Liam Clancy

Liam Clancy (; 2 September 1935 – 4 December 2009) was an Irish folk singer from Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary. He was the youngest member of the influential folk group the Clancy Brothers, regarded as Ireland's first pop stars. They achieved global sales of millions and appeared in sold-out concerts at such prominent venues as Carnegie Hall and the Royal Albert Hall. In 1976, as part of the duo Makem and Clancy, he had a number one hit in Ireland with the anti-war song "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" (written by Scots-Australian Eric Bogle). Upon his death The Irish Times said his legacy was secured.

Early life He was born at Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary, Ireland on 2 September 1935, The Clancys were a republican family with Liam's uncle Peter McGrath serving under Dan Breen in a flying column during the Irish War of Independence. He displayed an artistic disposition at an early age, while growing up in Carrick-on-Suir. The first song he learned was "The Croppy Boy". He received a Christian Brothers education before taking a job as an insurance man in Dublin. He encountered Diane Hamilton Guggenheim when she came to his hometown to visit his mother, and set off on a tour of Ireland alongside her. There were international tours, which included performances at Carnegie Hall (a sell-out in 1962) He performed live for United States President John F. Kennedy.

In 1964, thirty per cent of all albums sold in Ireland were Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem records. Although better known for their full-length albums, the Clancy Brothers' single, "The Leaving of Liverpool" (from the album, The First Hurrah!), which featured Liam in the lead, reached the number six spot on the Irish charts in 1964. Liam played the guitar in almost all the recordings of the Clancy Brothers, and he took lead vocals in many songs, including "The Wild Rover", "The Shoals of Herring", "Port Lairge", "The Juice of the Barley", "The Patriot Game", "The Gallant Forty Twa", "The Jolly Tinker", "The Nightingale", "Peggy Gordon", "Old Maid in the Garrett", and "The Parting Glass", which closed every Clancy Brothers concert.

Liam Clancy was the last surviving member of the original Clancy Brothers. Tom Clancy died on 7 November 1990, Patrick Clancy died on 11 November 1998, and Tommy Makem died on 1 August 2007. Bobby Clancy, who had joined the group in 1969, died on 6 September 2002. Liam said of his status as the last of the brothers: "There was always a pecking order, especially when you're working with family. But they all died off, and I got to the top of the pecking order, with nobody looking over my shoulder. There's a great sense of freedom about that". In 1975 , he was booked to play a festival in Cleveland, Ohio, US, where Tommy Makem was also playing.

In later life, Liam maintained a solo career accompanied by musicians Paul Grant and Kevin Evans, whilst also engaging in other pursuits. He lived in Ring, County Waterford at this stage.

He received an honorary doctorate from the University of Limerick in 2001.

In 2001, Liam Clancy published a memoir titled The Mountain of the Women. He also was in No Direction Home, the 2005 Bob Dylan documentary directed by Martin Scorsese.

His final album The Wheels of Life was released in 2009. It included duets with Mary Black and Gemma Hayes as well as songs by Tom Paxton and Donovan. He criticised both Gulf Wars and the grim, harsh economic climate which gripped Ireland during his last months. He had already given his final performance, at the National Concert Hall the previous May, during which he recited the Dylan Thomas poem "And death shall have no dominion". His manager described it as "...a very profound moment. He expressed his fear of dying, but he did it with great dignity".

His son Eben was in the process of coming over from the United Kingdom and he had a last telephone chat with his son Donal who was in the middle of a tour of California. Alan Gilsenan described the death as the "end of an era".

Radio disc jockeys in New York paid tribute to the man who, according to the New York Daily News, "played a major role in defining how Americans heard Irish popular music over the last half century", with one DJ saying The Clancy Brothers had "broke down a wall that was long overdue". Christy Moore, on a prescheduled appearance on The Late Late Show aired live on the night of Liam's death, said, "I would have been listening to Radio Luxembourg and rock 'n' roll as a young fellow and then I got to hear of the Clancy brothers, when I was 16 I came to Dublin to hear them in a concert. It was about 1962, I think it was the Olympia, it was the most exciting concert I had ever attended. It was Irish, it was rock 'n' roll, it was funky and it was even sexy".

Clancy's mid-day funeral at St. Mary's Church, Dungarvan, on 7 December was attended by hundreds of mourners, including both the Aides de Camp of the Taoiseach and President of Ireland, Minister Cullen and various musicians and artists. He was later buried in An Rinn.

