Formed while the members were working in America, the initial impetus was to record an album of Irish rebel songs (released as "The Rising of the Moon") as one of the first releases in 1956 of new folk label, Tradition Records. Paddy Clancy's harmonica provided the only musical accompaniment for this debut album.
Little thought was given at that point to continuing as a singing group. The four were all were busy establishing careers (in the theatre) for themselves, in addition to their work at Tradition Records. With the album being a local success, requests were often demanded for the brothers and Makem to sing some of their songs at parties and informal pub settings. Slowly, the singing gigs began to outweigh the acting gigs and by 1959, serious thought was given to a new album. Liam had developed some guitar skills, Tommy's hand, which hasd been injured, had healed enough that he was again able to play tin whistle and Uilleann pipes, and the times spent singing together had improved their style. No longer were they the rough, mostly unaccompanied group of actors singing for an album to jump-start a record label; they were becoming a professional singing group.
The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music singing group. Most popular in the 1960s, they were famed for their woolly Aran jumpers and are widely credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. The brothers were Patrick "Paddy" Clancy, Tom Clancy, Bobby Clancy and Liam Clancy. Paddy, Tom, Bob, and Liam are best known for their work with Tommy Makem, recording dozens of albums together as The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. They were a primary influence on a young Bob Dylan and on many other emerging artists.
The release of their second album, this one of Irish drinking songs called "Come Fill Your Glass with Us", solidified their new careers as singers. The album was a success, and they made many appearances on the pub circuit in New York, Chicago, and Boston. It was at their first official gig after "Come Fill Your Glass With Us" that the group finally found a name for themselves. The nightclub owner asked for a name to put on the marquee, but they had not decided on one yet. Unable to agree on a name (which included suggestions like "The Beggermen", "The Tinkers", and even "The Chieftains") the owner decided for them, simply billing them as "The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem". The name stuck. They decided to try singing full-time for six months. If their singing was successful, they would continue with it; if not, then they would return to acting. The Clancy brothers and Tommy Makem proved successful as a singing group and in early 1961, they attracted the attention of scouts from The Ed Sullivan Show.
The Clancy Brothers' mother read news of the terrible ice and snow storms in New York City so she sent Aran sweaters for her sons and Tommy Makem to keep them warm. Paddy and Liam Clancy stated they wore the sweaters for the first time in the Blue Angel club. When Marty Erlichman, their manager, saw the sweaters, he was beside himself! "That's it!" he exclaimed. I've been looking for a special costume for the group. It was also the night that Barbra Streisand sang in the Blue Angel for the first time. The sweaters became the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem's trademark. When back in their hometown, the band purchased their Aran jumpers from Babington, on the main street. Babington had a local woman by the name of Betty McGillivray née Duggan knit the jumpers and supply the shop on regular occasions.
On 12 March 1961, the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem performed for 16 minutes in front of a televised audience of 80 million people on The Ed Sullivan Show. As Pearl Bailey did not show that night, the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem were given her time. The televised performance instantly attracted the attention of John Hammond of Columbia Records. The group was offered a five-year contract with an advance of $100,000, a huge sum in 1961. For their first album with Columbia, they enlisted Pete Seeger as backup banjo player for the live album A Spontaneous Performance Recording It included songs that would soon become classics, such as "Brennan on the Moor," "Jug of Punch," "Reilly's Daughter," "Finnegan's Wake," "Haul Away Joe," "Roddy McCorley," "Portlairge" and "Moonshiner." The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1961.
By the end of 1961, they had released two more albums, one final one with Tradition Records, and another with Columbia, Hearty and Hellish: A Live Nightclub Performance, and they were playing Carnegie Hall. Additionally, they were making appearances on major radio and television talk-shows in America.
