John Spillane

Born in Cork, Ireland, in 1961, John Spillane completed studies at University College Cork prior to entering the music profession. During the 1980s he performed for several years as a member of the Irish trio the Stargazers and supplied a couple of songs for the group. He subsequently devoted several years to Nomos, contributing to the albums I Won't Be Afraid Anymore (1995) and Set You Free (1997) while writing the much-covered song "All the Ways That You Wander" for the earlier release. His solo career began in earnest with The Wells of the World in 1997, followed by Will We Be Brilliant or What? (2002), Hey Dreamer (2005), and My Dark Rosaleen & the Island of Dreams (2008), all issued on EMI. In 2003 he received the Meteor Ireland Music Award for Best Folk/Traditional Act, and in 2006 he joined frequent songwriting partner Louis de Paor for the album The Gaelic Hit Factory. Performers who have recorded Spillane material across the decades encompass Méav ("When You and I Were True," 1998; "You Brought Me Up," 2002), Solas ("Sraid an Chloig," 1998), Maca ("Rinn na Mara," 1998), Máire Ní Chéilleachair ("All the Ways You Wander," 1999), Sinéad Lohan ("Eist do Bheal," 1999), Karan Casey ("We're Going Sailing," 2000; "Buile Mo Chroi," "You Brought Me Up," 2001; "Song of Lies," "Bata is Bóthar," 2003), Christy Moore ("Johnny Don't Go," 2001; "Magic Nights in the Lobby Bar," 2005), Sharon Shannon ("All the Ways You Wander," 2003), Seán Keane ("Valley of the Heart," "The Only One for Me," "The Land You Love the Best," 2003), Pauline Scanlon ("All the Ways You Wander," 2004; "When You and I Were True," 2006), George Murphy ("The Moon Going Home," "The Land You Love the Best," 2004), Shanneyganock ("I'm Gonna Set You Free," 2004), Cathie Ryan ("The Wild Flowers," 2005), Michelle Lally ("All the Ways You Wander," 2006), Rory McCarthy ("Ireland Free," 2006), and Róisín Elsafty ("Poor Weary Wanderer," 2006).