'EASY' – Previously Unreleased Song!

A newly discovered track called 'Easy' brings Hazel O’Connor’s voice back into focus, recorded in Ireland in 2002 with the project BrOKeN! by Ed Draycott and the late Paul Beckers. The recording has a special story behind it, filled with unexpected moments and friendships. Now, with Paul’s wish for the song to be heard, it is finally being shared with a wider audience.

And now, here is the story of 'Easy', told by Ed Draycott:

"BrOKeN! was formed in 2001 when I played a bluesy song I’d written on piano and Paul Beckers recorded it at twice the speed with a drum & bass feel. We were in the small studio I’d just built at the bottom of my garden, known as Ed’s Shed in Manchester.

We both thought a female vocal would work well for the song and both had one in mind. We argued for about ten minutes about who would be best before realising we were both talking about the same singer. Carolyn Mason joined us about an hour later and we finished DreamTown in a matter of days.

We recorded a few more tracks before Carolyn left for film school in London. Prior to that we had supported Space and China Crisis on a couple of gigs and were developing a following. We needed a new singer…

Hazel was playing at Life Cafe in 2002 (?) and Paul was FOH engineer there. He rang me and suggested I brought the demo we were working on into the club to see if Hazel would like to sing it. I watched Hazel perform and was spellbound by both her and Cormac’s performances. Afterwards I took a ghetto blaster into Hazel’s dressing room and played her Easy (with Carolyn’s Vocal on the demo). To my surprise, she asked me if I knew anything about dry stone walling. I said I knew quite a lot and she suggested we could record the song at her place in Ireland if we fixed her wall for her.

I don’t think she ever expected us to arrive but we didn’t have a singer and we’d never been to County Wicklow so we made arrangements, packed the car with recording gear and took the ferry. Recording took place over a couple of days and we had rehearsals and sessions interrupted by visits to eat scones and to sing in caves and also so she could watch her favourite soap on telly. We also fixed the wall while we there. (A deal is a deal).

According to Paul’s laptop, Easy was finished in January 2003.

Watch on YouTube

Paul died from cancer in January of 2024. He really wanted Easy to help Hazel in some way. I would love it to as well. Most of all I'd love Hazel's performance heard by more people. She was perfect for that track."

It’s easy to say the things you mean
When they’re mean things you say
It’s easy to lie and cheat
When they’re bad games you play

It’s easy to break a heart
When you have no heart inside
It’s easy to squeeze more life
From a love that’s died

It’s easy to be the one
So easy to be the one
Who hurts
When you’re hurt

It’s easy to be bitter
When it has such a sweet taste
It’s easy to dish out hate
When you have so much to waste

It’s easy to take everything
From someone who has nothing at all
It’s easy to push them down
When you know they’re gonna fall

It’s easy to be the one
So easy to be the one
Who hurts
When you’re hurt

Hazel is facing serious health challenges and can’t work right now, so please consider supporting her through her GoFundMe during this difficult time.

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