FRANCIE’S ‘DROP DEAD GORGEOUS’ TWITTER BOOST
A SURE sign of friendship is knowing no matter how much life separates you, there’s always time for a catch-up. And so it was the case when Tralee musician Francie Conway’s new song ‘Drop Dead Gorgeous’ was recently given a boost on Twitter when old pal Alastair Campbell tweeted his praise of the song to 395,000 online followers.
But Francie and the former Tony Blair secretary go back a long way to days spent busking in the Double Diamond Bar in Brussels during the 1980s when legendary buskers like Don Partridge ruled the roost.
“It was here I met Alastair and we became great buddies. Alastair was always one step ahead and he would look up cinema listings to see where the biggest crowds would be and that’s where we’d head off to play. He would play the bagpipes and looking back on it, I’m not sure if people gave money to get rid of us, or reward us. Alastair knew the best cafés around Brussels and he would arrange for me to sing while he collected money. They were fantastic times,” Francie said.
Francie described Alastair as always being very opinionated and someone who loved Ireland. Francie believes this played a major role during Tony Blair’s reign when the peace process was in its infancy. “I’m convinced Alastair’s love of Ireland and that passion he had for us and our culture was a driving force behind the Good Friday Agreement,” he added.
The name of the song also has an ‘Alastair connection’ as Francie recalls one day being with producer David Richard’s reading Alastair’s book, ‘ The Blair Years’ when a chapter referring to Alastair’s ‘dashing good looks’ prompted David to suggest that Francie name a track ‘Drop Dead Gorgeous’.
“That’s how it came about and the story is so random. I contacted Alastair about the song and it has really spiralled since then. He’s a great guy and every time he’s in Dublin we meet up,” said Francie.