Full Album show of January 15, 2021
Album: Hidden Gems

Artist's Biography

In 1984, a young Irish singer/songwriter called Francie Conway had just signed a record deal to record and release an album. He had released two singles previously with Warners but was about to begin work on a collection of his own songs for the first time. The deal took him to Europe, recording in Mountain Studio and Aquarius Studios in Switzerland with a backing band of talented musicians (including members of Smokey and Argent).
The album was released with the title ‘I Know’ and was a great commercial and critical success, leading to Francie Conway headlining the Paleo Festival in Switzerland. They were expecting 4,000 people to attend but 25,000 arrived to see the show which was broadcast on Swiss, French, and German TV.
At Mountain Studio, Francie met David Richards (producer of Queen and David Bowie) who remixed some of the tracks, which are included on CD for the first time. Their friendship endured for many years until David’s sad passing. In Francie’s own words:
“While we were mixing tracks in Mountain, David Bowie came in to the studio to invite David Richards to start recording with him. This collaboration led to the classic Iggy Pop album ‘Blah-Blah-Blah’ plus many more from the two Davids and of course Queen. Richards did this extended mix of ‘Don’t Mess With My Heart’ not for a release, or the record company, but using it to showcase his skills to Bowie and Freddie, here is its very first release”
For the first time, the album is being released across digital streaming services. It has been remastered, and expanded to include the David Richards mixes.
‘Another Night In Amsterdam’ sounds fresh and exciting, with ‘To The Edge of Time’ still receiving regular radio play across Europe. The album continues the journey of Francie’s recent critically acclaimed ‘Hidden Gems’ release and is available to pre-order from January 6th 2023 before the official release date of January 13th.


About the Album

2023 remastered and expanded release of Francie Conway's 1984 debut album 'I Know'. Available for streaming for the first time! This pop/rock gem includes the European hit single 'To The Edge of Time'.

Full Album show of January 15, 2021
Album: Hidden Gems

Artist's Biography

Irish musician Francie Conway has been having hits and playing festivals across Europe for 40 years.

Francie Conway first came to prominence in Ireland during the 1970s as founder of the band ‘Clutch’. By 1980 he had signed as a solo artist to RCA Records, with The Zombies’ Chris White as his producer. The first few singles were popular with radio, due in part to the all-star group of musicians used and some excellent songs, but failed to chart in the UK.

His early career was spent busking with his someone he describes as “the best busking partner I have ever had”. It was Alistair Campbell, the man who would later go on to become Tony Blair’s Director of Communications. They are still in touch today.

In 1984 Francie Conway wrote all of the material for his debut album, and had a major hit single in Europe with ‘To The Edge Of Time’. It led to a career defining headline appearance at the Montreux Jazz Festival, where he also met long time collaborator (Queen’s producer) Dave Richards.
Although the song missed the charts in the UK, it provided the platform for a long and successful career and raised his profile to such an extent in his native Ireland that his next full-length release (Wake Up LP) spawned cover versions of 7 of the tracks. The Fureys, Stevie Wright, and Dolores Keane (amongst others) recorded successful versions of ‘Somewhere In Heaven’, ‘Striking It Rich’, and ‘Walking On Seashells’.

Since then there have been regular releases from Francie for a number of different projects. Some with his band ‘The Works’ and other work commissioned, including the ‘Worth The Wait’ compilation album made for Guinness and used in their campaigns across Scandinavia, Benelux, and Asia.

About the Album

Brand new (2021) release from Francie Conway. Hidden Gems is a collection of singles, rarities, and some new recordings. Rock, pop, and oldies.

This brand-new album is a compilation of Hidden Gems, rarely heard material from across Francie’s career. Most of it released but long since deleted, this is the first time they have been made available as one collection. It is available as a digital download and on CD, with vinyl to follow soon..