Sinead O’Connor was ‘big icon’ in Bray with ‘heart of gold’, says local musician

A local musician has remembered singing with Sinead O’Connor in her home town of Bray, describing her as a “big icon” in the area with a “heart of gold”.

Tom Dalton, who ran acoustic singing sessions in a local pub with his band Celtic Grace, told of his surprise when he discovered he was singing with acclaimed star O’Connor in 2019, having not initially recognised her.

He told BBC Breakfast co-hosts Rachel Burden and Jon Kay: “We set it up there every Wednesday night, we had a poster up just down the road…I was there Wednesday evening in 2019.

“She (O’Connor) wasn’t performing at the time, she was in a quiet mode. But anyway, this lady wandered in with a big Quake guitar…and I didn’t recognise her at first. She walked in and she said ‘What are you doing?’

“I said we do the round-robin and we just sing, and she sang the most beautiful song and played the guitar. I’d never heard her play the guitar and many people probably haven’t.

“But anyway, we’re doing the round-robin, and it came around and she sang and it was gorgeous. We went back around again and one of the girls started singing Amazing Grace, she joined in and played and sang, I joined in with her, she sang the second verse, and I sang the last verse.

“It was absolutely fabulous.”

Mr Dalton said he was praised for staying calm but had to confess he had not known it was the Nothing Compares 2 U singer at first.

“Two lovely ladies were there that night and said, ‘Tom, you handled that so well’ and I had to tell the truth, that when she walked in I didn’t recognise her, but the minute I heard the voice, I knew who it was,” he said.

He continued: “She just stood up after about an hour and she went and we didn’t hassle her, we didn’t ask her for a photograph, there was nothing. It was just a complete and beautiful night.

“To meet her in that setting and such a beautiful lady, it was absolutely fabulous. To have had the pleasure to meet her and sing with her was something that’s just hard to describe, without giving me the teary-eyed.”

The local musician also spoke about how the community felt about having the global superstar living in Bray, ahead of her funeral on Tuesday.

He added: “She was a really big icon here in the town, she was brilliant, she walked up and down, she talked to everyone and she was really a fabulous person…she really had a heart of gold.

“She really was a lovely, lovely lady and I’ve met only on one occasion, we sang with her, but she really was a gorgeous lady, I’m so sad for her, what a fantastic singer.

“It’s a sad day but the town will remember her and she’s an icon here in Bray and always will be.”