1962 proved to be an even better year. Ciarán MacMathuna, a popular radio personality in Ireland, was visiting America when he heard of the group. He collected the few albums they had out at the time, brought them back home to Ireland and played them on his radio show. The broadcasts skyrocketed the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem to fame in Ireland, where they were still unknown. In Ireland, songs like "Roddy McCorley," "Kevin Barry" and "Brennan on the Moor" were slow, depressing songs full of melancholy, but the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem had transformed those songs (the disgruntled purists in Ireland said "commercialized") and made them lively. For generations the songs had been a reminder of the troubles in Ireland and therefore they weren't anything anybody sang proudly. The Clancy Brothers changed all that, and the transformed songs reinvigorated Ireland's pride in her music. The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem were brought over for a sold-out tour of Ireland in late 1962. Popularity in England and other parts of Europe soon followed, as well as Australia and Canada. By 1963, appearing on major talk-shows in America, Canada, England, Australia and Ireland, as well as their own TV specials, the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem were "the most famous four Irishmen in the world" as said by Ireland's Late Late Show host, Gay Byrne, in a retrospective interview in 1984. In 1964, one third of all the albums sold in Ireland were Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem records.
The 1960s continued to be a successful decade with the release of approximately two albums per year, all of which sold millions of copies. They continued to peak with television appearances in front of President John F. Kennedy in 1963.
Their popularity is the result of several factors. There was already an American folk revival beginning in the United States, and men such as Ewan MacColl popularizing old songs on the other side of the Atlantic. But it was the Clancys' boisterous performances that set them apart, taking placid classics and giving them a boost of energy and spirit (not that they took this approach with all their songs; they would still sing the true mournful ballads with due reverence).
But by the late 1960s, rock music had taken full swing, and the ballad and folk boom was waning. To keep the band at the top, Teo Macero began producing their records for Columbia. Macero introduced new instrumentation to their music, including Louis Killen coming in to play concertina on backup, particularly on their 1968 album of sea songs, Sing of the Sea. But their last three albums for Columbia Record in 1969 and 1970 are considered by many to be overproduced, with a multitude of string instruments and synthesizers added to the simpler traditional Clancy mix of guitar, banjo, tin whistle and harmonica.
In 1969, the group recorded a song for a two-minute-long TV ad for Gulf Oil: "Bringin' Home the Oil". They adapted a traditional Scottish tune they had recorded, "The Gallant Forty Twa," with new words about large-capacity supertankers. The song and commercial featured the then-largest supertanker in the world, the Universe Ireland, which operated with sister ships Universe Kuwait, Universe Japan and Universe Portugal, all mentioned in the song and which operated from the seaport at Bantry Bay.
1969 marked the amicable departure of Tommy Makem from the group. Giving them a year's notice, Makem left in April 1969 to pursue a solo career armed with such recent compositions as "Four Green Fields", debuted on 1968's Clancy Brothers album, Home Boys Home.
The "other brother", Bobby Clancy, filled Tommy Makem's vacancy and the band became The Clancy Brothers.
Legion Of The Rearguard
The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Pearse and McDermott will pray for you on high,
Eager and ready, for love of you they die
Proud march the soldiers of the Rearguard.
Legion of the Rearguard,
Answering Ireland's call,
Hark their martial tramp is heard
Wolfe Love and Emmett guide you,
Though your task be hard,
De Valera leads you,
Soldiers of the Legion of the Rearguard.
Glorious the morning,
Through flame and shot and shell,
Now rally Ireland,
Your sons who love you well
Pledged, they'll defend you,
Through death or prison cell
Wait for the soldiers of the Rearguard.
Crimson the roadside,
The prison wall they climb,
Proof of their valor,
Go sleep in peace ye brave,
Comrade tread lightly,
You're near a hero's grave,
Proud die the soldiers of the Rearguard.
The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem's Legion Of The Rearguard is a tribute to the Irish soldiers who fought for the country's independence in the 1916 Easter Rising. The song speaks of the soldiers' unwavering determination to defend Ireland's cause, even if it means facing death or imprisonment. The lyrics describe the soldiers as proud and honor-bound, marching with courage and strength for their country. The song's chorus celebrates the spirit of the Legion of the Rearguard, as they answer Ireland's call, marching from Cork to Donegal, with the guidance of great warriors such as Wolfe Love, Emmett, and De Valera.
