Andrew Kennedy Irvine (born 14 June 1942) is an Irish folk musician, singer-songwriter, and a founding member of Sweeney's Men,

Planxty Planxty were an Irish folk music band formed in January 1972, consisting initially of Christy Moore (vocals, acoustic guitar, bodhrán), Andy Irvine (vocals, mandolin, mandola, bouzouki, hurdy-gurdy, harmonica), Dónal Lunny (bouzouki, guit ...

, Patrick Street, Mozaik,

LAPD The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-large ...

and Usher's Island. He also featured in duos, with Dónal Lunny,

Paul Brady Paul Joseph Brady (born 19 May 1947) is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician from Strabane, Northern Ireland. His work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age. Initially popular for playing ...

, Mick Hanly,

Dick Gaughan Richard Peter Gaughan (born 17 May 1948) is a Scottish musician, singer and songwriter, particularly of folk and social protest songs. He is regarded as one of Scotland's leading singer-songwriters. Early years Gaughan was born in Glasgow's Ro ...

, Rens van der Zalm, and Luke Plumb. Irvine plays the mandolin,

mandola The mandola (US and Canada) or tenor mandola (Ireland and UK) is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola ...

bouzouki The bouzouki (, also ; el, μπουζούκι ; alt. pl. ''bouzoukia'', from Greek ), also spelled buzuki or buzuci, is a musical instrument popular in Greece. It is a member of the long-necked lute family, with a round body with a flat top and ...

, harmonica, and

hurdy-gurdy The hurdy-gurdy is a string instrument that produces sound by a hand-crank-turned, rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar to those of a vi ...

. He has been influential in folk music for over six decades, during which he recorded a large repertoire of songs and tunes he assembled from books, old recordings and rooted in the Irish,

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

, Scottish,

Eastern European Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...

, Australian and American old-time and folk traditions. As a child actor, Irvine honed his performing talent from an early age and learned the classical guitar. He switched to folk music after discovering

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspire ...

, also adopting the latter's other instruments: harmonica and

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of ...

. While extending Guthrie's

guitar picking Guitar picking is a group of hand and finger techniques a guitarist uses to set guitar strings in motion to produce audible notes. These techniques involve plucking, strumming, brushing, etc. Picking can be done with: * A pick (plectrum) held in ...

technique to the mandolin,''Andy Irvine – Celtic Roots... Dustbowl Inspiration'', by Joe Vanderford in ''Frets'' Vol. 7 No. 3 (Issue #73), March 1985. he further developed his playing of this instrument—and, later, of the

and the

—into a decorative, harmonic style, and embraced the

modes Mode ( la, modus meaning "manner, tune, measure, due measure, rhythm, melody") may refer to: Arts and entertainment * '' MO''D''E (magazine)'', a defunct U.S. women's fashion magazine * ''Mode'' magazine, a fictional fashion magazine which is ...

and

rhythms Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular recu ...

Bulgarian folk music The music of Bulgaria refers to all forms of music associated with the country of Bulgaria, including classical, folk, popular music, and other forms. Classical music, opera, and ballet are represented by composers Emanuil Manolov, Pancho Vlad ...

. Along with Johnny Moynihan and Dónal Lunny, Irvine is one of the pioneers who adapted the Greek

—with a new tuning—into an Irish instrument. He contributed to advancing the design of his instruments in co-operation with English

luthier A luthier ( ; AmE also ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. The word "luthier" is originally French and comes from the French word for lute. The term was originally used for makers of ...

Stefan Sobell,''Instruments''
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 26 July 2013 and he sometimes plays a hurdy-gurdy made for him in 1972 by Peter Abnett, another English luthier. Although touring mainly as a soloist, Irvine has also enjoyed great success in pursuing collaborations through many projects that have influenced contemporary folk music. He continues to tour and perform extensively in Ireland, Great Britain, Europe, North and South America, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 2 January 2014 In October 2018, he received the first Lifetime Achievement Award bestowed at

RTÉ Radio 1 RTÉ Radio 1 ( ga, RTÉ Raidió 1) is an Irish national radio station owned and operated by RTÉ and is the direct descendant of Dublin radio station 2RN, which began broadcasting on a regular basis on 1 January 1926. The total budget for th ...

's inaugural Folk Music Awards.

Early life and acting career

Andy Irvine was born in

St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, lying 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Traditionally the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends east to west from ...

, northwest London on 14 June 1942 to an Irish mother from

Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with ...

, County Antrim, and a Scottish father from

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...

. His mother had been a

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

actress who performed under the stage name of Felice Lascelles and Irvine would later say that "she may have given up the stage, but she never stopped acting!". At the age of three-and-a-half, Irvine started attending

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of " room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exte ...

, where he would later play

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

during the winter season,

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

during the spring season, and

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

during the summer season, all of which fostered his lifelong passion for team sports. As a child, Irvine was given opportunities to appear on stage, TV and in films.Andrew Irvine
"Filmography" page at the ''BFI ~ Film Forever'' website. Retrieved 6 May 2015Andrew Irvine
"Filmography" page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 3 June 2015 In the summer holidays of 1950, when he was eight years old, his first role was to play Jimmy in the film '' A Tale of Five Cities'' (released as ''A Tale of Five Women'' in the US).''A Tale of Five Cities''.
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 27 August 2013
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 29 July 2013 At thirteen, he starred as Nokie (short for

Pinocchio Pinocchio ( , ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the children's novel '' The Adventures of Pinocchio'' (1883) by Italian writer Carlo Collodi of Florence, Tuscany. Pinocchio was carved by a woodcarver named Geppetto in a Tuscan ...

) in the ITV children's series ''Round at the Redways''''Round at the Redways'', Episode: 1.4 (19 October 1955).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 14 December 2013''Round at the Redways'', Episode: 1.9 (23 November 1955).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 5 August 2016''Round at the Redways'' (8 February 1956).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 5 August 2016 and joined a school for child actors. He made his stage debut in the Grand Theatre in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...

and, at fourteen, received rave reviews for his performance as Morgan in the ''ITV Television Playhouse'' drama '' The Magpies'', adapted from a

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

short story.''The Magpies'' (7 February 1957).
Listed in ''Season 2 (1956–57)'' at the ITV Television Playhouse website. Retrieved 14 May 2015 The same year, he was Eric Brandt in ''Escape to Happiness'', for the ''

Armchair Theatre ''Armchair Theatre'' is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by ABC Weekend TV. Its successor Thames Television took over from mid-1968. The Canad ...

