Makem was born and raised in Keady, County Armagh (the "Hub of the Universe" as Makem always said), in Northern Ireland. His mother, Sarah Makem, was an important source of traditional Irish music, who was visited and recorded by, among others, Diane Guggenheim Hamilton, Jean Ritchie, Peter Kennedy and Sean O'Boyle. His father, Peter Makem, was a fiddler who also played the bass drum in a local pipe band named "Oliver Plunkett", after a martyr of the Cromwell age. His brother and sister were folk musicians also. Young Tommy Makem, from the age of 8, was member of the St. Patrick's church choir for 15 years where he sang Gregorian chant and motets. He didn't learn to read music but he made it in his "own way".
He started to work at 14 as a clerk in a garage and later he worked for a while as a barman at Mone's Bar, a local pub and as a local correspondent for The Armagh Observer.
He emigrated to the United States in 1955, carrying his few possessions and a set of bagpipes (from his time in a pipe band). Arriving in Dover, New Hampshire, he worked at Kidder Press, where in 1956 his hand was accidentally crushed by a press.[4] With his arm in a sling, he left Dover for New York to pursue an acting career.
The Clancys and Makem were signed to Columbia Records in 1961. The same year, at the Newport Folk Festival, Makem and Joan Baez were named the most promising newcomers on the American folk scene. During the 1960s, The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem performed sellout concerts at such venues as Carnegie Hall, and made television appearances on shows like The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show. The group performed for President Kennedy. They also played in smaller venues such as the Gate of Horn in Chicago. They appeared jointly in the UK Albums Chart in April 1966, when Isn't It Grand Boys reached number 22.
Makem left the group in 1969 to pursue a solo career. In 1975, he and Liam Clancy were both booked to play a folk festival in Cleveland, Ohio, and were persuaded to do a set together. Thereafter they often performed as Makem and Clancy, recording several albums together. At a concert in 1977, Tommy noticed an audience member having a good time and exclaimed, "What have you been smoking? Good whatever you have, pass it around to the rest of them we'll all get goin'!" He once again went solo in 1988. Throughout the 70's and 80's Makem performed both solo and with Liam Clancy on The Irish Rovers various television shows, which were filming both in Canada and Ireland.
In the 1980-90s, Makem was a principal in a well-known Irish music venue in New York City, "Tommy Makem's Irish Pavilion." This East 57th Street club was a prominent and well-loved performance spot for a wide range of musicians. Among the performers and visitors were Paddy Reilly, Joe Burke, and Ronnie Gilbert. Makem was a regular performer, often solo and often as part of Makem & Clancy, particularly in the late fall and holiday season. The club was also used for warm-up performances in the weeks before the 1984 reunion concert of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem at Lincoln Center. In addition, the after-party for Bob Dylan's legendary 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration at Madison Square Garden in 1992 was held at the Irish Pavilion.
In 1997 he wrote a book, Tommy Makem's Secret Ireland, and in 1999 premiered his own one-man theatre show, Invasions and Legacies, in New York. His career includes various other acting, video, composition, and writing credits. He also established the Tommy Makem International Festival of Song in South Armagh in 2000.
Makem was married to Mary Shanahan, a native of Chicago, for 37 years, and had four children - daughter Katie Makem-Boucher, and sons Shane, Conor and Rory. They also had two grandchildren, Molly (Dickerman) Makem and Robert Boucher. Mary died in 2001.
Makem's three sons (who perform as "The Makem Brothers") and nephews Tom & Jimmy Sweeney continue the family folk music tradition.
Makem died in Dover, New Hampshire on August 1, 2007, following a lengthy battle with lung cancer. He continued to record and perform until very close to the end. Paying tribute to him after his death, Liam Clancy said, "He was my brother in every way" He is buried next to his wife at New Saint Mary Cemetery in Dover.
Makem was a prolific composer/songwriter. His performances were always full of his compositions, many of which became standards in the repertoire. Some, notably "Four Green Fields", became so well known that they were sometimes described as anonymous folk songs. During the fall of the Iron Curtain, Makem often proudly told the story that his song "The Winds Are Singing Freedom" had become a sort of folk anthem among Eastern Europeans seeing a new future opening before them.
Makem's best-known songs include "Four Green Fields", "Gentle Annie", "The Rambles of Spring", "The Winds Are Singing Freedom", "The Town of Ballybay", "Winds of the Morning", "Mary Mack", and "Farewell to Carlingford". Even though many people mistakenly believe that Makem wrote "Red is the Rose", it is a traditional Irish folk song.
