The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem was an Irish folk music singing group t… Read Full Bio ↴The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem was an Irish folk music singing group that formed in America in 1956. Widely credited with popularising Irish traditional music in the United States, and revitalising it in Ireland (paving the way for an Irish folk boom with groups like The Dubliners and The Wolfe Tones), Tommy Makem left the group in 1969, after which the three brothers (Patrick "Paddy" Clancy, Tom Clancy, and Liam Clancy) became The Clancy Brothers subsequently joined by the fourth Clancy brother (Bobby Clancy).
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.
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.
Nell Flaherty's Drake
The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Nell Flaherty's Drake' by these artists:
Burl Ives Burl Ives - Nell Flaherty's Drake Oh my name it is…
We have lyrics for these tracks by The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem:
A Jug Of Punch One pleasant evening in the month of June As I was…
All for My Grog Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog, It's…
As I Roved Out As I roved out on a May morning On a May…
Beer Beer Beer It's lonesome away from your kindered and all By the campfir…
Beggarman I am a little beggarman and begging I have been For…
Blood Red Roses Come over the hills my bonny Irish lass Come over the…
Boulavogue BOULAVOGUE (P.J.McCall) At Boulavogue, as the sun was settin…
Brennan On the Moor Tis of a brave young highwayman this story I will…
Come by the Hills (Oh, come by the hills to the land where fancy…
Connemara Cradle Song On the wings of the wind o'er the dark rolling…
Courtin' in the Kitchen COORTIN′ IN THE KITCHEN Come single belle and beau, to me…
Courting in the Kitchen Come single belle and beau, unto me pay attention Don't ever…
Éamonn an Chnoic "Cé hé sin amu A bhfuil faobhar a ghuth, A′ réabadh mo…
Eamonn an Chnuic "Ce-h-é sin amuigh Go bhfuil faor ar a ghuth A′ reaba mo…
Farewell to Carlingford When I was young and in my prime And could wander…
Finnegan's Wake Tim Finnegan lived in Walkin Street A gentle Irishman, might…
Four Green Fields "What did I have?" said the fine old woman "What did…
Gallant Forty Twa You may talk about your lancers and your Irish Fusiliers The…
Galway Bay Maybe someday, I'll go back again to Ireland If only my…
Green In The Green "What did I have?" said the fine old woman "What did…
I'll Tell my Ma [Chorus] I'll tell me Ma when I go home, The boys…
Irish Rover In the year of our Lord, eighteen hundred and six, We…
Jennifer Gentle JENNIFER GENTLE There were three sisters, fair and bright, J…
Johnny I Hardley Knew You While goin' the road to sweet Athy, hurroo, hurroo While goi…
Johnny McEldoo There was Johnny McEldoo and McGee and me And a couple…
Johnson's Motor Car Twas down by Brannigan′s corner, one morning I did stray I…
Jug Of Punch One pleasant evening in the month of June As I was…
Kelly Kelly, The Boy from Killanne What's the news? What's the new…
Kitty Magee I've kissed and courted them all, gentle and simple, short…
Legion Of The Rearguard Up the Republic, they raise their battle cry, Pearse and McD…
Marie's Wedding Step we gaily on we go, Heel for heel And toe for…
Mountain Dew The Real Old Mountain Dew Beside a hill there is a…
Mrs McGrath "Oh, Mrs. McGrath," the sergeant said "Would you like to mak…
Patriot Game Come all you young rebels, And list' while I sing. For…
Reilly's Daughter As I was sitting by the fire Eating spuds and drinking…
Rocky Road to Dublin While in the merry month of May from me…
Roddy McCorley O see the fleet-foot host of men, Who march with…
The Bard of Armagh Oh list to the lay of a poor Irish harper And…
The Barnyards of Delgaty As I cam in tae Turra market, Turra market for…
The Butcher Boy In London city where I did dwell A butcher boy, I…
The Cobbler Oh, me name is Dick Darby, I'm a cobbler I served…
The Croppy Boy It was early, early in the spring The birds did whistle…
The Foggy Dew It was down the glen one Easter morn, to a…
The Irish Rover In the year of our Lord, eighteen hundred and six, We…
The Jug Of Punch One pleasant evening in the month of June As I was…
The Little Beggarman I am a little beggarman and begging I have been For…
The Lowlands Of Holland The Lowlands of Holland The love that I have chosen was…
The Men of the West The Men of the West (William Rooney) When you honor in song…
The Minstrel Boy The minstrel boy to the war is gone, In the ranks…
The Moonshiner I've been a moonshiner for many a year And I've…
The Mountain Dew The Real Old Mountain Dew Beside a hill there is a…
The Old Orange Flute In the county Tyrone, in the town of Dungannon Where many…