'' programme''Armchair Theatre''; Episode: ''Escape to Happiness'' (9 June 1957).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 5 August 2016 and also played

John Logie Baird John Logie Baird FRSE (; 13 August 188814 June 1946) was a Scottish inventor, electrical engineer, and innovator who demonstrated the world's first live working television system on 26 January 1926. He went on to invent the first publicly dem ...

as a boy in the film ''A Voice in Vision''.''A Voice in Vision''.
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 15 May 2015 In early 1958, Irvine featured as Archie Almond in five episodes of ''Run to Earth''.''Run to Earth''; Episode: ''Strange Neighbours'' (11 February 1958).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016''Run to Earth''; Episode: ''Aunt Alexa'' (18 February 1958).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016''Run to Earth''; Episode: ''Captain Gaunt's Secret'' (25 February 1958).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016''Run to Earth''; Episode: ''Discovery At Dunoon'' (4 March 1958)
IMDb. Retrieved August 2016.''Run to Earth''; Episode: ''Ninian McHarg'' (11 March 1958)
IMDb. Retrieved 8 August 2016. In June that year, he played Lord Heybrook in '' French Without Tears'' for the '' Saturday Playhouse'' TV series''Saturday Playhouse''; Episode 12: ''French Without Tears'' (7 June 1958)
IMDb. Retrieved 8 August 2016. and, soon after, was one of the 'Pygmies' in ''Brouhaha'', with

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...

as the Sultan. Irvine then played Raymond opposite

Laurence Harvey Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to South Africa at an early age, before later settling in th ...

in '' Room at the Top''''Room at the Top''.
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 27 August 2013
Page at the BFI (British Film Institute) website. Retrieved 4 May 2016 and, although his scene was cut from the final release, he still appears briefly in the film, handing a bottle of champagne to Harvey during a wedding scene. In late 1959, he featured as Lanky Graham in ''Ask for King Billy''''Ask for King Billy''; Episode 4 (24 November 1959).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016 and, in early 1960, he played a schoolboy in ''A Holiday Abroad'' for ''ITV Television Playhouse''.''ITV Television Playhouse''; Season 5, Episode 23: ''A Holiday Abroad'' (12 February 1960).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016. Later that year, at eighteen, Irvine performed as Dan in three episodes of ''Sheep's Clothing'',''Sheep's Clothing''; Episode 1.2 (25 September 1960).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016.''Sheep's Clothing''; Episode 1.3 (2 October 1960).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016.''Sheep's Clothing''; Episode 1.4 (9 October 1960).
Page at the IMDb (Internet Movie Database) website. Retrieved 8 August 2016. after which he was offered a two-year contract with the BBC's

Repertory company A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawing ...

('The Rep'),''The Radio Drama Company''.
Homepage at the BBC website. Retrieved 9 October 2013. where he befriended the poet

Louis MacNeice Frederick Louis MacNeice (12 September 1907 – 3 September 1963) was an Irish poet and playwright, and a member of the Auden Group, which also included W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender and Cecil Day-Lewis. MacNeice's body of work was widely ...

who worked there as a writer for over twenty years. As Irvine recalled much later: However, Irvine would give up acting in his early twenties, after moving to

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

at the end of his time with the 'Rep'.

Influences

Music

Irvine loved music from the earliest time he could remember. His mother had a stack of old, cracked 78s that he used to play on a wind-up gramophone. "They were mainly songs from long forgotten musical comedies but I wish I had them now." At thirteen, he studied classical guitar for two years, initially with

Julian Bream Julian Alexander Bream (15 July 193314 August 2020) was an English classical guitarist and lutenist. Regarded as one of the most distinguished classical guitarists of the 20th century, he played a significant role in improving the public perce ...

and later under one of Bream's pupils but switched to

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

after discovering

during the

Skiffle Skiffle is a genre of folk music with influences from American folk music, blues, country, bluegrass, and jazz, generally performed with a mixture of manufactured and homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a form in the United Stat ...

boom of the 1950s. Guthrie was to become an enduring influence on his music, on his choice of additional instruments (

and harmonica) and general outlook on life. In a 1985 interview, Irvine expanded on how, in the mid-1950s, he discovered Woody Guthrie through

Lonnie Donegan Anthony James Donegan (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002), known as Lonnie Donegan, was a British skiffle singer, songwriter and musician, referred to as the " King of Skiffle", who influenced 1960s British pop and rock musicians. Born in Scot ...

's recordings on the EPs ''Backstairs Session'' and ''Skiffle Session'': In May 1959, Irvine began frequenting the Ballads and Blues Club—started at the

Princess Louise Princess Louise may refer to: ;People: * Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, 1848–1939, the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom * Princess Louise, Princess Royal and Duchess of Fife, 1867–1931, the ...

pub in

High Holborn High Holborn ( ) is a street in Holborn and Farringdon Without, Central London, which forms a part of the A40 route from London to Fishguard. It starts in the west at the eastern end of St Giles High Street and runs past the Kingsway and S ...

Ewan MacColl James Henry Miller (25 January 1915 – 22 October 1989), better known by his stage name Ewan MacColl, was a folk singer-songwriter, folk song collector, labour activist and actor. Born in England to Scottish parents, he is known as one of the ...

in 1957 Page at the Dublin Review of Books website. Retrieved 16 June 2015.—which, by September 1959, had moved to 2,

Soho Square Soho Square is a garden square in Soho, London, hosting since 1954 a ''de facto'' public park let by the Soho Square Garden Committee to Westminster City Council. It was originally called King Square after Charles II, and a much weathered ...

under the sole leadership of Malcolm Nixon. American folk musicians who had been closely associated with Guthrie would perform there:

Ramblin' Jack Elliott Ramblin' Jack Elliott (born Elliot Charles Adnopoz; August 1, 1931) is an American folk singer and songwriter. Life and career Elliott was born in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, United States, the son of Florence (Rieger) and Abraham Adnopoz, a ...

Derroll Adams Derroll Adams (November 27, 1925 – February 6, 2000) was an American folk musician. Biography He was born Derroll Lewis Thompson in Portland, Oregon, United States. At 16, he served in the Army, but was discharged when his true age of 16 was ...

and Cisco Houston; Irvine befriended all three of them, particularly Elliott, who taught him how to play the harmonica in Guthrie's style: After locating Guthrie at Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital in

Morristown, New Jersey Morristown () is a town and the county seat of Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. She was the first person to call him "Andy", and thereafter remained a conduit between him and Guthrie.''Andy Irvine at 60''
By Susanne Kalweit, in ''FolkWorld''. Retrieved 28 December 2013. During 1959, Irvine and Elliott also recorded audio tapes to send Guthrie and, after recording one of Guthrie's songs, Elliott exclaimed: "Andy, you sound more like Woody than I do!", just as Guthrie had once said to Elliott: "Jack, you sound more like me than I do!". However, Irvine's dream to join Guthrie in the States eventually faded when his mother died in 1961. In 1991, Irvine wrote his tribute song to Woody Guthrie: "Never Tire of the Road", first released on the solo album '' Rude Awakening''.Sleeve notes from ''Andy Irvine – Rude Awakening'', Green Linnet GLCD 1114, 1991. He recorded it again for the album '' Rain on the Roof'', released in 1996, after including another verse plus the chorus from a song Guthrie recorded in March 1944: " You Fascists Are Bound to Lose". In a 2000 interview,''Way Out There'', by Colin Harper in ''Folk Roots'' No.208, October 2000. Irvine stated: "I never met Woody, but I corresponded with him in

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emergen ...

