The Magnificent Seven

Currently in production with filming taking place in the Galway area, Seven Songs For Amy promises to be one of the most anticipated Irish films of recent years and will hits screens early in 2012. Described as a “romantic feel-good comedy”, it follows the trials and tribulations of singer and musician, Sean O’Malley (played by Sean Maguire) as he tries to win back the love of his life, Amy, who also happens to be a Hot Press journalist!

The movie is directed by BAFTA-nominated Konrad Begg (Top Gear), and also stars Lorna Anderson (River City) and Kevin J. Ryan (Laredo, Tripping Tommy). It will furthermore feature an appearance by Patrick Bergin and performance by Alabama 3, playing the part of “hell raiser musicians”.
Original songs for the film are written and performed by two Galway-based musicians/singer-songwriters, Ultan Conlon and Jim McKee. They were brought together to work on the soundtrack by writer/producer, Fiona Graham.
“We’re both solo artists essentially and were busy doing our own thing,” says Conlon, taking a break from recording incidental music for the film. “We didn’t know each other before our involvement in the movie. Fiona got hold of my album, Bless Your Heart, which had been getting a bit of airplay. She approached me and asked if I would become involved.”
In McKee’s case, it was while playing a live date in Galway that he first came in contact with the writer of the film. “I was playing in Tully’s in Kinvara with my band, Island Eddie. Fiona walked up to me after the gig and said she wanted to hear some more of my music,” he explains. “I gave her a copy of my album, Just a Piece of Jim McKee and there was a song on it, ‘Soul Friend’, that she said she really liked – it’s now one of the songs in the film. She asked me if I had any new songs and I gave her, ‘Greatest Best Thing’ along with ‘Show Me The Love’ which she also liked. She then asked me if I would I write a song called ‘Amy‘.”
McKee (originally from Cookstown, Co. Tyrone) came up with the title song and the production team paired him with Conlon, who wrote the middle eight.
Most of the soundtrack is being recorded in Conlon’s home studio, as he explains. “I’ve got quite a good studio set- up. I’ve an Avalon valve pre-amp which is fantastic for vocals and I use Focusrite and an Apple Mac with MOTU interface for recording.”
Conlon says he normally plays an acoustic guitar. His instrument of choice currently is a Taylor semi-acoustic with a Fishman pick-up, which he’s had for about nine years. “They get better with age and they’re great for live work,” he says. “I’ve got a Guild, which is more full-bodied and better for recording purposes. I don’t play electric all that much, it’s a different beast altogether. I play with a band and I’d have an electric guitar player on board.”
He cites the late John Martyn as a key influence on his writing and performing. “He would be a big favourite of mine and one of the reasons I got into music in the first place. He actually did one of my songs a few years ago and I ended up on the recent tribute album.”
Conlon says his involvement in the soundtrack has brought him much closer to the filmmaking process than he’d initially expected: “It’s very exciting, I’m watching rushes and I can see that they’re doing an authentic job where the music is concerned. I think Konrad, the director, was adamant that it be as real as possible. I’ve been on set where the actor is meant to be singing and playing guitar and I’m playing and singing off-screen at the same time to make it sound real.”
McKee (who went to the same music school as Brian Kennedy in Belfast) arrived in Galway some years ago where he is also a noted painter as well as a musician. He grew up listening to Cat Stevens, Simon & Garfunkel and Bob Dylan but says he was blown away when he first heard Neil Young’s Harvest album. Working on the film, he says, has offered him an unexpected chance to showcase his music to a wider audience. “This has been a happy accident that I’ve waited for 22 years to happen. I’ve written a lot of new songs, I’ve got a new manager who works with MCD, and I’ve done supports recently with Ocean Colour Scene and Mick Flannery among others.”
“It’s been a very exciting process putting down the songs for Sean to sing,” he adds. “I’ve a good feeling about the movie. There’s a great cast, and it has a good chance of doing well. I like the songs and the way they marry with the story. The integrity of the songs has been nicely retained in the film. There’s talk of releasing a soundtrack album when the film comes out, which would be great.”