Conversation in a pub inspires Andrew Dolan’s new single

For a gifted songwriter, material can manifest just about anywhere. Where mere mortals look out into the world and see only that which lies in front of them, the artist’s eye is alive to even the slightest seed of inspiration.

This quality of being sensitive to a good subject is often the mark of a great songwriter, and it is one that Andrew Dolan demonstrated he possesses in abundance, in his most recent release, ‘White Feather’.

Taking its title from one of the most poetically poignant lines of the song, the three minute master-piece is a musical meditation on a conversation the Omagh 18-year-old had with an older man in a pub.

“I’ll not say where it was, but the words he said really stuck with me,” said Andrew, when we spoke with him earlier this week.

“He told me some stuff about his life; that he used to be into music and that he had spoiled it all with alcohol.

“In the job I do, writing music and singing around pubs, that is pretty common, so it was a powerful warning to hear about the dangers of drink from somebody who knew about it firsthand.

“You hear it all the time, but this was different.”

It is often said that the wisdom of the old is lost on the brashness of youth, but ‘White Feather’ is proof that not all young people are as imperceptive as the cliché would contest.

In the track, the Omagh lad recalls some the cautionary words that were imparted upon him that night, all the while painting a vivid picture of the scene, and exercising his creative licence to great effect.

“He said he was my biggest fan, as well as a lot of the other lines from the song. However, there are parts in there that are my own. The white feather bit, for example, was something that just came to me as I was writing the song. I thought it was a strong image, and lyrically it seemed to help the tune along, so I put in in there.”

White feather is a conversation in song, one coloured by an intriguing inter-generational dynamic, as an old man, with an honesty forged in the fires of hard-living, attempts to steer a young man, bursting with potential, if not a touch of naivety, upon a path he wishes he had taken himself.

“There is a bit of an irony to the whole thing, him being drunk and telling me to stay away from the bottle… But that’s by the by,” laughed Andrew.

‘White Feather’ represents another ascending stride for Andrew, who is quickly becoming one of the North West’s most sought after young singers.

The tune is available on Spotify – go, listen, learn, enjoy!