. ..The kind of values that Woody represented are one of my great passions."

Social justice

Irvine is a card-carrying member of the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines general ...

(the 'Wobblies'), with an avowed commitment to social justice. For example, by championing the life, social activism and energetic organising leadership of Mary Harris Jones ('Mother Jones') about whom he wrote a song, "The Spirit of Mother Jones", which he recorded and released on his 2010 album '' Abocurragh''.Andy Irvine: ''Abocurragh''.
Review by Robin Denselow in ''The Guardian'' (23 December 2010). Retrieved 27 July 2013 On 1 August 2012, Irvine performed in Shandon, County Cork, for the inaugural ''Mother Jones Festival'' which celebrated the 175th Anniversary of the birth of Mary Harris; he performed at the Festival again on 1 August 2013.''Cork City declares August 1st as Mother Jones Day''.
'Announcement' Page at the Cork Mother Jones Festival website (24 April 2013). Retrieved 27 July 2013 Like other artists contracted to perform at Féile Iorrais (a community festival in Erris) in August 2007, Irvine was disgusted to learn that

Royal Dutch Shell Shell plc is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and secondary listings on Euronext Amsterdam and the New ...

were partly sponsoring the events. Shell's plans for the Corrib gas project have been the subject of

controversy Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin ''controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an opposite d ...

in County Mayo. Irvine pledged to donate part of his fee to the Shell to Sea campaign."Andy Irvine has pledged to donate some of his fee to Shell to Sea, a massive gesture for which we are hugely grateful.
''Changed perspectives''
By Fearbolg – S2S, in ''indymedia Ireland'', 31 July 2007, at 22:45. Retrieved 28 December 2013.

Music career

1960s: Dublin, Sweeney's Men, Eastern Europe

Move to Dublin and transition from acting to folk music

In 1962, when his two-year contract with the BBC's 'Rep' ended, Irvine moved to Dublin and continued earning a living as an actor for a while, playing at

The Olympia ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

, The Gaiety, The Gate and The Eblana. He also performed at the Pike Theatre, where he played the role of Jerry as one of only two actors in

Edward Albee Edward Franklin Albee III ( ; March 12, 1928 – September 16, 2016) was an American playwright known for works such as '' The Zoo Story'' (1958), '' The Sandbox'' (1959), '' Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' (1962), '' A Delicate Balance'' (196 ...

's '' The Zoo Story'', and where he also appeared as Tethra (the Irish god of war) in ''

Moytura ''Cath Maige Tuired'' (modern spelling: ''Cath Maighe Tuireadh''; ) is the name of two saga texts of the Mythological Cycle of Irish mythology. It refers to two separate battles in Connacht: the first in the territory of Conmhaícne Cúile Tu ...

'' by Pádraic Colum, during the Dublin Theatre Festival in 1963.''Moytura'', by Padraic Colum.
Review at the Dublin Theatre Festival Archives (24 September – 6 October), published at the Dublin Theatre Festival website. Retrieved 22 June 2015. In late 1963, he had a part in a few episodes of ''Down at Flannery's'',''Down at Flannery's''.
Page at the BFI (British Film Institute) website. Retrieved 12 August 2016. a forerunner of the popular

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the national broadcaster of Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, whil ...

soap''

Tolka Row ''Tolka Row'' was an Irish drama serial set in a fictional housing estate on the northside of Dublin. Based on Maura Laverty's play of the same name, ''Tolka Row'' was first broadcast on 3 January 1964 and aired weekly for five series until it e ...

'' in which he appeared for five episodes in the role of Jim "Beardie" Toomey, the boyfriend of Laurie Morton's character, Peggy Kinnear. Retrieved on 1 June 2015. One of his last acting performances was at the Olympia Theatre on 28 September 1964 as Sir Peregrine in ''Sir Buccaneer'', a musical by G.P. Gallivan.''Sir Buccaneer''.
Page in ''Playography Ireland'' database at the Irish Theatre Institute website. Retrieved 3 June 2015 However, he very quickly noticed that a burgeoning folk scene was emerging, centred around the

Baggot Street Baggot Street () is a street in Dublin, Ireland. Location The street runs from Merrion Row (near St. Stephen's Green) to the northwestern end of Pembroke Road. It crosses the Grand Canal near Haddington Road. It is divided into two sections: ...

–Merrion quarter of Dublin's city centre. "As soon as I found my feet there, I thought, 'That's it, goodbye acting!. After discovering Irish music through

Séamus Ennis Séamus Ennis ( ga, Séamas Mac Aonghusa; 5 May 1919 – 5 October 1982) was an Irish musician, singer and Irish music collector. He was most noted for his uilleann pipe playing and was partly responsible for the revival of the instrument duri ...

on Peter Kennedy's BBC programme ''As I Roved Out'' and through

Ciarán Mac Mathúna Ciarán Mac Mathúna (26 November 1925 – 11 December 2009) was an Irish broadcaster and music collector. He was a recognised authority on Irish traditional music and lectured extensively on the subject. He travelled around Ireland, England, Sc ...

on Raidió Éireann, Irvine studiously spent many hours at the

National Library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, or significant wo ...

, scouring old songbooks like the

Child Ballads The Child Ballads are 305 traditional ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, anthologized by Francis James Child during the second half of the 19th century. Their lyrics and Child's studies of them were published as '' ...

and Sam Henry's '' Songs of the People'', as well as A.L. Lloyd's ''Penguin Book of English Folk Songs''. He also drew inspiration from Ewan MacColl, notably the songs he wrote for his

radio-ballad The radio ballad is an audio documentary format created by Ewan MacColl, Peggy Seeger, and Charles Parker in 1958. It combines four elements of sound: songs, instrumental music, sound effects, and, most importantly, the recorded voices of those wh ...

s. Gravitating around Paddy and Maureen

O'Donoghue's Pub O’Donoghue’s Pub (also known as O'Donoghue's Bar) is a historically significant drinking establishment located at 15 Merrion Row, Dublin 2, Ireland—near St. Stephen's Green on Dublin’s south side. Built in 1789 as a grocery store, ...

,''Andy Irvine and Friends''.
Review (unsigned) of a performance by LAPD, published at the Culture Northern Ireland website. Retrieved 24 July 2013 Irvine met like-minded people such as Ronnie Drew, Luke Kelly and

Barney McKenna Bernard Noël "Banjo Barney" McKenna (16 December 1939 – 5 April 2012) was an Irish musician and a founding member of The Dubliners. He played the tenor banjo, violin, mandolin, and melodeon. He was most renowned as a banjo player. Biograph ...

