Tabby Callaghan (born Trevor John O'Callaghan; 22 April 1981,

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the an ...

, Ireland) is an Irish musician. He finished third on the first series of ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

'' in 2004.

Early career

Callaghan played in many collectives and groups as a teenager growing up in Sligo. With his brother Dominic he formed his first real band, called ''Petronella'' around 1997. The band had some success in Ireland and their single "Feeling So Low" entered the Irish top 20 singles chart.

''The X Factor''

After Petronella dissolved, Callaghan then formed Boom, later renamed DZ5. DZ5 auditioned for the first series of ITV talent show ''

'', unaware that the new show's willingness to accept groups only applied to vocal groups. The panel of judges,

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of '' The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on ...

Louis Walsh Michael Louis Vincent Walsh (born 5 August 1952) is an Irish music manager and television personality. He has managed Johnny Logan, Boyzone, Jedward and Westlife, four of Ireland's most successful pop acts in the 1990s and 2000s. He later be ...

and Sharon Osbourne, advised Callaghan to re-audition as a solo singer in order to proceed in the competition. He was selected by Osbourne to be one of her acts at the live finals. He finished in third place overall in the semi-final. He later revealed that he had been advised by the show's producers to drop the 'O' in his surname to make it sound more commercial and less Irish.

Post ''X Factor''

After ''The X Factor'', Callaghan participated in a fly-on-the-wall "

rockumentary A concert film, or concert movie, is a film that showcases a live performance from the perspective of a concert goer, the subject of which is an extended live performance or concert by either a musician or a stand-up comedian. Early history Th ...

" titled ''What Tabby Did Next'' which was shown ITV in August 2005, coinciding with the release of his debut single in Ireland. The single, called "Number One", was originally titled "Holes in My Shoes". The A-side, "Number One", was an original track penned by Callaghan himself and Mark Hudson (who had worked with him on ''The X Factor''). The B-side was a cover of the

Slade Slade are an English rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British Hit Singles ...

hit " My Oh My" which had been performed on the show. The single, only released in Ireland, entered the Irish charts at No. 7 in the first week of its release.Listing for Callaghan on IMDB
/ref>"Tabby's coming of age marked by RTE launch of debut sing"
unison.ie; accessed 25 August 2014. In 2005, Callaghan performed at

The Cavern Club The Cavern Club is a nightclub on Mathew Street, Liverpool, England. The Cavern Club opened in 1957 as a jazz club, later becoming a centre of the rock and roll scene in Liverpool in the late 50s and early 1960s. The club became closely assoc ...

in Liverpool, England. During the gig, Callaghan kicked off his boots in order to play in his bare feet, which is his trademark; however, his boots were taken from the stage by a fan. The Cavern Club management then provided him with an old pair of boots in their office which had been left behind by

Ronnie Wood Ronald David Wood (born 1 June 1947) is an English rock musician, best known as an official member of the Rolling Stones since 1975, as well as a member of Faces and the Jeff Beck Group. Wood began his career in 1964, playing guitar with a ...

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

. He joined the

Belfast CityBeat Q Radio (formerly known as Citybeat and Belfast CityBeat) is a Northern Irish radio station. It broadcasts to Greater Belfast on 96.7 MHz FM and on DAB Digital Radio across all of Northern Ireland. From 5 April 2007, Citybeat became availa ...

contest '' Young Star Search'' for the 2008 season.

Discography

Albums

*''Bread vs. Art'' (2010)

Singles

Petronella

*''Drowning'' (1999) *''Feeling So Low'' (1999) *''Oh No'' (1999) *''Greed''

Tabby

*''Number One'' (August 2005) *''Gotta get Control'' (April 2011)

Tabby and The Tsars

*''Never Forget You'' (2006) *''Brendan's Song'' (2006) *''Never Forget You'' (2006) *''Take A Swing'' (2006)

References

External links

Tabby Callaghan official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Callaghan, Tabby 1981 births Living people Irish male guitarists Musicians from County Sligo People educated at Summerhill College The X Factor (British TV series) contestants 21st-century Irish male singers 21st-century guitarists