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about
Marie Conniffe has incorporated the theme of hummingbirds into her creative life for almost 20 years now and her new single “The Way of the Hummingbird” continues with this tradition.
Referencing the fact that hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards, Conniffe says of the song that “it’s about realising you may have gone wrong or made a bad decision somewhere along the way so it’s about trying to retrace your steps and going back and sorting stuff out and trying to start again afresh.”
Originally hailing from Dunboyne, Co. Meath, Marie Conniffe has lived a somewhat nomadic existence since her travels first brought her to Seoul, South Korea, in the autumn of 2004. It was in Korea that Conniffe began to make real progress with her songwriting, aided in no small way by the purchase of her Crafter Hummingbird guitar at Nagwon Music Market in Insadong that following spring.
Conniffe’s songs reveal themselves as extremely personal and insightful stories of love, life and beautiful truths. Her voice provides a deeper understanding and realisation of our potential as human beings, which stems from Conniffe’s own spiritual journey. In her writing, she incorporates themes of love, adventure, magic, nature, the beauty of human relationships, the sadness that comes from loss, and the power of words.
Conniffe returned to Korea in 2016 where she enjoyed a prolific creative spell, the fruits of which included her new song. She went into the studio at Beardfire Music in Dublin in the summer of 2021 to record the song with Rohan Healy & Al Quiff. The resulting track is optimistic and energetic, heavy on the harmonies - as per usual for Conniffe – and brimming with hope for a fun-filled future!
Accompanying the song is a beautiful animated video, created by Michelle Bock Grava. The song is due for release on Friday, 18th March 2022, with the video coming a week later (6pm GMT, Friday, 25th March).
lyrics
The Way of the Hummingbird
There’s a new song coming
I can feel it in the air
And the robin sings along
She’s singing like she just doesn’t care
But I’ve been hurt before,
I’ve tried to cover my wounds with words
And I am scared to go
The way of the hummingbird
Got me some fire and ice
Now I’m left with lukewarm water
And I am made of some woman’s son
And some daddy’s daughter
They’ll put a blanket over me
And I will gaze at the night-time sky
Ah yeah, when all the chips are down
There’ll still be starfish dancing way up high
Although I move around a lot,
I never quite seem to break from the past
And yeah I know that I lost you
For the life of me, I can’t remember
When I had you last
I try to picture what I want
But the images are so blurred
So now it’s time for me to go
The way of the hummingbird
I’m gonna travel back in time
I’m gonna pick up right where it ended
Gonna see it to the other side
Till all the parts are newly blended
And there’ll be beauty all around
All the answers will come first, second, third
And I’ll be glad that I went
The way of the hummingbird
Da da da da da da da da da da da da da daaaaa
Da da da da da da da da da da da da da da da daaaaa
released March 18, 2022
Music & lyrics by Marie Conniffe
Produced by David Virgin, Rohan Healy & Al Quiff
Vocals - Marie Conniffe
Acoustic guitar - Rohan Healy
Electric guitar - Rohan Healy
Bass - Al Quiff
Drums - Al Quiff
Ah, she's just brilliant - lovely voice, beautiful lyrics and a really nice style of playing. A little melancholy at times, but really relaxing too. And she's one of my favourite people in the world! Marie Conniffe
A really interesting artist and songwriter, Bridget Martin has a unique voice and performs here with a fantastic bunch of musicians, who possibly have the best band-name ever! Marie Conniffe