, who would later form

The Dubliners The Dubliners were an Irish folk band founded in Dublin in 1962 as The Ronnie Drew Ballad Group, named after its founding member; they subsequently renamed themselves The Dubliners. The line-up saw many changes in personnel over their fifty-yea ...

. Decades later, he recorded "O'Donoghue's"—released on the album ''

Changing Trains ''Changing Trains'Mozaik – Changing Trains'', Compass Records 744682, 2007. is the first studio album recorded by Mozaik in Budapest during November 2005, and for which they had rehearsed new material a few months earlier, in January and Ap ...

'' (2004)—a song of eleven verses in which he vividly recalls these happy times, naming many of the people who were part of his transition from actor to folk musician.

Sweeney's Men – ''Sweeney's Men''

One of these people was Johnny Moynihan, with whom he created a musical partnership which turned into Sweeney's Men in the summer of 1966, after the addition of 'Galway Joe' Dolan.''Sweeney's Men''.
Online article by Colin Harper, 2001. Retrieved 24 July 2013 Retrieved on 15 December 2013. To quote Colin Irwin: "They merged the familiar American folk style so popular in the early sixties with a distinctively home-grown Irish flavour; it was not Irish music but it was real and exciting, it had verve, imagination and style." A distinctive aspect of the Sweeney's Men sound was Moynihan's introduction of the

—originally a Greek instrument—into Irish music, albeit with a different tuning: GDAD' (one octave lower than the open-tuned mandolin), instead of the modern Greek tuning of CFAD'. In 1996, Irvine wrote: While in the process of adopting the itinerant lifestyle of a musician, Irvine developed a taste for travel, initially within Ireland. The first time he witnessed Willie Clancy playing his

uilleann pipes The uilleann pipes ( or , ) are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Earlier known in English as "union pipes", their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the elbow"), from thei ...

was at a fleadh in Miltown Malbay in the summer of 1963, and he followed the festival trail in Ireland during the summers of 1964, 1965 and 1966. Irvine also returned regularly to London for short stays of a few weeks or months, and ventured further afield across Europe, hitch-hiking to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

, Vienna and Rome in the autumn of 1965. In early 1966, he was playing the clubs in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

with Éamonn O'Doherty.''Biography'' – Chapter 3.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 2 July 2015 In June 1966, Irvine and Dolan played five nights a week as a duo at the Enda Hotel in

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

and Moynihan would join them at weekends, since he was still working as a draughtsman in

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who buil ...

. It was at this time that Dolan suggested the band's name, after reading

Flann O'Brien Brian O'Nolan ( ga, Brian Ó Nualláin; 5 October 1911 – 1 April 1966), better known by his pen name Flann O'Brien, was an Irish civil service official, novelist, playwright and satirist, who is now considered a major figure in twentieth c ...

's comic novel ''

At Swim-Two-Birds ''At Swim-Two-Birds'' is a 1939 novel by Irish writer Brian O'Nolan, writing under the pseudonym Flann O'Brien. It is widely considered to be O'Brien's masterpiece, and one of the most sophisticated examples of metafiction. The novel's title ...

'', which depicts the mad, anti-religious, tree-leaping pagan King Sweeney of Antrim. In a 2005 interview, Irvine added: The trio recorded their first single "Old Maid in the Garrett"/"

The Derby Ram "The Derby Ram" or "As I was Going to Derby" is a traditional tall tale English folk song ( Roudbr>126 that tells the story of a ram of gargantuan proportions and the difficulties involved in butchering, tanning, and otherwise processing its c ...

" for

Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherho ...

Eamonn Andrews Studios Eamonn Andrews Studios was founded by broadcaster Eamonn Andrews, famous for being the presenter with the big red book of '' This Is Your Life,'' a British television programme. In the 1960s, the launch of television in Ireland led him to become the ...

in the spring of 1967. The week the single was in the Irish charts, Dolan departed for

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

and the

Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 ...

"but it took him a year to get down there", and was replaced by

Terry Woods Terence Woods (born 4 December 1947 in Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish folk musician, songwriter/singer and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his membership in such folk and folk- rock groups as The Pogues, Steeleye Span, Sweeney's Men, ...

– later of

Steeleye Span Steeleye Span are a British folk rock band formed in 1969 in England by Fairport Convention bass player Ashley Hutchings and established London folk club duo Tim Hart and Maddy Prior. The band were part of the 1970s British folk revival, and we ...

and

The Pogues The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse" ...

. In early 1968, the new line-up recorded the eponymous album, '' Sweeney's Men'',''Sweeney's Men'' LP, Transatlantic Records Ltd, TRA SAM 37, 1968. produced by Bill Leader at Livingston Studios, Barnet. In addition to playing either guitar, mandolin or harmonica on most tracks,Sleeve notes from ''Sweeney's Men'' LP, Transatlantic Records Ltd, TRA SAM 37, 1968. Irvine contributed four songs: "Sally Brown", " Willy O' Winsbury", " Dance to Your Daddy", and "

Reynard The Fox Reynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, a ...

". He also played Moynihan's bouzouki—for the first time on a recording—on the track "Johnston". Irvine wrote his first song, "West Coast of Clare", in the late summer of 1968, around the time Sweeney's Men were playing one of their last shows in Quilty, County Clare. "It was actually written with a Danish girl called Birte in mind, but ..it very quickly became a memory of great times in Clare. I started the song in County Clare and finished it in

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

, in August or September 1968." Irvine left Sweeney's Men after a final performance at

Liberty Hall Liberty Hall ( ga, Halla na Saoirse), in Dublin, Ireland, is the headquarters of the Services, Industrial, Professional, and Technical Union (SIPTU). Designed by Desmond Rea O'Kelly, it was completed in 1965. It was for a time the tallest ...

in Dublin, where he played the first half of the set with Moynihan and Woods before making way for his replacement, Henry McCullough, who played the second half.

Discovering Eastern Europe and Bulgarian folk music

In the late summer of 1968, Irvine and his first wife Muriel headed off to Eastern Europe and the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

. He later wrote several songs about his experiences there: *"Time Will Cure Me", which he recorded in 1973 with Planxty on the album '' The Well Below the Valley'';''Planxty – The Well Below The Valley'', Polydor 2383 232, 1973. *" Băneasă's Green Glade", which he recorded in 1974 with Planxty on the album ''

Cold Blow and the Rainy Night ''Cold Blow and the Rainy Night'' is the third album by the Irish folk group Planxty. It was recorded in Sarm Studios, Whitechapel, London during August 1974 and released the same year. It takes its title from the third song on the album, "Cold ...

