Columb Farrelly
Encyclopedia
Columb Farrelly was an Irish
music producer and composer who first came to prominence during the mid-1980s in the music industry through his musical partnership with singer Sinéad O'Connor
. Farrelly was a native of Dublin.
's soap theme 'Fair City'), and short films. Farrelly would later meet up with Jimmy Corr
(later of The Corrs
) where he took the role of a band leader in a TV drama The Black Knight with Corr as his keyboard player. The band dissolved in the early 1990s.
manager Paul McGuinness
, Farrelly set up the production company Underscore in 1993, taking over the ailing Ashtown Gate Studios. Within a year of taking over he produced the trio called The Pale
, who were the first Irish act to perform live against pre-programmed music tracks. The Pale's first release on Underscore, 'Why Go Bald', attracted overseas interest and launched a battle amongst record companies to sign them. Farrelly would sign them to A&M Records
. Farrelly co-wrote with, produced and managed the act who toured in the UK, Europe, Japan, and the US and achieved modest chart success, with tracks like 'Butterfly', and 'Dogs with no tails.' Farrelly was awarded the Smithwicks/Hotpress Producer Of the Year Award for the album 'Here’s One We Made Earlier'.
Farrelly had set up Underscore Multimedia in 1995 to supply the audio content for a number of Microsoft
products, including the educational CD-ROM "Ancient Lands". Farrelly left the production company and retired to remote County Kerry
to compose and record.
During that period, Farrelly's musical collaborations with producer-director Brendan Culleton (Akajava Films) produced scores for documentaries including the Irish language
An Bothar Fada (The Long Road), The Shamrock and the Swastika and Diarmuid and Strongbow. In 2003, he began making occasional appearances on stage with others under the name The Fortyfoot Gentlemen.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
music producer and composer who first came to prominence during the mid-1980s in the music industry through his musical partnership with singer Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad O'Connor
Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor is an Irish singer-songwriter. She rose to fame in the late 1980s with her debut album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success in 1990 with a cover of the song "Nothing Compares 2 U"....
. Farrelly was a native of Dublin.
Ton Ton Macoute
In the summer of 1984, Farrelly met up with O'Connor through an ad she had placed in Hot Press Magazine. The two of them recruited a few other band members and created around her the seminal act for the band Ton Ton Macoute. The band was received positively, while their sound was inspired by Farrelly’s interest in witchcraft, mysticism, and world music. Less than a year later, in February 1985, O'Connor’s mother died. This led to her leaving Farrelly and the rest of Ton Ton Macoute. The band gigged on in various lineups until, after her departure they eventually folded. Farrelly went on to take different composer roles, scoring for numerous TV documentaries, dramas, (including RTÉRaidió Teilifís Éireann
Raidió Teilifís Éireann is a semi-state company and the public service broadcaster of Ireland. It both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet. The radio service began on January 1, 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on December 31, 1961, making...
's soap theme 'Fair City'), and short films. Farrelly would later meet up with Jimmy Corr
Jim Corr
James Steven Ignatius "Jim" Corr is an Irish musician, singer and songwriter. He is a member of the Irish folk/rock band The Corrs, the other members being his three younger sisters Andrea, Sharon and Caroline. He is also a DJ....
(later of The Corrs
The Corrs
The Corrs are an Irish band which combine pop rock with traditional Celtic folk music. The brother and sisters are from Dundalk, Ireland. The group consists of the Corr siblings: Andrea ; Sharon ; Caroline ; and Jim .The Corrs came to international prominence with their performance at the...
) where he took the role of a band leader in a TV drama The Black Knight with Corr as his keyboard player. The band dissolved in the early 1990s.
Underscore Production Company
With the encouragement of U2U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
manager Paul McGuinness
Paul McGuinness
Paul McGuinness is the main shareholder and founder of Principle Management Limited: an artist management company based in Dublin, Ireland, which has managed U2 from the start of their successful career...
, Farrelly set up the production company Underscore in 1993, taking over the ailing Ashtown Gate Studios. Within a year of taking over he produced the trio called The Pale
The Pale (band)
The Pale are an Irish band of varying genres including: eastern European, reggae, ska, bluegrass, world music, and pop.They were formed in Dublin in 1990 with Matthew Devereux on vocals, Shane Wearen on mandolin, Sean Molloy on Bass, and a drum machine. They released an award-winning debut album on...
, who were the first Irish act to perform live against pre-programmed music tracks. The Pale's first release on Underscore, 'Why Go Bald', attracted overseas interest and launched a battle amongst record companies to sign them. Farrelly would sign them to A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
. Farrelly co-wrote with, produced and managed the act who toured in the UK, Europe, Japan, and the US and achieved modest chart success, with tracks like 'Butterfly', and 'Dogs with no tails.' Farrelly was awarded the Smithwicks/Hotpress Producer Of the Year Award for the album 'Here’s One We Made Earlier'.
Farrelly had set up Underscore Multimedia in 1995 to supply the audio content for a number of Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
products, including the educational CD-ROM "Ancient Lands". Farrelly left the production company and retired to remote County Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
to compose and record.
Recent career
While there scoring for filmmakers, he began writing a trio of shorts emerging from the period 2000 to 2004: Of Noble Blood, Vicious Circle and What If? (Bootstrap Films). Farrelly went into development under the auspices of The Irish Film Board with his feature screenplay Skinflick.During that period, Farrelly's musical collaborations with producer-director Brendan Culleton (Akajava Films) produced scores for documentaries including the Irish language
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
An Bothar Fada (The Long Road), The Shamrock and the Swastika and Diarmuid and Strongbow. In 2003, he began making occasional appearances on stage with others under the name The Fortyfoot Gentlemen.