Born in Dublin, Ed started playing acoustic blues and slide guitar while still at school. His repertoire at the time drew mainly from the Delta blues of Sun House, Robert Johnson and Skip James. At age 16 he formed the band Blueshouse. They played alongside all the visiting bluesmen at that time such as Arthur ‘Big Boy’ Crudup, Fred McDowell, ‘Champion’ Jack Dupree, Johnny Shines and Juke Boy Bonner.He then spent four years in France, mainly in Paris working with the band Il Biarritz and doing writing and session work.
Returning to London, Ed recorded with Graham Parker and The Rumour, The Fallen Angels (Pretty Things) and co-founded Juice on the Loose with Ron Kavana and Geraint Watkins. Juice on the Loose toured Germany as the backing band for Alexis Korner and Chris Farlowe. They also gigged extensively and recorded an album for Ace records.
Ed was asked to join Frankie Miller with whom he recorded and toured Europe, the UK and America.
Later, Ed appeared in the Mike Figgis move Stormy Sunday, which featured Tommy Lee Jones, Sting and Melanie Griffith. He contributed substantially to the soundtrack and was the only featured guitarist apart from B.B. King.
Ed has also played on the soundtracks of the films Leaving Las Vegas and Serendipity, which starred John Cusack.
Ed spent much of the 90s working with the blues diva Dana Gillespie, recording several albums with her. During this period Dana was voted “best British female blues singer”and installed in the Hall of Fame.
Ed also worked, recorded and toured with Dave Kelly. At this time he was also doing recordings and gigs with R&B artists such as Shuggie Otis, Sonny Rhode, Larry Johnson, Lowell Fulson, Richard Berry (writer and composer of ‘Louie Louie’, the most recorded R&B song ever) Big Jay McNeely and George ‘Wild Child’ Butler. He toured Germany with Paul Jones and the Blues Band, and then the UK, Europe and India with Dana Gillespie. He appeared with Dana at the prestigious Mustique Blues Festival in the Caribbean. Ed also played with Dana as Bob Dylan’s opening act on the English leg of Dylan’s ’98 tour.
Ed has recorded and played live gigs with Shane MacGowan, and recorded with Chris and Mick Jagger on a tribute album to Cyril Davies. He has worked with Chris on two of his solo albums, and toured America, Europe and India with his band.
In recent years Ed has recorded on two albums with Bap Kennedy, the Belfast songwriter. The second of these, ‘The Big Picture’, was recorded in Van Morrison’s studio. He toured extensively with Bap, and together they toured with Van Morrison, both as members of a band and as a duo.
Before returning to live in Ireland, Ed toured America, the UK and Europe with Nick Lowe. The great songwriting team of Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham were on the same tour.
In summer 2005 he first played the Castlebar Blues Festival with his own band and has since settled back in Ireland, playing regularly with Henry McCullough, John Quearney, Noel Bridgeman, Trevor Knight, Donal Fean, Richie Buckley, James Delaney and others. In 2010, he toured Europe with Donovan.
His first solo CD ‘Slideshow‘ was released on the Blue Navigator label to rave reviews in 2006.
In 2011 he co-wrote and starred in the critically acclaimed The Devils Spine Band, an ensemble performance combining the gritty atmosphere of the Wild West with Japanese butoh dance and live music by Trevor Knight and Ed Deane. In 2015/16 he toured with The Whistling Girl, presented by renowned vocalist Honor Heffernan and composer Trevor Knight, featuring music inspired by the poetry of the great Dorothy Parker.
His CD ‘Wireless Set’ was released June 2016 in Ireland and distributed in the UK by Discovery Records.