'';''Planxty – Cold Blow and the Rainy Night'', Polydor 2442 130, 1974. *"Autumn Gold", which he recorded in 1976 with Paul Brady on their duo album, '' Andy Irvine/Paul Brady'' and *"Rainy Sundays", which he recorded in 1980 on his debut solo album, '' Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams''.''Andy Irvine – Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams'' LP, Tara Records TARA 3002, 1980. During a series of hitch-hiking journeys across

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

and

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

, Irvine discovered the region's

styles and was particularly attracted to the Bulgarian tradition. In a 1992 interview, he related the moment he first heard Bulgarian folk music: This lasting fascination with Bulgarian folk music would inform several of his later projects—first with Planxty, then in the recording of his first solo album (1980) and of the album '' East Wind'' (1992), and also with the creation of two multicultural, similarly named bands:

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

(1984–85) and Mozaik (2002–present day). Page at the thistleradio.com website. Retrieved 20 November 2014. In turn, Irvine's integration of characteristic elements of Bulgarian folk music into his playing, such as asymmetric rhythms, would also have a profound influence on the sound of contemporary Irish music, including—via Bill Whelan—the original '' Riverdance'' score.''Heading East'', by Colin Irwin in ''Folk Roots'' No.153, March 1996. He also went to

Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

, a Greek-Macedonian town near the Bulgarian border, to buy a bouzouki: While in Ljubljana, he met Rens van der Zalm,Rens van der Zalm.
Biography at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 3 April 2015. a young, classically trained violinist from the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

who also played guitar, mandolin, piano, accordion and tin whistle, and who was one of the founders of the Dutch folk group Fungus. They would later join forces in several of Irvine's projects.''Transnational...'', by Geoff Wallis in ''Folk Roots'' No.295/296, Jan/Feb 2008. When he returned to Dublin in the autumn of 1969, Sweeney's Men—now reduced to Moynihan and Woods—was breaking up and Irvine played a final gig with them at

Nottingham Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

in October or November 1969.

1970s: Duo with Dónal Lunny, ''Prosperous'', Planxty, duos with Paul Brady and Mick Hanly

Duo with Dónal Lunny – "The Blacksmith"

After the demise of Sweeney's Men, a new Irish-English folk super-group was almost formed in 1970, with Irvine, Moynihan, Woods and his wife Gay, plus ex-

Fairport Convention Fairport Convention are an English folk rock band, formed in 1967 by guitarists Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol, bassist Ashley Hutchings and drummer Shaun Frater (with Frater replaced by Martin Lamble after their first gig.) They started o ...

Ashley Hutchings Ashley Stephen Hutchings, MBE, sometimes known in early years by his nickname, "Tyger" Hutchings (born 26 January 1945) is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founding member of t ...

joining on bass guitar, but this never happened. For a while, Irvine performed regularly at Slattery's Pub on Capel Street. Then, he met Dónal Lunny, with whom he formed a duo after an initial gig at a party for the Irish-Soviet Union Friendship conference organised by Seán Mac Réamoinn: Says Leagues O'Toole: "This partnership also furthered the presence of the bouzouki in Irish music. Just as Johnny Moynihan had introduced the instrument to Andy Irvine, he in turn passed it on to Dónal Lunny". As Lunny himself recalled: In a 2015 interview, Irvine added his recollection of that event: They also created their own club night, downstairs at Slattery's Pub, which they called 'The Mug's Gig'. This featured Irvine and Lunny, and guest performers such as Ronnie Drew,

Mellow Candle Mellow Candle were a progressive folk rock band. Principally Irish, the members were also young, Clodagh Simonds being only 15 and Alison Bools (later O'Donnell) and Maria White 16, and still at school, at the time of their first single, "Feel ...

, and the group Supply, Demand & Curve.

Clodagh Simonds Clodagh Simonds ( ; born 16 May 1953) is an Irish musician, songwriter and singer. She was born in Banbridge, County Down, Northern Ireland and raised and educated in Killiney, County Dublin. Biography At the age of eleven, she formed her fi ...

, who co-founded Mellow Candle with Alison O'Donnell in 1963, recalls: By that time, Irvine had put together his own version of "

The Blacksmith ''The Blacksmith'' is a 1922 American short comedy film co-written, co-directed by and featuring Buster Keaton. Buster plays an assistant blacksmith to the big worker played by Joe Roberts, with predictable results. Cast * Buster Keaton as ...

", followed by a self-penned

coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

—in the Bulgarian rhythm of —which would later be given the title of "Blacksmithereens" by Christy Moore, at a Planxty concert in 1973.Sleeve notes from ''Andy Irvine 70th Birthday Concert at Vicar St 2012'', Andy Irvine AK-5, 2014.

Christy Moore – ''Prosperous''

Before too long, Irvine and Lunny participated in a project that would lead to their big break. Moore, who had moved to England during the National Bank Strike of 1966, had become an established musician in the English folk music scene and even recorded his first album (''

Paddy on the Road ''Paddy on the Road'' is the debut album by Irish folk musician Christy Moore, released in 1969. The album was produced and co-written by Dominic Behan. Steve Benbow organised the backing musicians and was responsible for the arrangements and c ...

'') there, in 1969, at the Sound Techniques studio in Chelsea. After that, he decided to record his second album in Ireland and his guest musicians included Irvine, Lunny, and

uilleann pipe The uilleann pipes ( or , ) are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Earlier known in English as "union pipes", their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the elbow"), from their ...

r Liam O'Flynn. The album, '' Prosperous'', was recorded by Bill Leader who had brought his mobile recording unit (a

Revox ReVox (on-logo styling REVOX) is a brand name, registered by Studer on 27 March 1951 for Swiss audio equipment. History The first Studer-designed tape recorders were branded Dynavox. After the first production series of Dynavox recorders, a new ...

tape machine and two microphones) to Ireland in the summer of 1971. Rehearsals took place at Irvine's flat in Dublin and the recordings were made in Prosperous, County Kildare, down in the cellar of Downings House, owned by Moore's sister and brother-in-law, Anne and Davoc Rynne. In his annotated book of songs, first published in 2000, Moore recalls: In the words of Colin Irwin: This was released as an album by Moore, but the four musicians soon thereafter formed Planxty in January 1972, to be managed by Des Kelly.

Planxty

After honing their live set at Slattery's, they played two concerts, afternoon and evening, at Newbridge College on Thursday, 16 March 1972.

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter, and record producer. He developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelic rock and world mus ...

was in the audience and invited Planxty to open for him on his six-date Irish tour the following week, during which their first major performance—at the Hangar in

—was a huge success. Neither the audience nor the band knew what to expect, and both were pleasantly surprised. Irvine, unable to see the audience through the glare of the stage lights, was worried that the crowd might be on the verge of rioting. It took him several minutes to realise that what he was hearing was the expression of their enthusiastic response to the band's music. On 21 April 1972, Planxty embarked on their first tour of England, which had been booked previously by Moore, and played small folk clubs in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ...

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough ha ...

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and is ...

