SMG Media
© Jacqui Sharkey 2012
Biography
Click to Enlarge
Jacqui Sharkey is a singer/ songwriter based in the West Donegal village of Bunbeg,
Gweedore. Her family, generations back, being from Mullaghduff, (also in West Donegal),
she grew up in Scotland, coming back to her roots to live in Donegal on completing her
education in Glasgow.
Having taken piano lessons in Scotland from the age of five, Jacqui also became a student
of the Berkeley Guitar School in Glasgow at the age of eleven. She still recalls the first
time she sang outside of the privacy of her bedroom, when she was "totally browbeaten"
into singing a song in front of her fondly remembered guitar teacher and the entire class,
at the age of thirteen...her first and last time to sing 'The Jamaica Farewell'. Barely a
teenager and extremely shy, this was a nerve-racking experience which is still well
embedded in her memory, however, one which also got Jacqui over her shyness and
nerves to sing in public very quickly! Jacqui bought her first P.A. and did her first gig in a
village pub in East Refrewshire, Scotland at the age of seventeen, and continued to gig
with other musicians, including celebrated Scottish folk singer Mary K. Burke, throughout
venues in Glasgow, and in venues throughout Donegal during her holidays from
University, until she returned to live in Ireland. She then continued to play solo and with
other musicians in Donegal, and became best known as the lead singer and keyboard
player with 'The Jury's Out', a band which played Rock, Pop, Country Rock, Blues and
Celtic/Traditional music in various venues and festivals throughout Donegal and other
parts of Ireland. Jacqui's love for the theatre has also led her to play leading roles in
various musical theatre productions, including 'Florence' in 'Chess', 'Adelaide' in 'Guys
and Dolls', 'Nancy' in 'Oliver', and 'Julie' in 'Showboat'. Jacqui also performed songs from
the Willie Russell musical 'Blood Brothers' at the first ever concert held in An Grianan
Theatre, Letterkenny, a venue in which she has since appeared in numerous guest
performances, before doing her first solo concert there in September of 2011...a concert
which was a resounding success and which was attended by fans of Jacqui's music from
different parts of Ireland and the UK. Jacqui also toured various theatre venues
throughout the Country as 'Satine' in Kyron Bourke's 'Carry On Moulin Rouge' in 2005 and
has performed Jazz with well known artists, including California Recording Artist, Gaynel
Hodge in the Samhain Poetry Festival in 2007 and the Met Jazz Quartet with Gary Cox in
An Grianan Theatre in 2010. She also appeared in the 'Pattaya Gay Festival', Thailand in
2009, performing 'All That Jazz' from the musical 'Chicago', which led to glowing
newspaper reviews there.
Jacqui has always been in awe of the cleverness of music and composition, and her first song was composed when she was fourteen...a song
written about 'The Rosses' in Donegal, the place of her roots. After taking "a long break" from songwriting , she was inspired to begin writing
again following a recent trip to Nashville, where she performed in several venues on Music Row. It was there that, in the famous Bluebird
Cafe, Jacqui was introduced by a mutual musician friend to American songwriter and recording artist Tom Kimmel, who, together with
American song writer Lisa Aschmann, penned 'If I Fell From Grace With You', one of the tracks on Jacqui's first album, 'A New Dawn', and one
of Jacqui's favourites on the album.
Jacqui's first venture into the recording studio was to record harmony vocals for 'Goats Don't Shave' frontman Pat Gallagher, on his first solo
album, 'Tór' (coincidentally named after the mountain Townland in which Jacqui's maternal grandmother was born and raised), and she also
recorded vocals for Country singer, Seamus McGee and Scots singer/ songwriter Ian Smith, before recording a four track Celtic/ Folk E.P. of
her own in 2004, entitled 'A Fairer Love', as a wedding gift for her brother, Dominic. Although Jacqui didn't release the recording at the time, it
is now available for digital download, and features two old Irish love songs, a song by Scots Poet Robert Burns, and a traditional Italian love
song, 'Parla Piu Piano' by Nino Rota.
'A New Dawn' , Jacqui's debut album, with thirteen tracks, including the recently added bonus track, is a collection of original songs and
covers, the latter of which were chosen from some of Jacqui's favourites, including the Randy Goodrum classic, 'You Needed Me', made
known by the wonderful Anne Murray, and Beth Nielsen Chapman's 'Sand And Water'. The album has been described as a mixture of
Americana/ Roots, New Country & Folk, with a slight hint of Jazz/Pop in Jacqui's self-composed songs, 'Midnight Symphony' (co-written with
Ian Smith) and 'Be My Valentine'. Jacqui's latest composition, 'If I Had You', is the bonus track on the album. 'A New Dawn', co-produced with
Jacqui and engineered by Irish Country artist Seamus McGee, features a host of celebrated musicians, including Austin, Texas based Eamonn
McLaughlin of 'Green Card' on strings and mandolin, well known, Acoustic Guitarist Des Moore, drummer Billy Borgogne, pianist and bassist
Ray McLoughlin (who also co-arranged the music), electric guitarist Matt Curran, and singer/ songwriter Ian Smith on additional acoustic
guitar and backing vocals. Jacqui is planning on returning to the studio soon to make a start on her next album.
Jacqui lives in Bunbeg, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean...a village in Gweedore which is steeped in music, and which boasts its celebrated
singers and musicians, such as Mairead Ní Mhonaigh of Altan, Enya, Clannad, Pat Gallagher, Seamus McGee, and many more...
