David John Conlon sent this photo to the Westmeath Examiner with this note: “Massive birthday wishes to Camillus Egerton, whose birthday is Wednesday October 7. Have a great day – from family, work colleagues, close friends and his many, many fans.”

Music Matters with Camillus Egerton

Published: Tue 6 Oct 2020, 12:59 PM

Last updated: Tue 6 Oct 2020, 1:01 PM

Music Matters, by Conor Halpin

Mullingar man Camillus Egerton is very active on the Irish music scene and has sung at many events with his band Heads Up. I caught up with Camillus to see how he was getting on during the Covid-19 pandemic.

What challenges did you face during the lockdown?

This year 2020 has not been a great year for the music business because of Covid-19 – a lot of artists have not performed since the middle of March and are not sure when we will be back out fully doing what we all love to do.

During the lockdown, we were learning new songs and rehearsing a lot and providing live feeds through my Facebook, but I really look forward to getting back out there and meeting up with all our fans and friends who have danced to our band Heads Up – Marty Monaghan, Declan Feery my sister Geraldine and me.

Is there any particular song or album that you feel that has strengthened your music presence as a musician?

The song that has strengthened my name on the music scene is ‘Just To See You Smile’ It has got a lot of airplay on country music radio and I also recorded a video for this song, which received a lot of exposure on the country music TV stations.

Is there any new music in the pipeline for fans and followers to look forward to?

This would have been a busy year for us on the social dancing scene as a lot of new venues were opening their doors to us, but we are hopeful in 2021 we will play at those venues.

I am kept busy working on new music, which will be material for an upcoming album that I hope to have completed by early next year.

It will consist of some really great traditional country music.

I have recorded two albums – the first was called ‘Me And Country Music’ and the second ‘Singing The Legends’.

The album consisted of 10 classics with mix of great country music that brings out my vocal range and displays all my heartfelt motions throught traditional country music.

I am very thankful to all the promoters and DJs who have been loyal to us over the years, with a special mention to online radio stations and the Facebook pages who have played our music on their shows.

If it weren’t for you, many music artists in the industry would not have been listened to as much.

What drew you to the music industry

My love for music was encouraged by my family background. I learned to play the piano accordion at the age of nine. I was brought up in a family of seven people where the love of music was encouraged by my parents.

I fell in love with country music from a young age, listening to many great country legends such as Johnny Cash, Porter Wagoner, George Jones, Merle Haggard, George Strait, Moe Bandy and many more great artists of that time.

In my earlier years I played with my family country band The Egertons and over the years I have played with the local country music bands including The Professionals, a five-piece band consisting of members of The Times Showband, and The Swarbrigg Brothers, Tommy and Jimmy.

What advice would you have for someone who is setting out on their music journey?

My advice for any young artist would be to follow your dream and enjoy your musical journey, and be happy.

How do you balance your music with other obligations?

I work a full-time job Monday to Friday, and most of my music gigs are on the weekends. In my spare time, it is important to me that I allocate family time, and I love to travel, so I make sure to take one or two holidays each year.