Acclaimed singer-songwriter Jack O’Rourke has returned with new single ‘Samhain’.
His first solo release since 2023’s ‘Uaigneas’ and his 2021 critically acclaimed album Wild Place (featuring RTÉ Folk Awards Original Song of the Year nominee, ‘Patsy Cline’ and RTÉ Choice Prize Song of the Year, ‘Sea Swimming’), Samhain’ marks a fresh chapter for the Cork singer-songwriter after a hiatus.
Writing about the wildness of love, nature and healing within a changing world,
O’Rourke has earned extensive acclaim across The Irish Times, Irish Examiner, Irish Independent, RTÉ RADIO 1, BBC Radio Ulster, Hot Press and more for his captivating style, which is deeply rooted in the traditions of folk, blues and parlour ballads.
Often hunched around a piano, he has become renowned as a subtle yet intense performer, with his captivating voice – a rich baritone capable of ethereal falsetto.. Don Johnston of The Irish Examiner noted that the singer shows “ a deftness when it comes to dissecting the minutiae of relationships and examining the human condition, in a manner worthy of lyrical forebears Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits”.
New single ‘Samhain’ features fiddles, synth, organ and steel guitars atop Ronettesesque drums, as Jack reminisces on childhood Halloweens:
“I’m Dunkin’ for apples, red shiny one evades me. Head under water, biting these coins, I’m bobbing for you.”
The song inhabits a space between familiarity and enigma, where the person we present to the world meets the self that exists beneath the surface. The traditions of Samhain and Halloween become more than a celebration of the liminal; they become a metaphor for identity and the freedom that can come from becoming someone else for a night.
The single’s striking cover art was painted by Tristan Aher, a third year student of O’Rourke’s at Gaelcholáiste Mhuire, An Mhainistir Thuaidh.