Ray Dolan was an Irish singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 and guitarist

Guitarist

A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...

. He began his career in the early 1970 by playing folk clubs in Dublin with James Connolly as a duo, contributing to the success of the Universal Folk Centre at Parnell Square. In 1973, they were involved in the five-member band Heir. The two musicians also participated in the final Anne Byrne album Come by the Hills, published in 1974, and containing a cover of the Dolan's song "Constantly Changing". He went solo that year, and recorded an album on EMI

EMI

The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...

 label in 1975, Restless Night

Restless Night

-Personnel:*Ray Dolan – guitars, vocals*Paul Barrett – keyboards, bass guitar, trombone, vibraphone, recorder, bongos*Sonny Condell – guitars, backing vocals*Brian Dunning – flutes*Leo O'Kelly – guitars, fiddle, ukulele, backing vocals...

, but he remains mainly known for the Tír na nÓg

Tír na nÓg (band)

Tír na nÓg are an Irish folk band formed in Dublin, Ireland, in 1969 by Leo O'Kelly and Sonny Condell. They are often considered as one of the first progressive folk bands with other artists like Nick Drake or group like Pentangle...

 version of his song "Hey Friend" from their eponymous album

Tír na nÓg (Tír na nÓg album)

Tír na nÓg is the first album by Irish band Tír na nÓg. It was released on May 1971 in the United Kingdom by Chrysalis Records and distributed by Island Records but was not published in the United States because Leo O'Kelly and Sonny Condell refused to record a cover of Bob Dylan's "Maggie's Farm"...

 released by Chrysalis Records

Chrysalis Records

Chrysalis Records was a British record label that was created in 1969. The name was both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis...

 in 1971. The Irish duo contributed to his solo album with Leo O'Kelly

Leo O'Kelly

Leo O'Kelly is an Irish singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. He is mainly known as a member of the Irish folk duet Tír na nÓg....

 as producer, and among other guests like Philip King

Philip King (musician)

Philip King is a musician, film maker, and broadcaster. A founding member of the band Scullion, he is noted for his knowledge of the roots of Irish music and culture and its cross-fertilisation with those of the US in particular, he is a popular figure in Irish music circles...

, future Scullion

Scullion (group)

Scullion is an Irish folk rock band that came into being in the mid 1970s. They were quite popular in Ireland, and released several LPs, but only two CDs have been released to date - the compilation Ghosts And Heroes on the Kitten label in 1992 and another compilation Eyelids into Snow - A...

 founder with Sonny Condell

Sonny Condell

Sonny Condell is an Irish singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and graphic artist. He is mainly known as a member of the Irish bands Tír na nÓg and Scullion. He released some hits in Ireland as a solo artist like "Down in the city" in 1977 that he covered later with the Belgian singer Micha...

. The same year, he did a brief screen appearance in an episode of the BBC Two

BBC Two

BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...

 documentary series The Camera & The Song, dedicated to O'Kelly and Condell.

Songs

• "Hey Friend" - recorded by Tír na nÓg
  Tír na nÓg (band)
  Tír na nÓg are an Irish folk band formed in Dublin, Ireland, in 1969 by Leo O'Kelly and Sonny Condell. They are often considered as one of the first progressive folk bands with other artists like Nick Drake or group like Pentangle...
  
   – Tír na nÓg
  Tír na nÓg (Tír na nÓg album)
  Tír na nÓg is the first album by Irish band Tír na nÓg. It was released on May 1971 in the United Kingdom by Chrysalis Records and distributed by Island Records but was not published in the United States because Leo O'Kelly and Sonny Condell refused to record a cover of Bob Dylan's "Maggie's Farm"...
  
  (1971)
• "Constantly Changing" - recorded by Anne Byrne – Come by the Hills (1974)