, Newcastle,

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

and London, to great acclaim, returning to Ireland in May. The group would go on to sign a six-record contract and to tour extensively throughout Europe. They played mostly traditional songs and tunes, but several were Irvine compositions, making him the lone composer of the band. Instrumentally the group was notable for the intricate bouzouki and mandolin

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tra ...

of Lunny and Irvine, along with O'Flynn's exceptional pipering; Irvine and Moore (who played guitar) were the principal vocalists. Very quickly, Lunny would also develop into their own in-house producer, arranger and musical director: "It very rapidly established itself that the music demanded to be treated on its own terms. It influenced our arrangements. ..I think it was unfamiliar to people to hear traditional music with a chassis under it and it still sounds like traditional music." Irvine contributed four songs to their first album, ''

'', recorded at the Command Studios in London during early September 1972 and released in early 1973:''Planxty'', Polydor 2383 186, 1973. "

Arthur McBride "Arthur McBride" (also called "The Recruiting Sergeant" or "Arthur McBride and the Sergeant") is a folk song (Roud 2355) probably of Irish origin, also found in England, Scotland, Australia, and North America. Describing a violent altercation wit ...

",Sleeve notes from ''Planxty'', Polydor 2383 186, 1973. "West Coast of Clare", "

The Jolly Beggar The Jolly Beggar, also known as The Gaberlunzieman, is Child ballad 279. The song's chorus inspired lines in Lord Byron's poem " So, we'll go no more a roving". Synopsis A beggar comes over the hills one day, and knocks on the door of a local far ...

", and "The Blacksmith". Their second album, '' The Well Below The Valley'' was recorded at Escape Studios in Kent, England, from 18 June 1973 until the end of the month, and released the same year. It features three songs by Irvine: "Pat Reilly",Sleeve notes from ''Planxty – The Well Below The Valley'', Polydor 2383 232, 1973. "As I Roved Out", and "Time Will Cure Me". After the completion of this album, Planxty embarked on their first tour of Germany, where the group had become very popular. They also toured extensively in Ireland and were making more frequent trips abroad to festivals in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

and in England, at the

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

Folk Festival and the

Cambridge Folk Festival The Cambridge Folk Festival is an annual music festival, established in 1965, held on the site of Cherry Hinton Hall in Cherry Hinton, one of the villages subsumed by the city of Cambridge, England. The festival is known for its eclectic mix o ...

. At the start of September 1973, Lunny resigned after playing his last gig with the band at the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh F ...

. He was replaced by Johnny Moynihan. Rehearsals for Planxty's third album, ''

'', began in the summer of 1974 at Moynihan's family summer home in Rush, on the north coast of

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

. At Irvine's behest, Lunny was co-opted back into the band to arrange the selected material and to play on the album, which was recorded in Sarm Studios,

Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...

, London during August 1974 and released the same year. It includes four pieces by Irvine: " Johnny Cope",Sleeve notes from ''Planxty – Cold Blow and the Rainy Night'', Polydor 2442 130, 1974. "Băneasă's Green Glade", "Mominsko Horo", and "The Green Fields of Canada". After the completion of this third album, Moore resigned and was replaced by

Strabane Strabane ( ; ) is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Strabane had a population of 13,172 at the 2011 Census. It lies on the east bank of the River Foyle. It is roughly midway from Omagh, Derry and Letterkenny. The River Foyle mark ...

native

. Retrieved on 11 October 2013. The band's new line-up (Irvine, O'Flynn, Moynihan, and Brady) toured extensively but released no recordings, breaking up after playing their final show in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

on 5 December 1975.

Duo with Paul Brady – ''Andy Irvine/Paul Brady''

Irvine continued to tour with Brady, including a series of concerts in the USA in 1977 (Irvine's first ever visit there) highlighted by a very successful gig at the

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

in New York.''Biography'' – Chapter 5.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 30 July 2013 Irvine was also invited by

Alec Finn Alexander J. Phinn (4 June 1944 – 16 November 2018), known professionally as Alec Finn, was a British-born traditional musician who is famous for his unique style of accompaniment on the bouzouki. He was best known for founding De Dannan in 197 ...

to join De Dannan after Dolores Keane had left, but he soon had to relinquish this new venture because of scheduling conflicts. Nonetheless, Irvine performed with De Dannan at 'The 3rd Irish Folk Festival' in Germany on 30 April 1976,Sleeve notes from ''The 3rd Irish Folk Festival in Concert'', InterCord INT 181.008, 1976. playing "Martinmas Time/Danny O'Brien's Hornpipe", "Maíre Rua/Hardiman The Fiddler", "The Emigrant's Farewell", "The Boys of Ballysodare" and "The Plains of Kildare".''The 3rd Irish Folk Festival in Concert'', InterCord INT 181.008, 1976. In August 1976, Irvine and Brady recorded an album together at the

Rockfield Studios Rockfield Studios is a residential recording studio located in the Wye Valley just outside the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. It was originally founded in 1963 by brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward. Facilities Rockfield is a two- ...

, '' Andy Irvine/Paul Brady'', produced by Lunny who also plays on most tracks, and with Kevin Burke on fiddle; it was released in December 1976 by Mulligan Music Ltd. This album included "Autumn Gold", on which Irvine commented: "Written in Ljubljana in 1968, while sitting in a sunny park, stood up on a date. Waiting, as ever, for Vida." It is the final song of a quartet written during his sojourn in Eastern Europe during 1968–69, after spending several months in the Slovenian capital.Sleeve notes from ''Andy Irvine/Paul Brady'' LP, Mulligan LUN 008, 1976. The 40th anniversary of the album's release was celebrated by a tour of Ireland scheduled for May 2017, featuring the original personnel: Irvine, Brady, Lunny and Burke. The tour visited:

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

, Dublin, Derry,

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2 ...

and

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

. During October 2018, the anniversary tour was repeated with one-night concerts in Dublin, Cork, London and

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

Duo with Mick Hanly – ''As I Went Over Blackwater''

Irvine also toured extensively in Europe with Mick Hanly, including at 'The 4th Irish Folk Festival' in Germany on 30 April 1977.Sleeve notes from ''The 4th Irish Folk Festival on the Road'', InterCord INT 180.038, 1977. They started their set with Irvine performing a full version of "Johnny Cope": first the song, followed by the 6-part hornpipe of the same name, which Irvine played complete on bouzouki. Hanly then sang "A Kiss in the Morning Early". Irvine followed with "Bonny Woodhall", accompanying himself on Fylde 'Octavius' bouzouki (with the bottom two courses strung in

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

). This recording of "Bonny Woodhall" is Irvine's interpretation of "Bonny Woodha (H476 in Sam Henry's ''Songs of the People'') and would later appear as a bonus track on the CD version of ''Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams''.''Andy Irvine – Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams'' CD, Wundertüte TÜT 72.141, 1989. Their set ends with Hanly singing "John Barleycorn" and "The Verdant Braes of Skreen". The following year, Irvine and Hanly were joined on stage by Liam O'Flynn at 'The 5th Irish Folk Festival' in Germany on 28 April 1978,Sleeve notes from ''The 5th Irish Folk Festival'', InterCord INT 180.046, 1978. playing "I Buried My Wife And Danced on Top of Her", a jig learnt from uilleann piper Willie Clancy; "Molly Bawn", sung by Hanly (with Irvine on hurdy-gurdy first, then on bouzouki); "Brian O'Lynn/Sean Bun"; "I Courted A Wee Girl"; "The Longford Weaver" sung by Irvine accompanying himself on hurdy-gurdy and harmonica; and "Masters Return/Kittie's Wedding". Two years later, in 1980, Hanly released his second solo album ''As I Went Over Blackwater'',''Mick Hanly – As I Went Over Blackwater'', Mulligan LUN 040, 1980. featuring Irvine on four tracks: "Jack Haggerty" (harmonicas), " The Guerriere and The Constitution" (harmony vocals and hurdy-gurdy), "Every Circumstance" (mandolin) and "Miss Bailey/Jessica's Polka" (harmonica).Sleeve notes from ''Mick Hanly – As I Went Over Blackwater'', Mulligan LUN 040, 1980.

