Artist Information
Biography
He has been called varied, eclectic, surprising…Bill Monaghan has been making musical creations since his high school days in the Philadelphia suburbs. A writer of songs, musical plays, children’s ballets, and thematically charged CDs like his 9/11 In Memoriam, Bill is at home in finger picking folk songs, story-telling in his energy driven rock songs, or reflecting in his touching love songs and ballads.
Bill recently signed with Canadian-American Records for distribution of his Some Assembly Required CD, and three singles, “You Belong There,” “All That Your Heart May Desire,” and “When the Rain Comes,” which debuted at number 28 on the Top 40 Independent Country Song Chart for August 2008.
From his Some Assembly Required CD release party and the September 11 In Memoriam Tribute Concert in 2007, to his near sold-out Celtic Pride/St. Patrick’s Night performance at the Sellersville Theater in 2008, Bill continues to bring his diverse mix of song, story, emotion, and journeys to other lands to more and more audiences. The Word: A Gospel Opera, a full length spirited stage drama, has moved audiences with more than 55 performances in the tri-county area since its inception. The heart-warming “All That Your Heart May Desire,” in memory of his brother Michael who died in the US Navy, sets the theme for an annual memorial concert, presenting local artists and performers joining together to raise scholarship money for high school students in need. Even the harmonies and rhythms of Africa are an influential force in many of Bill’s works, made more authentic by his recent mission work in Uganda, Africa, where he has experienced and contributed music firsthand to the people with whom he has worked so closely in areas of education and basic human needs.
Onstage, Bill can be seen solo or with his band, and he has played such venues as Sellersville Theatre, Stockton Inn, Grape Street Pub, Dr. Watsons, and as a featured artist at many local charity concerts.
“Fresh! Jimmy Buffet meets Nancy Griffith and Paul Simon. Certainly an album of poppie folk. All-in-all a very pleasant mix of music.” [David Hermanson on CDbaby.com, on Bill’s Some Assembly Required CD]
“This poignant album…never lags as it presents a wide variety of sounds through the eclectic styles of the songs…Mr. Monaghan never resists the opportunity to touch back to his Irish roots as he does in “Father to a Son” and he even boasts his inner southern gospel singer in “Angels and Prayers.” ...diverse instruments… such as the cello in the bittersweet evocative and hopeful “Garden of Reflection.” …acknowledges the rebirth of patriotism in America that succeeded September 11th, declaring “Today’s the day America is baptized in the fire and Americans become Americans again.” …a beautiful tribute to the lives lost on September 11, 2001 and provides a hopeful message for the future.” [Karen Orzechowski, The Viking Voice, Spring Ed. 2008, on Bill’s 9/11 In Memoriam CD]
member, CCLI , ASCAP (songwriter, publisher)
www.myspace.com/billmonaghan
Instrumentation
Bill Monaghan - Keyboards, guitar, harmonica
Carl Lichtner - acoustic guitar, vocals
Brian DiBiagio - electric and acoustic guitars
Christine Favorite - vocals, percussion
Shannon McMullen - vocals, percussion
Jim Monaghan - bass, vocals
Rick Conicelli - drums and percussion
Discography
911 In Memoriam
Some Assembly Required
Celtic Pride
The Word: A Gospel Opera
Audio
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Girl Upstairs
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Wait
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When the Rain Comes
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Irish Blessing
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I Will Fly (My Red, White, and Blue)
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All The Years Gone By
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Garden of Reflection
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Faith Filled Woman
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You Belong There
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Lyrics
Press
Setlist
Floatin
When the Rain Comes
Little Bitty
So Close to God
For All You Were Was Life
September Judgment
After
I Will Fly (My Red, White, and Blue)
All That Your Heart May Desire
My Moonlit Mind
Wait
Donegal
I Raise My Eyes
Girl Upstairs
Don't Eat the Jello
Moonsong
Things I've Never Seen
All The Years Gone By
Angels and Prayers
Piano Man (cover)
Irish Blessing
Angry Young Man (cover)

