Clancy Brothers' Liam - the last man standing

The final link to the fabulous Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem

Two recordings that came out recently for commercial distribution help mark the tremendous impact of those men and their music. One is a compilation CD issued by Columbia Legacy Records (Sony) entitled “In Person at Carnegie Hall.” The other is a DVD titled “Liam Clancy & Friends – Live at the Bitter End.”

At 73, Liam still is a captivating performer and storyteller with decades of marvelous stories to tell enhanced by his poetic and theatrical sensibilities.

One of the staples in his act is the wistful song “Those Were the Days, My Friend” which has a sad connotation that doesn’t square with the current wave of nostalgia brought about by these two recordings. 

With a touch of irony, it is great to have Liam Clancy, perhaps the most gifted of the voices in the troupe, alive and kicking and carrying the banner for the other lads as we revisit their work and a part of music history.

First and foremost is the release in March of the Clancy Brothers double CD recorded on a St. Patrick’s Day in 1963 at Carnegie Hall, New York’s most prestigious musical venue. 

Originally released as a 38-minute vinyl LP (long-playing records, remember those?), it remained in request in the Columbia/Song catalog for decades, spurring a recent decision to produce a double CD containing the entire two-hour concert to give the full flavor of the evening.  

Since Paddy, Tom and Liam Clancy (from Carrick-on-Suir, Co. Tipperary) along with Tommy Makem (Keadue, Co. Armagh) were all thespians drawn to the more lucrative music and club scene, stagecraft and presentation were a very important element of their act.  

This expanded edition on the Sony legacy label is a very important recording as their spontaneity and humor are very much to the fore amidst the 29 song selections gathered here. They are from the Irish, English and American folk canon, and if they didn’t become the definitive versions they inspired legions of other budding folk artists to follow in their footsteps.  

Even Bob Dylan, the most commercially successful folk singer of those times, drew inspiration from the Clancys as he frequented the same Greenwich Village haunts and taverns, like the historic White Horse Tavern on Hudson Street where late night drinking and singing bouts were the norm.

This collection is essential for all Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem fans who were swept along in the rising tide of Irish folk music on both sides of the Atlantic. 

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Nster.com