''The Gathering''

Sometime during 1977, Irvine also recorded ''The Gathering'',''The Gathering'', Greenhays Recordings GR 705, 1981. Marketed by Flying Fish Inc., Chicago, Ill. along with Paul Brady, Dónal Lunny, Matt Molloy,

Tommy Potts Tommy Potts (1912–1988) was an Irish fiddle player and composer from Dublin who gained iconic status in traditional Irish music circles for his virtuoso musicianship. Potts' given name is also frequently spelled Tommie. His music has influenc ...

Tríona Ní Dhomhnaill Tríona Ní Dhomhnaill is an Irish traditional singer, keyboard player, and composer, considered one of the most influential female vocalists in the history of Irish music. She is famed for her work with traditional Irish groups such as Skara ...

and uilleann piper Peter Browne. This album was funded by Diane Meek, a Guggenheim heiress who had used the pseudonym "Hamilton" as her maiden name to disguise her wealth. She was the owner of Tradition Records and a patron of traditional music in Dublin at the time. She had lent Mulligan Records money in the early days and had also formed a small record label for traditional music called ''Srutháin'' stream on which she had intended to release ''The Gathering''. However, the album was finally released in 1981 on Greenhays, a label connected with

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by Ali ...

. Irvine contributed two songs to the album: "There's Sure To Be A Row",Sleeve notes from ''The Gathering'', Greenhays Recordings GR 705, 1981. and "The Mall of Lismore". He also plays mandolin and harmonica on Paul Brady's cover of "Heather on the Moor", a song learned from

Eddie Butcher Eddie Butcher (8 May 1900 – 8 September 1980) was an Irish traditional singer, folk-song collector and songwriter from Magilligan, County Londonderry. He had an extensive repertoire of songs that he performed in a sturdy, earthy style. I ...

Paul Brady – ''Welcome Here Kind Stranger''

On Friday 21 July 1978, Brady launched his album ''

Welcome Here Kind Stranger ''Welcome Here Kind Stranger'' is a 1978 album by Paul Brady. After leaving The Johnstons, Brady toured with Planxty until they disbanded in 1975, and recorded a duo album with Andy Irvine in 1976. ''Welcome Here Kind Stranger'' ''Welcome Here ...

''''Paul Brady – Welcome Here Kind Stranger'', Mulligan LUN 024, 1978. with a concert in the auditorium of

in Dublin. He decided to record the concert on his own domestic

Akai Akai ( ja, 赤井, ) is a Hong Kong manufacturer of consumer electronics. It was founded as Akai Electric Company Ltd in Tokyo, Japan, in 1946. Grande Holdings in Hong Kong purchased the Akai brand, and now distributes various electronic produ ...

reel-to-reel tape machine with Brian Masterson in attendance, who had engineered the album and was doing the sound that night.Sleeve notes from ''Paul Brady – The Missing Liberty Tapes'', Abirgreen/Compass Records, 2002. Performing with him were: Lunny, O'Flynn,

Paddy Glackin Paddy Glackin (born 5 August 1954) is an Irish fiddler and founding member of the Bothy Band. He is considered one of Ireland's leading traditional fiddle players. Biography Paddy Glackin was born on 5 August 1954 in Clontarf, Dublin. His fath ...

, Matt Molloy, Noel Hill and Irvine, who played on nine of the ten numbers performed that night: "Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore" (harmonica, mandolin); "I Am A Youth That's Inclined To Ramble" (hurdy-gurdy); "The Creel/Out The Door And Over The Wall" (mandolin, bouzouki); "The Jolly Soldier/The Blarney Pilgrim" (harmonica, bouzouki); "Mary And The Soldier" (mandolin, harmonica); "Jackson And Jane" (hurdy-gurdy); "Don't Come Again" (mandolin); "The Lakes Of Pontchartrain" (bouzouki); "The Crooked Road To Dublin" (

Portuguese guitar The Portuguese guitar or Portuguese guitarra ( pt, guitarra portuguesa, ) is a plucked string instrument with twelve steel strings, strung in six courses of two strings. It is one of the few musical instruments that still uses watch-key or Presto ...

ra with 8 tuners removed re-strung with 4 courses and tuned like a mandola). After the concert, Brady took the tapes home and only found them again in November 2000, still in good enough condition to be transferred onto CD and released, in 2002, under the title '' The Missing Liberty Tapes''.

Planxty – ''After The Break''

By the autumn of 1978, Moore was ready to re-form the original Planxty line-up, complete with Lunny, who brought along flutist Matt Molloy from

The Bothy Band The Bothy Band were an Irish traditional band active during the mid 1970s. They quickly gained a reputation as one of the most influential bands playing Irish traditional music. Their enthusiasm and musical virtuosity had a significant influen ...

, and rehearsals began on Tuesday, 19 September 1978. Their new manager, Kevin Flynn, then organised a mammoth European tour for the following year, from 15 April to 11 June 1979, during which the band played forty-seven concerts in fifty-eight days, in the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, France and Ireland. After the tour, the band went to

Windmill Lane Studios Windmill Lane Recording Studios (earlier Windmill Lane Studios) is a recording studio in Dublin, Ireland. It was originally opened in 1978 by Brian Masterson and James Morris in premises at 22 Windmill Lane, and it subsequently relocated to its cu ...

from 18 to 30 June 1979 to record their fourth album: '' After The Break'',''Planxty – After The Break'' LP, Tara Records, TARA 3001, 1979. released the same year. Irvine contributed three pieces to the album: "You Rambling Boys of Pleasure",Sleeve notes from ''Planxty – After The Break'' LP, Tara Records, TARA 3001, 1979. "The Rambling Siúler", and "Smeceno Horo". After recording the album, Planxty resumed touring more sporadically, playing The National in Kilburn, a handful of dates in Belgium and France, and also headlining the third

Ballisodare Ballysadare (), locally also Ballisodare, is a town in County Sligo, Ireland. It is about 7 kilometres (4 miles) south of Sligo town. The town developed on an important crossing of the Owenmore River. History Toponymy The Ox Mountains () are ...