Makem had a gripping stage presence – the result of years of public performance, a charismatic personality, and a bard's voice. An army of friends and fans attended his frequent concerts, many recognizing each other at far-flung venues. Performances frequently included the following familiar elements:
Original Makem compositions; the first set often began with "The Rambles of Spring"
The standard repertoire of folk and Irish music, both well-known and little-known (but never "Danny Boy", "When Irish Eyes are Smiling", "Toorah Loorah Looral", or other forbidden requests)
Oddball songs, such as "Bridie Murphy and the Kamikaze Pilot" (Colm Gallagher) or "William Bloat" (Raymond Calvert)
Poetic recitations, often as introductions to songs; a frequent source was William Butler Yeats. (Thus "Gentle Annie" usually began with "When You Are Old and Grey", and Four Green Fields usually began with Seamus Heaney's "Requiem for the Croppies".)
Jokes, often silly, made funnier through repetition:
"If your nose is running and your feet smell, you're upside down."
Rarely: monologues, such as Marriott Edgar's "The Lion and Albert"
Exhortations, nearly always successful, for the audience to join in the singing
He received many awards and honours, including three honorary doctorates: one from the University of New Hampshire in 1998, one from the University of Limerick in 2001, and one from the University of Ulster in 2007; as well as the World Folk Music Association's Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999. With the Clancy Brothers he was listed among the top 100 Irish-Americans of the 20th century in 1999.[10]
A bridge over the Cocheco River on Washington Street in Makem's long-time home of Dover, New Hampshire, was named the Tommy and Mary Makem Memorial Bridge in 2010.
Irish Rover
Tommy Makem Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We set sail from the Coal Quay of Cork
We were sailing away with a cargo of bricks
For the grand City Hall in New York
We'd an elegant craft, it was rigged 'fore and aft
And how the trade winds drove her
She had twenty-three masts and she stood several blasts
And they called her the Irish Rover
There was Barney Magee from the banks of the Lee
There was Hogan from County Tyrone
There was Johnny McGurk who was scared stiff of work
And a chap from Westmeath named Malone
There was Slugger O'Toole who was drunk as a rule
And fighting Bill Tracy from Dover
And your man Mick McCann, from the banks of the Bann
Was the skipper on the Irish Rover
We had one million bags of the best Sligo rags
We had two million barrells of bone
We had three million bales of old nanny goats' tails
We had four million barrells of stone
We had five million hogs and six million dogs
And seven million barrells of porter
We had eight million sides of old blind horses' hides
In the hold of the Irish Rover
We had sailed seven years when the measles broke out
And our ship lost her way in a fog
And the whole of the crew was reduced down to two
'Twas myself and the captain's old dog
Then the ship struck a rock, oh, Lord what a shock
And nearly tumbled over
Turned nine times around then the poor old dog was drowned
I'm the last of the Irish Rover
The Irish Rover is a song that tells the story of a group of Irish sailors who set sail from Cork with a cargo of bricks for the City Hall in New York in the year 1806. The ship is described as an elegant craft with 23 masts that could withstand several blasts. The crew was composed of colorful characters including Barney Magee from the banks of the Lee, Hogan from County Tyrone, Johnny McGurk who was averse to work, Malone from Westmeath, Slugger O'Toole who was always drunk and Bill Tracy from Dover, who was known to be a fighter. The skipper of the ship was Mick McCann from the banks of the Bann.
As the ship sails on, the song lists the various items that are part of the cargo, including one million bags of the best Sligo rags, two million barrels of bone, three million bales of old nanny goats' tails, four million barrels of stone, five million hogs and six million dogs, and seven million barrels of porter. The hold of the ship carried eight million sides of old blind horses' hides.
After seven years of sailing, the ship is hit by a fog and the crew is reduced to two members: the singer and the captain's old dog. The ship strikes a rock and the old dog drowns, leaving the singer as the last of the Irish Rover. The song is a tribute to the enduring spirit of the Irish people and their legacy as intrepid sailors.
Line by Line Meaning
In the year of our Lord, eighteen hundred and six,
We embarked on our journey in the year 1806.
We set sail from the Coal Quay of Cork
We started our voyage from the Coal Quay docks in Cork.
We were sailing away with a cargo of bricks
We were carrying bricks on our ship.
For the grand City Hall in New York
The bricks were meant for building City Hall in New York.
We'd an elegant craft, it was rigged 'fore and aft
We had a beautiful ship with sails fore and aft.
And how the trade winds drove her
The wind filled our sails and pushed us forward.