Discography Solo recordings 1965 – Liam Clancy – Vanguard LP/CD re-released with bonus tracks as 'Irish Troubadour' on Vanguard CD 1974 – Farewell to Tarwathie – Plainsong LP on Shanachie CD as "The Dutchman" 2005 – Favourites 2007 – Yes Those Were The Days: The Essential Liam Clancy Dolphin Records 2008 – The Wheels of Life, Dolphin Records

Guest recordings 1955 – The Lark in the Morning – Tradition LP/Rykodisc CD 1956 – The Countess Cathleen – Tradition LP 1989 – Phil Coulter: Words and Music – Shanachie CD 1992 – Phil Coulter: A Touch of Tranquility – Shanachie CD 1994 – Joanie Madden: Whistle on the Wind – Green Linnet CD 1999 – Cherish the Ladies: At Home – RCA CD 2000 – The Girls Won't Leave the Boys Alone – Windham Hill CD 2002 – Danú: All Things Considered – Shanachie CD

Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem Tradition Records The Rising of the Moon (or Irish Songs of Rebellion) (1956, 1959 second version) Come Fill Your Glass with Us (or Irish Songs of Drinking and Blackguarding) (1959) The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem (self-titled) – (1961) Columbia Records A Spontaneous Performance Recording (1961) Hearty and Hellish! A Live Nightclub Performance (1962) The Boys Won't Leave the Girls Alone (1962; plus several subsequent re-releases, including on Shanachie Records) In Person at Carnegie Hall (1963) – also on Columbia CD The First Hurrah! (1964) Recorded Live in Ireland (1965) Isn't It Grand Boys (1966) Freedom's Sons (1966) In Concert (1967) – also on Columbia CD The Irish Uprising (1967) Home, Boys, Home (1968) Sing of the Sea (1968) The Bold Fenian Men (1969) Reunion (1984) – Released on Blackbird LP/Shanachie CD Luck of the Irish (1992) – Columbia/Sony compilation. Contains 1 new song ("Wars of Germany") and 3 new performances of previously released songs: ("Home Boys Home", "The Old Orange Flute" and "They're Moving Father's Grave to Build a Sewer") The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration (Bob Dylan) (1992) Irish Drinking Songs (1993) – contains unreleased material from the Carnegie Hall album Ain't It Grand: A Collection of Unissued Gems (1995) – unreleased material from the 1960s era

The Clancy Brothers (Liam, Tom, Pat, Bobby) Christmas – Columbia LP/CD (1969) Flowers in the Valley – Columbia LP (1970) Audio Fidelity Records Welcome to Our House (1970)

Lou Killen, Paddy, Liam, Tom Clancy Audio Fidelity Records Show Me The Way (1972) Save the Land! (1972) Live on St. Patrick's Day (1973) Vanguard Records The Clancy Brothers' Greatest Hits (1973) – Vanguard LP/CD This was reissued as 'Best of the Vanguard Years' with bonus material from the 1982 Live! album with Bobby Clancy and Robbie O'Connell.

Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem Blackbird and Shanachie Records Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy (1976) The Makem & Clancy Concert (1977) Two for the Early Dew (1978) The Makem and Clancy Collection (1980) – contains previously released material and singles Live at the National Concert Hall (1983) We've Come A Long Way (1986)

Bob Dylan The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration (Pat, Liam & Bobby Clancy sing "When The Ship Comes In" with Tommy Makem and Robbie O'Connell)

The Clancy Brothers (Tom, Pat, Bobby) and Robbie O'Connell Mini CD (3 inch disc)

The Clancy Brothers (Liam, Pat, Bobby) and Robbie O'Connell Older But No Wiser – Vanguard (1995)

Clancy, Evans, and Doherty 1996 – Shine on Brighter – Popular CD

Clancy, O'Connell & Clancy Helvic Records Clancy, O'Connell & Clancy – (1997) The Wild And Wasteful Ocean – (1998)

Filmography 1984 – The Story of the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem – Shanachie 1984 – Reunion Concert: Belfast – Shanachie circa 1985 – Pete Seeger's Rainbow Quest (1965) – Central Sun / Shanachie (reissue) 1997 – Farewell to Ireland – Pinnacle Vision 2007 – Yes...Those Were the Days: Liam Clancy – Live at the Olympia, Dublin – unknown distributor originally released in 1992 as "In Close Up: Volumes 1 and 2" from a concert recorded in 1989 2007 – The Best of 'Hootenanny''' – Shout! 2009 – The Yellow Bittern: The life and times of Liam Clancy References