The song is a moving tribute to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for their country's freedom. The lyrics honor the fallen soldiers, stating that they sleep in peace knowing they bravely fought for their cause. The song also urges those who "eagerly and ready, for love of you (Ireland) will die" to rally and defend their country, even through death or prison. The song's message is one of strength, resilience, and sacrifice in the face of adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
Up the Republic, they raise their battle cry,
The soldiers are ready to fight till their last breath for the freedom of the Republic.
Pearse and McDermott will pray for you on high,
Even after their death, Pearse and McDermott will keep praying for the soldiers who fight for the cause of the Republic.
Eager and ready, for love of you they die
The soldiers are enthusiastic and fully prepared to sacrifice their lives for their love towards their motherland.
Proud march the soldiers of the Rearguard.
The soldiers of the Legion of the Rearguard walk proudly while guarding their nation and protecting their people.
Legion of the Rearguard, Answering Ireland's call,
The Legion of the Rearguard is always ready to answer Ireland's call in times of need.
Hark their martial tramp is heard From Cork to Donegal,
The strong and impactful march of the soldiers can be heard across the nation from Cork to Donegal.
Wolfe Love and Emmett guide you, Though your task be hard,
The spirits of Wolfe Tone and Robert Emmett guide the soldiers in the toughest of times and help them fulfill their duties.
De Valera leads you, Soldiers of the Legion of the Rearguard.
The soldiers of the Rearguard are led by De Valera, who is a well-respected and capable leader of the nation.
Glorious the morning, Through flame and shot and shell,
Even during the toughest of battles, the soldiers of the Rearguard continue to fight bravely and gloriously.
Now rally Ireland, Your sons who love you well
It's time for the nation to come together and support the soldiers who love their country and are fighting for its freedom.
Pledged, they'll defend you, Through death or prison cell
The soldiers have taken a pledge to defend their country even if it means they have to face death or imprisonment.
Wait for the soldiers of the Rearguard.
The nation can rely on the soldiers of the Rearguard to protect them and fight for their freedom.
Crimson the roadside, The prison wall they climb,
The bravery of the soldiers can be seen in the redness of the roadside and the walls of the prison, which they climb to protect their country.
Proof of their valor, Go sleep in peace ye brave,
The courage and bravery of the soldiers are evident, and they can rest in peace as they have fulfilled their duty to their nation.
Comrade tread lightly, You're near a hero's grave,
The comrades of the fallen soldiers should walk carefully as they are near the graves of the true heroes of the nation.
Proud die the soldiers of the Rearguard.
The soldiers of the Rearguard die with their heads held high and a sense of pride for fulfilling their duties towards their country.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: LIAM CLANCY, ARR BY PD TRAD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@iansampson4964
Just got this album at a thrist store for 50c love it!
@teristorrie
brings back memories of the 70s this and more da was a irishman through and through
@dublinercolm
a forgotten side of beautiful songs
@barfuss.
Up the republic! That's exactly what happened in Europe's continental countries in 1848, especially in Germany: Vivat, hoch die Republik! Thought of the freedom of person will never ever be abolished by powerful persons, it will always survive!
@eamonnmulhern7449
The wheels come full circle!!! Irish General Election 2020...
VOTE SINN FEIN!!!
@hissmugness
You have the same album as I. I still have it and I'm surprised I didn't wear it out, so often did I play this song. I believe it still is their passion that is evident in the performance. It would have been amazing to have been there on that night!
@DoctorT2010
Fantastic song! I never heard of it until Eugene McEldowney's article in The Irish Times this morning (http://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/if-john-delaney-had-sung-the-croppy-boy-would-anyone-have-raised-an-eyebrow-1.2017692). It was apparently written to honour the anti-Treaty Irish republican soldiers during the Irish Civil War 1922-1923, and thus people who sang it were deemed enemies of the new state.
@janeos01
God bless De Valera and the old Fianna Fail Party..Sean Lemass must go down in history as our best Taoiseach ever
@suzannemcquinn5583
Amazing
@Cauthon75
Isn't the second line of the chorus, "Hark, the martial trump is heard . . . " ?