She had twenty-three masts and she stood several blasts
Our ship had 23 masts and could withstand strong winds.
And they called her the Irish Rover
Our ship was known as the Irish Rover.
There was Barney Magee from the banks of the Lee
We had Barney Magee from the banks of the Lee on board.
There was Hogan from County Tyrone
Hogan from County Tyrone was also with us.
There was Johnny McGurk who was scared stiff of work
Johnny McGurk was not fond of working and was scared of it.
And a chap from Westmeath named Malone
A certain Malone from Westmeath was also part of our crew.
There was Slugger O'Toole who was drunk as a rule
Slugger O'Toole was known for being drunk.
And fighting Bill Tracy from Dover
Bill Tracy from Dover was a known fighter.
And your man Mick McCann, from the banks of the Bann
Mick McCann was our skipper and came from the Banks of Bann.
Was the skipper on the Irish Rover
Mick McCann was the skipper of our ship.
We had one million bags of the best Sligo rags
We were carrying a million bags of the best Sligo rags.
We had two million barrells of bone
We were also carrying two million barrels of bones.
We had three million bales of old nanny goats' tails
We had three million bales of old goat tails on our ship.
We had four million barrells of stone
Our ship was also carrying four million barrels of stones.
We had five million hogs and six million dogs
We had a huge number of five million hogs and six million dogs onboard.
And seven million barrells of porter
We had seven million barrels of porter on our ship.
We had eight million sides of old blind horses' hides
We were carrying eight million sides of old, blind horses' hides.
In the hold of the Irish Rover
All these goods were stored in the hold of our ship.
We had sailed seven years when the measles broke out
After sailing for seven years, measles broke out among us.
And our ship lost her way in a fog
Our ship veered off course due to the fog.
And the whole of the crew was reduced down to two
All the members except two were infected with measles.
'Twas myself and the captain's old dog
I was one of the two members left and the captain's old dog was the other.
Then the ship struck a rock, oh, Lord what a shock
Our ship hit a rock, and it was indeed shocking.
And nearly tumbled over
Our ship almost capsized.
Turned nine times around then the poor old dog was drowned
Our ship spun nine times, and the captain's old dog died.
I'm the last of the Irish Rover
Out of all the crew, I am the only one alive, and I am the last of the Irish Rover.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: TRADITIONAL, J BAIRD, PD TRADITIONAL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@MarkRobertCuthbert
There was Bobby McGee from the banks of the Leith.
There was Hogan from county Tyrone.
There was John D. McGirk, who was scared stiff of work,
And a chap from Westmeath named Malone.
There was Slugger O'Toole, who was drunk as a rule,
And Fighting Bill Tracy from Dover,
And a man, Mick McCann, from the banks of the Bann
Was the skipper of the Irish Rover.
@user-xl6rk9du1s
I somehow came across this song, it's amazing. It's so interesting to learn about different cultures through music while high. Have a nice day and good mood everyone.
Alan from North Ossetia.
@kylemccourt663
I own a Groverbuilt boat. She is a small downeaster style craft made in small numbers by a local legend. The builder is quite the legend locally as he went down in the Guinness Book for piloting the smallest craft (26 feet) ever across the Atlantic. So when I finally became old enough to purchase one of these legendary vessels, I felt it only fitting to name her "The Irish Grover".
@49312317
Timeless excellence
@l.salisbury1253
Best ever Irish musical unit: STIFF LITTLE FINGERS!!
@NumberNile
That's a damn shame... I remember spending nights at my grandparents' house and falling asleep to Tommy Makem and the Clancy Brothers every night...
@ilikpatoez
i still do that every once in a while my granfather and his wife will sit down and play his old clancy brothers records aaallll night
@jayandirene
And now, they're all gone. That's very sad. They were great.
@feelsman7837
There was Johnny McGurk who was scared stiff of work
And a chap from Westmeath named Malone
There was Slugger O'Toole who was drunk as a rule
And fighting Bill Tracy from Dover
@MarkRobertCuthbert
There was Bobby McGee from the banks of the Leith.
There was Hogan from county Tyrone.
There was John D. McGirk, who was scared stiff of work,
And a chap from Westmeath named Malone.
There was Slugger O'Toole, who was drunk as a rule,
And Fighting Bill Tracy from Dover,
And a man, Mick McCann, from the banks of the Bann
Was the skipper of the Irish Rover.
@abramtaylor1
Funny little song that points out one of life's hard facts-being Irish is often a drag. I know this from personal experience.