musical influences include David Bowie, Iggy Pop, T...
, Damien Rice
Damien Rice
Damien Rice is an Irish singer-songwriter, musician and record producer who plays guitar, piano, clarinet and percussion....
, George Murphy, Rob Smith
Rob Smith (Irish musician)
Rob Smith is an Irish singer/songwriter and musician from Terenure in Dublin. Originally a street-busker, he has released two commercial albums to date Throwing It All Away in 2008 on his own Cocklebob Recordings label which featured three singles all of which made the top 10 in the Irish Downloads...
, Alabama 3
Alabama 3
Alabama 3 are a British band mixing rock, dance, blues, country, and gospel styles, founded in Brixton, London, in 1995. In the United States, they are known as A3, allegedly to avoid any possible legal conflict with the country music band Alabama...
and more.
Drug addiction
Dignam turned to heroin in the 1980s, and his involvement with the drug caused the conflicts which led to his eventual separation with the band Aslan.He has entered drug treatment programs multiple times, including a stint in a rehab program in a Buddhist monastery, Wat Tham Krabok
Wat Tham Krabok
Wat Tham Krabok is a Buddhist temple in Thailand, located in the Phra Phutthabat district of Saraburi Province.The temple was first established as a monastery in 1958 by the Buddhist nun Mae Chee Boonruen. It was upgraded to temple status 17 years later, in 1975...
, in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
in 2004. This was featured in the documentary 'Heroin: Facing The Dragon'.
Dignam related his story of drug addiction in an autobiography entitled This is Christy Dignam written with journalist Neil Fetherstonhaugh and published by Merlin Publishing. One reviewer said it “should be required reading for anyone hovering on the edges of the drug culture.”