Citing his brother as his biggest musical influence, Eoghan (pronounced Owen) Colgan is somewhat modest when it comes to his musical accomplishments. “No one really played musical instruments in my family other than my brother. He's always been a massive lover of music and handed me down all his CD’s. He’s the one that really kicked started my love of music which in turn has made me the artist I am today”.
Having trained and worked as a Doctor for the past 11 years whilst moonlighting as a singer songwriter, it is apparent that Eoghan Colgan possesses a real talent when it comes to his musical abilities.
Growing up in Newcastle, Co. Down in Northern Ireland, Eoghan picked up the guitar aged 16 years but it wasn’t until studying Medicine at Queens University in Belfast that he really discovered his passion for Music and performing live. Eoghan dabbled in a few bands before putting his efforts in to song writing. The result was universally loved among his friends and in the years to follow Eoghan toured the local venues carving out a name for himself.
In the summer of 1998, Eoghan went to work for a hospital in rural Ivory Coast as part of a lifelong ambition. However, in the months to follow he would contract a frighteningly near fatal dose of Malaria. An experience which would have a profound effect on the singer-songwriter. “I was pretty isolated and I do recall my only comfort was my cassette player” he recalls. “I had a tape of Jeff Buckley's Grace on one side and Ash 1977 on the other. I played that cassette over and over. It's hard to explain but it was slightly spiritual. I fell in love with Jeff Buckleys album and it remains my favourite album. The whole experience influenced my music and shaped the way in which I would move forward with my writing”.
Upon his return to the UK, Eoghan would struggle to combine both his love of Music and working as a Doctor. “In my first year as a junior doctor at the Ulster in Dundonald we would often work 80, 90 even 100 hour weeks. I remember one incident of finishing work at 5, driving 3-4 hours to play a gig in the south of Ireland then driving home in the middle of the night to be at work in the morning”. Now that’s dedication!
Deciding enough was enough, Eoghan upped sticks and moved to Australia in search of a better work/life balance. Alas, the bad luck was set to continue as Eoghan badly broke his finger whilst playing Gaelic football, which put paid to his touring ambitions. Once healed, Eoghan gave the Melbourne music scene a chance but it was soon time to return home again. “I needed to stop moving around. I needed a good base”. This thinking led Eoghan to Scotland.
Working as a Doctor in Glasgow and training to be a GP in Stirling, Eoghan started off playing open mics and coffee shops. He slowly pieced together a great band and began playing bigger and bigger venues and developing his sound. The move paid off and things have taken a turn for the better ever since.
“In the past 4 years I have released two self produced E.P’s as well as play sold-out shows in some of the best venues in Glasgow(The Classic Grand, Tron Theatre, King Tut's, ABC and the Arches), performed at festivals in Australia, Norway, Scotland and my homeland, Ireland. I debuted on BBC Radio Scotland and followed this with a live session on Q96 and more recently had the honour of ‘Artist of the Week’ from XFM Scotland. OH! And not to mention, in the past 18 months playing Wireless Festival in Hyde Park, The Grazia Magazine Fashion Awards and most recently the Q Awards Nomination Ceremony at the London's O2 Arena alongside Athlete, Hard-Fi and the Manic Street Preachers”.
Busy to say the least. So busy in fact, Eoghan made the difficult and brave decision to quit his career as a doctor and follow his dream as a musician. "I'd been looking to pursue my musical career for so many years, so I took the decision to drop out of my final year of GP training to give it a proper go. I just didn't want any regrets in the future. I was immensely proud of what I’d achieved over the years but I guess I wanted to release an album and tour around the UK and Ireland. To do that would mean giving up my medical job”. And that’s what he did. “It was such a difficult job to give up, especially as I’d put my life and soul into studying, but the hours made it hard to devote as much time to the music as I wanted and something had to give”.