© Jacqui Sharkey 2012
Biography
Click to Enlarge
Jacqui Sharkey is a singer/ songwriter based in the West Donegal village of Bunbeg,
Gweedore. Her family, generations back, being from Mullaghduff, (also in West Donegal),
she grew up in Scotland, coming back to her roots to live in Donegal on completing her
education in Glasgow.
Having taken piano lessons in Scotland from the age of five, Jacqui also became a student
of the Berkeley Guitar School in Glasgow at the age of eleven. She still recalls the first
time she sang outside of the privacy of her bedroom, when she was "totally browbeaten"
into singing a song in front of her fondly remembered guitar teacher and the entire class,
at the age of thirteen...her first and last time to sing 'The Jamaica Farewell'. Barely a
teenager and extremely shy, this was a nerve-racking experience which is still well
embedded in her memory, however, one which also got Jacqui over her shyness and
nerves to sing in public very quickly! Jacqui bought her first P.A. and did her first gig in a
village pub in East Refrewshire, Scotland at the age of seventeen, and continued to gig
with other musicians, including celebrated Scottish folk singer Mary K. Burke, throughout
venues in Glasgow, and in venues throughout Donegal during her holidays from
University, until she returned to live in Ireland. She then continued to play solo and with
other musicians in Donegal, and became best known as the lead singer and keyboard
player with 'The Jury's Out', a band which played Rock, Pop, Country Rock, Blues and
Celtic/Traditional music in various venues and festivals throughout Donegal and other
parts of Ireland. Jacqui's love for the theatre has also led her to play leading roles in
various musical theatre productions, including 'Florence' in 'Chess', 'Adelaide' in 'Guys
and Dolls', 'Nancy' in 'Oliver', and 'Julie' in 'Showboat'. Jacqui also performed songs from
the Willie Russell musical 'Blood Brothers' at the first ever concert held in An Grianan
Theatre, Letterkenny, a venue in which she has since appeared in numerous guest
performances, before doing her first solo concert there in September of 2011...a concert
which was a resounding success and which was attended by fans of Jacqui's music from
different parts of Ireland and the UK. Jacqui also toured various theatre venues
throughout the Country as 'Satine' in Kyron Bourke's 'Carry On Moulin Rouge' in 2005 and
has performed Jazz with well known artists, including California Recording Artist, Gaynel
Hodge in the Samhain Poetry Festival in 2007 and the Met Jazz Quartet with Gary Cox in
An Grianan Theatre in 2010. She also appeared in the 'Pattaya Gay Festival', Thailand in
2009, performing 'All That Jazz' from the musical 'Chicago', which led to glowing
newspaper reviews there.
Jacqui has always been in awe of the cleverness of music and composition, and her first song was composed when she was fourteen...a song
written about 'The Rosses' in Donegal, the place of her roots. After taking "a long break" from songwriting , she was inspired to begin writing
again following a recent trip to Nashville, where she performed in several venues on Music Row. It was there that, in the famous Bluebird
Cafe, Jacqui was introduced by a mutual musician friend to American songwriter and recording artist Tom Kimmel, who, together with
American song writer Lisa Aschmann, penned 'If I Fell From Grace With You', one of the tracks on Jacqui's first album, 'A New Dawn', and one
of Jacqui's favourites on the album.
Jacqui's first venture into the recording studio was to record harmony vocals for 'Goats Don't Shave' frontman Pat Gallagher, on his first solo
album, 'Tór' (coincidentally named after the mountain Townland in which Jacqui's maternal grandmother was born and raised), and she also
recorded vocals for Country singer, Seamus McGee and Scots singer/ songwriter Ian Smith, before recording a four track Celtic/ Folk E.P. of
her own in 2004, entitled 'A Fairer Love', as a wedding gift for her brother, Dominic. Although Jacqui didn't release the recording at the time, it
is now available for digital download, and features two old Irish love songs, a song by Scots Poet Robert Burns, and a traditional Italian love
song, 'Parla Piu Piano' by Nino Rota.
'A New Dawn' , Jacqui's debut album, with thirteen tracks, including the recently added bonus track, is a collection of original songs and
covers, the latter of which were chosen from some of Jacqui's favourites, including the Randy Goodrum classic, 'You Needed Me', made
known by the wonderful Anne Murray, and Beth Nielsen Chapman's 'Sand And Water'. The album has been described as a mixture of
Americana/ Roots, New Country & Folk, with a slight hint of Jazz/Pop in Jacqui's self-composed songs, 'Midnight Symphony' (co-written with
Ian Smith) and 'Be My Valentine'. Jacqui's latest composition, 'If I Had You', is the bonus track on the album. 'A New Dawn', co-produced with
Jacqui and engineered by Irish Country artist Seamus McGee, features a host of celebrated musicians, including Austin, Texas based Eamonn
McLaughlin of 'Green Card' on strings and mandolin, well known, Acoustic Guitarist Des Moore, drummer Billy Borgogne, pianist and bassist
Ray McLoughlin (who also co-arranged the music), electric guitarist Matt Curran, and singer/ songwriter Ian Smith on additional acoustic
guitar and backing vocals. Jacqui is planning on returning to the studio soon to make a start on her next album.
Jacqui lives in Bunbeg, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean...a village in Gweedore which is steeped in music, and which boasts its celebrated
singers and musicians, such as Mairead Ní Mhonaigh of Altan, Enya, Clannad, Pat Gallagher, Seamus McGee, and many more...