Rob Halligan

Rob Halligan may have the look of Lofty from Eastenders about him, but there is nothing half-hearted about his performance. The archetypal troubadour, his stand-up acoustic set is full of subtle power, not least in the first song "Singing Myself To Sleep", dedicated to his father who was killed in the twin towers on 9-11, a fact which polorises your attention for the rest of the half hour. The songs are both beautiful and sharp in the staccato manner of Jon Strong and, to a non-political point, Billy Bragg, but we get just too few of them, as he distractingly keeps playing crowd pleasing covers to no real end. 'If God Was One of Us', certainly fits with his core Christan beleifs but 'Babooshka'? He finishes with two peaches of his own though: 'Dancing with Seagulls' the soaraway title of his album and 'Stand Together', a song that is gaining a wider audience through being recorded for the Tsunami Apeal by fellow Coventry bands. It is by far the best of all the currant crop of releif songs that I've heard and if it raises as many pounds as it did goose-bumps tonight then the world really would be a better place. - Nightshift - Oxfords Music Magazine - Issue 115 Feb 05

Score 9/10
Rob Halligan last graced these review pages as frontman for Coventry-based rock band Goldsmiths. That was a while ago and these days you're more likely to find Rob out there playing live strumming an acoustic guitar and singing some of the excellent songs captured here. No doubting that he's a fine songwriter with a neat turn of phrase, a poignant thought and a catchy tune and for this album, he's employed Simon Goodall as producer. The result is a well constructed collection of songs featuring the cream of British Christian sessioners. Highlights include the folky title track which sees Rob reminiscing about his troubled younger life. "Jesus To the World" is a dramatic gritty challenge for the Church to reach out to others. Two songs were written as a response to 9/11 when his father died in the World Trade Centre. "Stand Together" is a song of hope in the midst of tragedy and a rallying call that has since been updated on a charity single raising money for Tsunami victims. "Streets Of This Town" is a more personal response to his father dying after a trip to New York for the memorial service in mid-September 2001 with images of a city and a heart in pain looking upwards for some answers. - CrossRhythms Magazine Issue 84

Lounge, Rebecca Clamp, Tom Copson and Rob Haligan @ The Livingroom by Hannah Gannagé-Stewart - 21/04/07
www.cambridgebands.com
The opening act on the 21st was Rob Halligan. It was an emotionally laden set, his inspiration being taken from various times in his life, including times of extreme lose and tragedy. Rob sang superbly and held the audiences attention with a refreshingly honest and revealing performance throughout. He ended on a song that he introduced as 'supposed to be happy', I can’t say that it inspired instant happiness in me, it did however close a strong set on an optimistic note and set the scene for what was to continue to be a challenging and greatly enjoyable evening. - - Cambridge Bands

Very, VERY well-produced, with total spirit & candor!
I give this one a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! - Rotcod, Mixposure

Beautiful song, written from the heart. The musicianship is superb. The voice is just perfect. The build into the chrous... "ALL OF OUR HOPES"
That is absolutely stunning. - Terente, Mixposure

You inspire me to reach inside and try harder. - Gill Whitehurst, Mixposure
- Mixposure.Com

Here's a brilliant young singer and guitarist who has taken the Coventry music scene by storm over the last year with some inspirational self-penned songs. He was the man behind the Stand together project that took place earlier this year with several local musicians recording a 'band -aid' type version of his song to raise money for the Tsunami Appeal. - CV1 Events

This indy release from UK singer/songwriter Rob Halligan (not to be confused with Ceili Rain’s Bob Halligan) is a pleasant and welcome musical treat. Halligan has one of those cool British singing voices that help provide a nice framework for this batch of solid acoustic/gentle electric pop/folk/rock treats. Seagulls features several high-points that will have you singing and strumming: “Sail Away” highlights Halligan’s vocals a very nifty vocal crescendo ala’ James Blunt (without Blunt’s overindulgent tendencies), the gentle anthem “Who Am I,” the ringing challenge of “Jesus to the World,” and the final cut “Innocence” that features Halligan on vocal accompanied solely by an electric guitar for a unique twist. Dancing with the Seagulls is a collection of tunes that will appeal to aficionados of intelligent acoustic folk pop-rock…fans of John Mayer, Jeff Buckley, VOL, and Bill Bragg will enjoy this. - Phantom Tollbooth

Rob's latest recording 'The New York Sessions' came about almost by accident. Rob was in The Big Apple shooting a music video, and a local producer who'd been corresponding with a pal of Rob's via the web offered him the use of his studio, and roped in some excellent local sessioners to help cut the five tracks. Underpinned by good guitar work, the conga skills of Mike Rimmer and embellished by Rob's gritty vocals, this is a drop of good stuff, all five tracks are in-your-face and punch their message home. Rob is one of the most gifted unsigned singer/songwriters on the scene and these finely crafted songs of life and redemption are powerful stuff.
- CrossRhythms

Gareth Davies-Jones and Rob Halligan, with a guest appearance from After the Fire's Peter Banks, headlined an extra special Farncombe Music Club.
The duo gave the audience an instant taste of fairtrade motivated music with Mike Scott's 'Bring 'em all in'.

Next up was the truly beautiful 'Butterfly', a calming, relaxed song but with a strong message about the greed of western governments and protesting about the injustice of free trade.

Rob Halligan took over at this point and he brought a slightly different yet equally as enjoyable side to the performance with the fast-flowing 'Dungeon Gill'. Halligan seemed to be playing the more upbeat, high tempo numbers and the pair combined wonderfully, each accompanying the others song with percussion and guitar. Halligan added his Cajon to add a strong beat, giving the impression that there was a fully kitted out drummer hiding behind them.

Before the interval, Peter Banks joined the fray and the trio combined to showcase a few more songs.

After the break, 'Money goes around', possibly Davies-Jones' signature song, was wonderfully accompanied by Rob Halligan who then performed the emotional 'Elanor'.

The mood was lifted with Peter Banks returning to the stage to perform Larry Norman's 'The Outlaw' in tribute to the recently deceased Christian rocker.

The concert continued after these two touching dedications with 'Walk on me' by Rob Halligan who mixed his vocals with his fantastic drum-box and also a new number from Davies-Jones and Halligan which they performed away from the microphones, unplugging the guitars with Halligan producing a tambourine and the newly-penned lyrics on a sheet.

The highlight of the evening, although there were many, was the last encore song; James' 'Sit down'. Halligan jumped up onto his drum-box, towering over the crowd and there was even a solo from Peter Banks on the Pedal Harmonium.

Overall it was a fantastic evening! - Maverick magazine - April 07

Rob Halligan
Best Thing That's Happened

Kicking, funky, folk-rock from the established,respected, singer, guitarist and songwriter.
Rob possesses a light touch, a heartfelt vocal manner and a very listenable style. He represents that poetic and romantic performer part of the industry: the bard with a song in his heart, the ability to play and deliver on stage and genuine potential. For those who come across him, perhaps by chance or through recomendation, there's the delight in finding an unexpected pearl. You hope such talents get the breaks and recognition, but of course perhaps the reward is the journey itself. Dungeon Ghyl, I Will Climb and Roger Daltry are captivating works and deserving of a nationwide audince. Check Him out

Keith Ames
- Musician Magazine - Summer 2009