In 2007 Eoghan entered the song ‘The Only One I Want’ for the O2 Undiscovered Music Bursary and won. He went on to perform live in London for various musical luminaries such as Mean Fiddler managing director Melvin Benn, Live Nation managing director Stuart Galbraith, DJ Spoony who stated “when he sings he makes you want to stop what you're doing and listen” and Amanda Ghost (president of Epic Records) who said “He is the only artist in the competition with a God-given talent. That being his incredible voice. With the right help and development he could go on to sell millions of records”.
Off the back of this amazing support, Eoghan was courted by major labels such as Island Record's and even had President Darcus Beese personally sanction the funding of a demo E.P. in 2008. However, with the economic downturn, circumstances changed and Eoghan decided to set up his own label (EJECT Records) and put out the music himself.
Collaborating with producer Iain Hutchison and recording at his Studio (Gloworm) in Glasgow, Eoghan released his debut single ‘That First Time’ in April 2008 to critical acclaim. Securing single of the week in the Daily Record (beating Mark Ronson and Glasvegas) as well as single of the week and a live session on Jim Gellatlys XFM Scotland show. Back home in Northern Ireland the song was playlisted across the board with support from Cherie McIlwhaine from BBC Ulster as well as RTE 1 in Ireland.
Things have been going from strength to strength ever since. Eoghan’s passionate and honest live performances are now in demand across Scotland and Ireland and with the release of his next single ‘Dream Satellite’ on April 20th, the world is most definitely Eoghan’s for the taking.
Having trained and worked as a Doctor for the past 11 years whilst moonlighting as a singer songwriter, it is apparent that Eoghan Colgan possesses a real talent when it comes to his musical abilities.
Growing up in Newcastle, Co. Down in Northern Ireland, Eoghan picked up the guitar aged 16 years but it wasn’t until studying Medicine at Queens University in Belfast that he really discovered his passion for Music and performing live. Eoghan dabbled in a few bands before putting his efforts in to song writing. The result was universally loved among his friends and in the years to follow Eoghan toured the local venues carving out a name for himself.
In the summer of 1998, Eoghan went to work for a hospital in rural Ivory Coast as part of a lifelong ambition. However, in the months to follow he would contract a frighteningly near fatal dose of Malaria. An experience which would have a profound effect on the singer-songwriter. “I was pretty isolated and I do recall my only comfort was my cassette player” he recalls. “I had a tape of Jeff Buckley's Grace on one side and Ash 1977 on the other. I played that cassette over and over. It's hard to explain but it was slightly spiritual. I fell in love with Jeff Buckleys album and it remains my favourite album. The whole experience influenced my music and shaped the way in which I would move forward with my writing”.
Upon his return to the UK, Eoghan would struggle to combine both his love of Music and working as a Doctor. “In my first year as a junior doctor at the Ulster in Dundonald we would often work 80, 90 even 100 hour weeks. I remember one incident of finishing work at 5, driving 3-4 hours to play a gig in the south of Ireland then driving home in the middle of the night to be at work in the morning”. Now that’s dedication!
Deciding enough was enough, Eoghan upped sticks and moved to Australia in search of a better work/life balance. Alas, the bad luck was set to continue as Eoghan badly broke his finger whilst playing Gaelic football, which put paid to his touring ambitions. Once healed, Eoghan gave the Melbourne music scene a chance but it was soon time to return home again. “I needed to stop moving around. I needed a good base”. This thinking led Eoghan to Scotland.
Working as a Doctor in Glasgow and training to be a GP in Stirling, Eoghan started off playing open mics and coffee shops. He slowly pieced together a great band and began playing bigger and bigger venues and developing his sound. The move paid off and things have taken a turn for the better ever since.
“In the past 4 years I have released two self produced E.P’s as well as play sold-out shows in some of the best venues in Glasgow(The Classic Grand, Tron Theatre, King Tut's, ABC and the Arches), performed at festivals in Australia, Norway, Scotland and my homeland, Ireland. I debuted on BBC Radio Scotland and followed this with a live session on Q96 and more recently had the honour of ‘Artist of the Week’ from XFM Scotland. OH! And not to mention, in the past 18 months playing Wireless Festival in Hyde Park, The Grazia Magazine Fashion Awards and most recently the Q Awards Nomination Ceremony at the London's O2 Arena alongside Athlete, Hard-Fi and the Manic Street Preachers”.