The Parting Glass Of all the money that e'er I spent I've spent it…
The Patriot Game Come all you young rebels, And list' while I sing. For…
The Real Old Mountain Dew The Real Old Mountain Dew Beside a hill there is a…
The Rising of the Moon Oh, then tell me Sean O'Farrell, tell me why you hurry…
The Whistling Gypsy The Gypsy Rover come over the hills Down through the valleys…
The Wild Colonial Boy There was a wild colonial boy, Jack Duggan was his…
The Wind That Shakes the Barley I sat within the valley green, I sat me with…
They They're moving father's grave to build a sewer They're movi…
Tim Finnegan's Wake Tim Finnegan lived in Walkin Street A gentle Irishman, might…
Whack Fol the Diddle I'll sing you a song of peace and love, Whack fol…
Whiskey You Now brave boys, we're on the march Off to Portugal and…
Wild Colonial Boy There was a wild colonial boy, Jack Duggan was his…
Wild Rover The Lovin′ Spoonful Miscellaneous Let The Boy Rock And Roll …
Will Ye Go Lassie Go? Oh, the summertime is coming And the trees are sweetly bloom…
Young Roddy McCorley O see the fleet-foot host of men, Who march with…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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@remccom
The main character of this anonymous nineteenth century ballad is said to be a secret code name for Robert Emmet, an exceptionally charming youth who led a small uprising in Dublin in 1803, for which he was publicly hanged. Emmet's famous "speech from the dock", in which he requested that no epitaph for him be written until Ireland took her place among the nations of the earth, assures him of an eternal place in the hearts of all Irish nationalists.
@The_Old_Wolf
There are many more verses [and curses] as well, this is a good collection of them:
May his pig never grunt, may his cat never hunt,
May a ghost always haunt him in the dead of the night,
May his hen never lay, may horse never nay,
May his goat fly away like an old paper kite;
May the flies and the fleas may the wretch ever tease,
May the piercing March breeze make him shiver and shake,
May the hump of a stick raise the lumps fast and thick,
Of the monster that murdered Nell Flaherty's Drake.
May his cock never crow, may his bellows ne'er blow,
And a-pot or po, may he never have one,
May his cradle not rock, may his box have no lock,
May his wife have no smock to shield her back bone,
May his duck never quack, and his goose turn quite black
And pull down the turf with his long yellow beak.
May scurvy and itch, not depart from the breech,
Of the monster that murdered Nell Flaherty's Drake.
May his pipe never smoke, may his teapot be broke,
And to add to the joke may his kettle not boil,
May he lay in the bed 'till the moment he's dead
May he always be fed on lob-scouse and fish oil,
May he swell with the gout, may his grinders fall out,
May he roar, bawl and shout, with the horrid toothache.
May his temples wear horns, and all his toes corns,
The monster that murdered Nell Flaherty's drake.
May his spade never dig, may his sow never pig,
May each hair on his wig be well thrashed with a flail,
May his door have no thatch and his roof have no thatch,
Nay his turkey not hatch, may the rats eat his meal,
May every old fairy fiom Cork to Dunleary,
Dip him in snug and easy in river or lake,
That the eel and the trout may dine on the snout,
Of the monster that murdered Nell Flaherty's Drake.
May his dog yelp and growl with hunger and cold,
May his wife always scold 'till his brain goes astray,
May the curse of each hag, that e'er carried a bag,
Alight on his nag till his beard it turns grey,
May monkeys still bite him, and man-apes affright him,
And everyone slight him asleep or awake,
May weasels still gnaw him, and jackdaws still claw him,
The monster that murdered Nell Flaherty's Drake.
@diddyKite2010
Good stuff! I'll get use out of them verses. Cheers!
@rwilsbach9206
I first heard this song fifty years ago, many times since because I love it. Not to my credit, it was many years before I realized that the rats didn't eat his mail, instead his corn.
@MV-gt1qu
Boy do I feel foolish
@dpfivem5127
What I love about this song is if you basically translate the old subtle style of English into modern day language, he's essentially cursing and blinding the fucker that killed his duck with every name under the sun! lol
Our music has such a colourful past
@darryltimmo3448
I lost my cow to a hammer the hammer cost a hole and a stone
@AW447
It was NOT just a duck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@forthrightgambitia1032
Ulysses brought me here. (Specifically the hallucinatory "Cardinal" Simon Daedelus with a corkscrew cross.)
@bouncylevel323
Irelavent ass