Irish folk singer, storyteller Tommy Makem dies

Irish folk singer, storyteller Tommy Makem dies
Last Updated: Thursday, August 2, 2007 | 3:26 PM ET
CBC Arts
Irish singer and songwriter Tommy Makem has died at his home in Dover, N.H.

The 74-year-old, who passed away on Wednesday, had been battling lung cancer, according to his family.

Tommy Makem, who played with the Clancy Brothers during the 1950s and 1960s, died of lung cancer on Aug. 1, 2007.
(Canadian Press) Makem hit the music world as part of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem in the late 1950s and 1960s.

"Tommy was a man of high integrity, honesty, and his courage really shone through towards the end. Our paths diverged, of course, many times, but our friendship never waned," Liam Clancy, his life-long music partner told RTE Radio in Ireland.

Clancy said Makem had a "knack of making an audience laugh and cry, holding them in the palm of his hand."

Makem had visited Armagh county, where he was born, only three weeks ago and also travelled to Belfast where he was presented with an honorary doctorate at the University of Ulster.

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Makem regaled the world with stories and songs of Irish culture using his banjo, tinwhistle and baritone voice.

He left The Clancy Brothers in 1969 to pursue a solo career but later joined Liam Clancy to become Makem and Clancy. In 1988, they parted ways again.

Makem was born and raised in Keady, County Armagh, in 1932. His mother, Sarah Makem, was herself a legendary folk singer and an ethnomusicologist. The songs Makem learned from his mother would provide the foundation for his musical career.

Friends with Pete Seeger and the Weavers
Makem moved to New York in the 1950s, appearing on television, in summer stock and in off-Broadway shows.

He became friends with Pete Seeger and the other members of the folk group the Weavers. He also made friends with Liam Clancy and teamed up with the Clancy Brothers (Patrick Clancy, Tom Clancy, Bobby Clancy), signing with Columbia Records.

In 1962, Makem played for then U.S. President John F. Kennedy, whose ancestors were Irish. He introduced a song about Irish immigrants in America:

"This song is about some people who came and got a rather black welcome,'' Makem said. "I think, all things considered, some of them didn't do too badly.''

Makem and the Clancy Brothers would appear on major TV programs such as The Ed Sullivan Show as well as headlining concerts at Carnegie Hall and London's Royal Albert Hall.

Some of Makem's best known songs include Four Green Fields, Gentle Annie and Red is the Rose.

Bob Dylan got to know Makem and the brothers and has credited them with inspiring him.

"What I was hearing pretty, regularly … were rebellion songs, and those really moved me," recalled Dylan in his memoir Chronicles Volume One. "The Clancy Brothers … and their buddy Tommy Makem sang them all the time."

Irish President Mary McAleese paid tribute on Thursday to the musician's enduring legacy.

"In life, Tommy brought happiness and joy to hundreds of thousands of fans the world over," she said. "Always the consummate musician, he was also a superb ambassador for the country, and one of whom we will always be proud."






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