Busy to say the least. So busy in fact, Eoghan made the difficult and brave decision to quit his career as a doctor and follow his dream as a musician. "I'd been looking to pursue my musical career for so many years, so I took the decision to drop out of my final year of GP training to give it a proper go. I just didn't want any regrets in the future. I was immensely proud of what I’d achieved over the years but I guess I wanted to release an album and tour around the UK and Ireland. To do that would mean giving up my medical job”. And that’s what he did. “It was such a difficult job to give up, especially as I’d put my life and soul into studying, but the hours made it hard to devote as much time to the music as I wanted and something had to give”.
In 2007 Eoghan entered the song ‘The Only One I Want’ for the O2 Undiscovered Music Bursary and won. He went on to perform live in London for various musical luminaries such as Mean Fiddler managing director Melvin Benn, Live Nation managing director Stuart Galbraith, DJ Spoony who stated “when he sings he makes you want to stop what you're doing and listen” and Amanda Ghost (president of Epic Records) who said “He is the only artist in the competition with a God-given talent. That being his incredible voice. With the right help and development he could go on to sell millions of records”.
Off the back of this amazing support, Eoghan was courted by major labels such as Island Record's and even had President Darcus Beese personally sanction the funding of a demo E.P. in 2008. However, with the economic downturn, circumstances changed and Eoghan decided to set up his own label (EJECT Records) and put out the music himself.
Collaborating with producer Iain Hutchison and recording at his Studio (Gloworm) in Glasgow, Eoghan released his debut single ‘That First Time’ in April 2008 to critical acclaim. Securing single of the week in the Daily Record (beating Mark Ronson and Glasvegas) as well as single of the week and a live session on Jim Gellatlys XFM Scotland show. Back home in Northern Ireland the song was playlisted across the board with support from Cherie McIlwhaine from BBC Ulster as well as RTE 1 in Ireland.
Things have been going from strength to strength ever since. Eoghan’s passionate and honest live performances are now in demand across Scotland and Ireland and with the release of his next single ‘Dream Satellite’ on April 20th, the world is most definitely Eoghan’s for the taking.
“He is the only artist in the competition with a God-given talent. That being his incredible voice. With the right help and development he could go on to sell millions of records”
AMANDA GHOST – PRESIDENT EPIC RECORD
Catch Eoghan on the following tour dates:
25 Mar 2009 - The Mill @ Oran Mor Glasgow
28 Mar 2009 - Ryedale Live Pickering, Yorkshire
15 Apr 2009 - The Empire Belfast, Northern Ireland
16 Apr 2009 – Whelans, Dublin
17 Apr 2009 – The Purty Kitchen, Dunlaoighre
19 Apr 2009 - Queen Margaret Union, Glasgow
21 Apr 2009 - Saucy Mary’s, Kyleakin Isle of Skye
22 Apr 2009 - Cafe Drummond, Aberdeen
23 Apr 2009 – Hootananny, Inverness
24 Apr 2009 - East Grange Loft, Kinloss
25 Apr 2009 - Twa Tam’s, Perth
26 Apr 2009 - Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh
25 Mar 2009 - The Mill @ Oran Mor Glasgow
28 Mar 2009 - Ryedale Live Pickering, Yorkshire
15 Apr 2009 - The Empire Belfast, Northern Ireland
16 Apr 2009 – Whelans, Dublin
17 Apr 2009 – The Purty Kitchen, Dunlaoighre
19 Apr 2009 - Queen Margaret Union, Glasgow
21 Apr 2009 - Saucy Mary’s, Kyleakin Isle of Skye
22 Apr 2009 - Cafe Drummond, Aberdeen
23 Apr 2009 – Hootananny, Inverness
24 Apr 2009 - East Grange Loft, Kinloss
25 Apr 2009 - Twa Tam’s, Perth
26 Apr 2009 - Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh
