Belfast born Irish singer and songwriter, poet and rock and roll alt. Folk original Andy White is back in Australia with a brand new self-titled solo album, andy white, which has been gathering great reviews following European and North American release this year and is being hailed as his career-best.

"Andy White has a rare gift, he is a special case deserving of our special attention. This is an album that that will meet the most exacting scrutiny from both fan and casual listener alike. Make sure you hear it." HOT PRESS, Ireland

Andy’s first new release since 1996, is a lush yet edgy, tender yet biting mix of Celtic eloquence and rock passion, gospel spirituality and political insights. Known for his artistic integrity, this album is Andy’s most focused, vibrant and tender work to date. Simple and elegant, poetically generous and personally courageous.

Written in Switzerland and recorded in Dublin, andy white features guess stars such as Liam O Maonlai (Hothouse Flowers), Nick Seymour (Crowded House) and David Bridie. The album was mixed by John Leckie, the producer of classic albums by Pink Floyd, the Stone Roses, Muse and ‘The Bends’ by Radiohead

. Socially political and romantically poetical from the start, Andy White has always had a keen interest in language, music and politics. His first poem (written when he was nine) was entitled ‘Riots’, and the Belfast punk scene inspired him to pick up the guitar and set his words to music, aged 15. His bitingly topical debut single ‘Religious Persuasion’ appeared in 1985 on the famed UK punk label Stiff, and stormed up the indie charts.

‘Rave On Andy White’, Andy’s first album, was released soon after – the first major UK review simply proclaimed "Yer Man Is Brilliant!" – and Andy set out touring with his 12 string guitar and book of words. He has released 8 albums since then, the most recent of which, ‘Speechless’, is a live performance album of his best known songs and poems from ‘Religious Persuasion’ to ‘James Joyce’s Grave’ recorded at Real World Studios and released by Real World Records.

Andy has established himself as an inspired performer of persistent passion and has won all of Ireland’s top songwriting awards, collaborating with the likes of Peter Gabriel and Tim and Neil Finn. Andy remains prolific and praised by critics and peers alike, all the way from the alt.folk underground to the Irish mainstream.

Album tracks include:
‘Let Me Be Free’ the first radio single in Ireland
‘Hysteria’, co-written with Nashville songwriter Kieran Kane
‘Coz I’m Free’ co-written with Australian superstar Christine Anu for her friend Cathy Freeman
‘Understand’ also co-written with Christine, who included a version on her last solo album
There are video clips of the first two of these tracks. ‘Let Me Be Free’, filmed on super 8 on a Zurich rooftop, and ‘Hysteria’ filmed on 33mm in Dublin and Helsinki.

If you can, catch him in a concert, it is a rare opportunity to see a very special Irishman.

Media
"Richly rewarding, dripping in corking tunes, mighty choruses, offbeat subject matter and a whole wardrobe of brilliantly witty couplets. From rage to sage it ain’t too late to discover one of our best kept secrets." MOJO, UK

"White’s rhapsodic, Celtic-dusted folk/pop is marbled with the kind of brainy, dry humour the Irish have patented. Giddy, sardonic and precocious." TORONTO STAR, Canada

"Taking his cues from alternative rock not baby boom pop Andy White is soft-edged but winsome, let’s hear him on the radio right now. NEW YORK TIMES, USA

"Cute and cuddly Andy White is back on top form with a humming, hip-swivelling, big wide grin of an album. White is a master of rhyme and sanguine reason and draws on an eclectic scaffolding for his quirky and left-field musings. A welcome return of the tousle-haired one." IRISH TIMES, Ireland

"White has seldom been sharper or so unbounded." DAILY MIRROR, UK

"It has the sort of depths all true albums should have. Full of detail, observation and life, this eponymous affair is life-enriching." LAM, UK

"Just the kind of album to accompany the smells of freshly cut grass and evaporating rain on warm, lazy summer evenings." CLASSIC ROCK, UK

"It is hard to credit this fresh sound as the 10th album in a 16 year career. The soft focus of the music is a seamless synthesis of jangly folksiness and ‘60s power chords. It belies the strength at its poetic heart. Gentle, irreverent, tender and upbeat." TIME OUT, UK

"Popsongs in disguise – a fragile balance and a total success." FACTS, Switzerland

"Timeless, tender songs are his trademark. Brilliant.: Hi Fi CD, Germany

"Intelligent, compelling music. He sounds unequivocally as if he is having a good time.: FINANCIAL TIMES, UK

"This latest album owes as much to Brian Wilson as to Ewan Macoll. Think of a Belfast version of Baby Lemonade or The Wondermints, try the surging "Come With Me" or the reverberating "Little Boy" and you will get the idea." UNCUT, UK

Live in concert
"Tall, doe-eyed and mop-haired, this international treasure is a storyteller in the classical mould who weaves his words with gorgeous melodies and wry humour. Blisteringly romantic without being sentimental." THE STAGE, UK

"Too rarely do we see musicians who seem to be playing simply for the joy of making music. With ‘Religious Persuasion’ the band took flight and they didn’t come down for the rest of the show." IRISH TIMES, Ireland

and finally

"Ladies and gentlemen, Andy White has left the country!" HOT PRESS, Ireland

Keep up to date with Andy’s current world tour through his website www.andywhite.com

For further information about gigs @ The Cornish - info@cornisharms.com.au

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Last Updated December, 2002