Ahead of his forthcoming Devon date Su Carroll talks to a world record breaker, a musical superstar who’s still surprisingly modest.
Who has had a hit album in the UK charts every year since 1988? Michael Jackson? Madonna? U2? The Rolling Stones? The answer, surprisingly, is Daniel O’Donnell, the only artist in the world to have this unprecedented run in the album charts. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Irishman Daniel has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide.
But the 61-year-old singer is surprisingly modest about his success, giving credit to the others involved in producing his hit albums.
‘It’s my belief that you should do what you know you can do,’ he says. ‘I just go on and sing in the studio. I don’t dictate what music is used and how the songs are produced. I leave it up to the record company, but they have always done it the way I like it. I need to want to be able to sing the song every day. It’s important to do things because you love it.’
Music was very important growing up. Daniel was born in the tiny Donegal village of Kincasslaugh, the youngest of five children. His father, 41, died when Daniel was just six years old. By nine he was working in the local general store to help the family out. When he was a teenager his interest in music developed.
‘I don’t remember a time without music,’ he says. ‘My sister Margo was a singer – she was ten years older than me – and I started singing when I was 14. That’s very young. I’d always loved American country music and American songs so I began singing a lot of that music and my career took off.
‘I think when you sing Irish or country songs, they have a similar sentiment. People can sit there and listen to the song and it has a connection with them. I loved country music, artists like Loretta Lynn and Charlie Pride and I got to know them. They were singing until they died. I always say I don’t want to carry on singing past when I’m able. I’m doing less than I used to, and that suits me.’
Daniel is still busy though, releasing albums and satisfying demand for live performance from fans all over the world. In 2002 a PBS special opened up America for Daniel and last autumn saw him perform in Canada and the USA, including three shows in the tiny town of Shipshewana, Indiana, the heart of Amish country. ‘I’ve been there several times and it is the simplest town you could ever imagine. People come from everywhere to see me. They book the shows a year in advance, which is amazing.’
This year there is a UK tour, a residency in Branson, Missouri, and a return to Australia and New Zealand to be scheduled. But don’t expect Daniel to be performing in front of massive crowds.
‘I never really liked arenas,’ says Daniel. ‘I do some of them for things like festivals, that’s just the way it is, but I do love theatres because you can really reach the audience. I love people to feel involved in the show. I like to stand backstage and watch people from behind the curtain a few minutes before it goes up. I think about how we are going to make this happen.
People have left their homes and they want to come and sit and listen.’
Audiences have stayed with Daniel over his 30-year career, he says. ‘It has changed over the years. When I started out, they were some my age, but most of them a lot older. They say you know you’re getting old when the policemen seem younger.
Well the audiences seem young to me now!
‘I’ve never played in Torquay, so hopefully we’ll do well. I’m really looking forward to it.’
Daniel O’Donnell is at the Princess Theatre, Torquay (atgtickets.com) on May 13.
A FAMILY MAN
Daniel has two older sisters and two older brothers and the family grew up in Donegal in a house with no running water or toilet. Heating came from an open fire and Daniel slept in a small room off the kitchen.
The family moved into a council bungalow in 1967, a year before his farm labourer dad died of a heart attack. Daniel considered teaching as a career, but wasn’t happy at college. His sister, Margo, was a hugely popular singer in Ireland and when he was 19 he joined her band, standing on stage with an electric guitar he didn’t even know how to play.
Over the coming years he paid his dues, doing solo concert performances on tour six nights a week. It took a toll on his health but, after a brief break away from the spotlight, he was back in front of audiences and hasn’t looked back, being named Irish Entertainer of the Year three times in the 1990s.
His latest album, I Wish You Well, was released in November. Daniel and his wife Majella have two children and three grandchildren and homes in Donegal and Tenerife, where they met.
