David Taylor (singer)
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David Taylor (born 21 January 1980) was the winner of the second ever Irish Pop Idol competition known as ‘Irish Idol 2’ in 2003. He was mentored by Daniel O'Donnell and was announced as the winner during the 11 December 2003 final after receiving over eight ninths of the telephone votes.
On 8th January 2004 his cover of Mack the Knife reached number 19 in the Irish chart, although it only stayed there for one week. He donated all proceeds to the Irish Potato Council. His first album You Say Potato debuted at the top of the Irish album chart on May 16, 2004.
Contents |
[edit] Albums
- You Say Potato (2004)
- Rover Love (due in 2007) in the form of the group Risc
[edit] Singles
- Mack the Knife (2004)
- Thersarazronthflrrr!!! (2004)
- Snooker Loopy (due in 2007) in the form of the group Risc
[edit] Before Irish Idol
Taylor has always been known throughout his life and career for being the nephew of snooker legend Dennis Taylor. This stigma has been both a blessing and a curse for Taylor. Seeing his favourite uncle rise through the ranks of stardom was the inspiration for him to pursue his pop career but he has often lived in the shadow of Dennis. Taylor denies this to be the case and has been quoted as calling his uncle a ‘beacon of potatoey hope to a small time Irish lad from Dungannon’. He is also famous for being Northern Irelands most famous George Best impersonator and often ventures out in public in the character of his footballing hero.
Taylor first attempted to start his singing trade on the streets of Manchester in 1999, starting right at the bottom at the now infamous karaoke pit The Orchid Lounge. It was here he would often sing the lounge classic Mack the Knife up to eleven times a night, often in the character of Best. Unfortunately no one was interested. He returned home to Northern Ireland penniless after blowing all his money on booze, karaoke and a bulk quantity of Rustlers microwave snacks, and it was here at such a low ebb in his life that he found himself at the auditions for Irish Idol 2. Who knew what wondrous times lay ahead?
[edit] During Irish Idol
Taylor was and remains one of the most memorable winners of Irish Idol and during the series developed a large fan base, winning the hearts of many a pensioner and cementing his place on the bedroom wall of teenage girls across the land.
Taylor struck a strong bond with his mentor Daniel O'Donnell, and this has been said to be the key to his success on the show. This culminated in a landslide vote during the final after Taylor’s unforgettable rendition of Mack the Knife whilst dressed in his George Best ensemble.
[edit] After Irish Idol
Such was the popularity of the performance of Mack the Knife, it prompted a release of the track and performed reasonably well in the charts with Taylor donating the proceeds to the Irish Potato Council.
After the single followed the inevitable album. Taylor turned heads with the release as it was the first potato themed album ever released. This was considered a risky venture by some, but this was Taylor’s twist on the album of cover versions that is generally released by winners of such shows as Irish Idol. Featuring only one original song, the incomprehensible Thersarazronthflrrr!!!, the tracklist was as follows:
- (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Potato
- I Heard It Through The Potatovine
- Sympathy For The Potato
- Thersarazronthflrrr!!!
- Like A Rolling Potato
- Son Of A Potato Man
- Bridge Over Troubled Potato
- When A Man Loves A Potato
- Papa’s Got A Brand New Potato
- Mack The Knife
- Whole Lotta Potato
- I Wanna Hold Your Potato
Despite the albums initial success sales declined after a drunken Taylor was photographed riding a glass ice horse through the town of Dungannon wearing nothing but clothes sporting the Union Jack. In the latter part of 2005 Taylor mounted a comeback using a new persona called ‘The Irish Rover’, covering only the songs of Starship, Scorpions and Boyzone. Taylor steadily built a large fan base using this persona, mainly consisting of pensioners residing in Northern Ireland.
Riding on this success Taylor has now returned to Manchester in an attempt to crack the English market. He has now formed a group called Risc with five members, working to the same formula as Boyzone and Westlife. The group consists of old friends and fellow performers from Irish Idol, the other members are Paddy McFaddy, Faddy McPaddy, John Johnson and Bill the Gay. They are currently managed by a Daniel O'Donnell impersonator.
Risc have recently gathered momentum releasing a bootleg cover version of the Boyzone cover version of the Tracy Chapman classic Baby Can I Hold You. The group plan to release another single at the beginning of 2007 that is rumoured to be a cover version of the classic track Snooker Loopy, in homage to Taylor’s famous uncle. The album Rover Love is set to follow.