Festival. Molloy left Planxty to join

The Chieftains The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous wi ...

in the autumn of 1979.''Biography'' – Chapter 6.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 7 March 2015

1980s: Solo album, Planxty, ''Parallel Lines'', Mosaic, Patrick Street

''Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams''

At the end of 1979, Irvine recorded his first solo album at

in Dublin: '' Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams'', produced by Dónal Lunny and released on Tara Records in 1980. Personnel included Irvine, Lunny, O'Flynn, Brady (guitar and piano), Frankie Gavin (fiddle), Rick Epping (accordion, harmonica, jaw harp), John Wadham (bongo and congas), Paul Barrett (Fender Rhodes and Polymoog), Keith Donald (soprano sax) and Lucienne Purcell (vocals). This first solo album showcased songs and tunes from two of his main influences: side one (on the vinyl LP) featured pieces inspired by Irish traditional music, and side two choices concentrated on Balkan music. The original, vinyl album closed with the self-penned "Rainy Sundays", a nostalgic song reminiscing about Vida, with whom Irvine pursued "a one-sided romance in Ljubljana years ago."

''High Kings of Tara''

In 1980, Tara Records released '' High Kings of Tara'', a compilation album showcasing tracks previously released by some of its artists: Shaun Davey, Oisín, Jolyon Jackson, Paddy Glackin, Paddy Keenan,

Stockton's Wing Stockton's Wing is an Irish band formed in 1977 by four All-Ireland champion musicians; Paul Roche on flute/whistle, Maurice Lennon on fiddle, Tommy Hayes on bodhran, and Kieran Hanrahan on banjo/mandolin, along with Tony Callinan on guitar an ...

and Christy Moore. This album also included five previously unreleased tracks by Planxty, Irvine and Moore. Two of these, Irvine's " The Bonny Light Horseman" and a set of reels by Planxty, "Lord McDonald/The Chattering Magpie", were subsequently added to the CD version of '' After The Break''. The remaining three tracks were: "General Monroe" – a traditional song re-arranged by Irvine (bouzouki, harmonica) in duet with Lunny (guitar); "First Slip/Hardyman The Fiddler A&B/The Yellow Wattle" – a set of jigs by Planxty, including Matt Molloy; and " John of Dreams" – a ballad by Moore, which was later re-released on the CD version of ''

The Iron Behind the Velvet ''The Iron Behind the Velvet'' is an album recorded by Christy Moore in 1978, after the first breakup of Planxty. It was produced jointly by Brian Masterson and Moore, and recorded and mixed at Lombard and Keystone Studios, Dublin.Sleeve notes f ...

''.

Planxty – ''The Woman I loved So Well''

On 28 February 1980, Planxty headlined the ''Sense of Ireland'' concert at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

in London. When they returned to Ireland, they recorded two programmes for RTÉ at the Pavilion Theatre in

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...

, then started rehearsals at

Kilkea Castle Kilkea Castle is located northwest of Castledermot, County Kildare, Ireland near the village of Kilkea on the R418 regional road from Athy to Tullow. It was a medieval stronghold, for over 700 years, of the Fitzgeralds, earls of Kildare. ...

Castledermot Castledermot () is an inland village in the south-east of Ireland in County Kildare, about from Dublin, and from the town of Carlow. The N9 road from Dublin to Waterford previously passed through the village but upon completion of a motorway ...

, County Kildare with two musicians from

County Clare County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,81 ...

concertina A concertina is a free-reed musical instrument, like the various accordions and the harmonica. It consists of expanding and contracting bellows, with buttons (or keys) usually on both ends, unlike accordion buttons, which are on the front. The ...

player Noel Hill and fiddler Tony Linnane. This six-member formation of Moore, Irvine, Lunny, O'Flynn, Hill and Linnane were joined by Matt Molloy and keyboardist Bill Whelan, to record the band's fifth album, ''

The Woman I Loved So Well ''The Woman I Loved So Well'' is the fifth studio album by Planxty. Like their previous album, '' After The Break'', the album was recorded at Windmill Lane Studios and released by Tara Records. Co-produced by band member Dónal Lunny and engi ...

'',''Planxty – The Woman I Loved So Well'' LP, Tara Records, TARA 3005, 1980. at Windmill Lane Studios over two periods: 23–29 April and 16–19 May. The album was wrapped up with a reception at Windmill Lane Studios on 9 June and released on Tara Records in July 1980. Irvine contributed three songs to the album:Sleeve notes from ''Planxty – The Woman I Loved So Well'' LP, Tara Records, TARA 3005, 1980. "Roger O'Hehir", "Kellswater", and "Johnny of Brady's Lea". Planxty then resumed touring as a four-piece again during the summer of 1980, playing a tour of Italian castles in July and returning to The Boys of Ballisodare festival on 9 August, where they were joined by Whelan and a young

fiddler, Nollaig Casey. Shows around this time would feature the quartet for the first set, with Whelan and Casey joining in for the second set. This sextet played a week of shows at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin on 18–23 August 1980, which was recorded for a potential live album that eventually emerged in 1987 as the unlicensed release ''The Best of Planxty Live''. The same sextet also played a series of one-off events, including at the Hammersmith Odeon in March 1981, and recorded a suite called "Timedance"—with full orchestra and rhythm section—which was also performed during the interval of the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

, held in Dublin on 4 April 1981. "Timedance" was the genesis of what Whelan would later compose for ''Riverdance''.

''Parallel Lines'' with Dick Gaughan

In his online autobiography, Irvine recalls: In August 1981, Irvine and Gaughan recorded ''

Parallel Lines In geometry, parallel lines are coplanar straight lines that do not intersect at any point. Parallel planes are planes in the same three-dimensional space that never meet. ''Parallel curves'' are curves that do not touch each other or int ...

''''Dick Gaughan & Andy Irvine – Parallel Lines'', FolkFreak (FF4007), 1982. at Günter Pauler's Tonstudio in St Blasien/Herrenhaus, Northeim, Germany, released in 1982 on the German ''FolkFreak-Platten'' label.Sleeve notes from ''Dick Gaughan & Andy Irvine – Parallel Lines'', FolkFreak FF4007, 1982. It was produced by Gaughan, Irvine and Carsten Linde, with a line-up including Gaughan (acoustic and electric guitars, bass guitar and vocal), Irvine (bouzouki, mandola, mandolin, harmonica, hurdy-gurdy and vocal), Nollaig Casey (fiddle), Martin Buschmann (saxophone), Judith Jaenicke (flute) and Bob Lenox (Fender Rhodes piano). Dónal Lunny also overdubbed the fiddle parts and remixed the album at Lombard Studios in Dublin. In 1997, ''Parallel Lines'' was re-issued on CD, including "Thousands Are Sailing" as a bonus track that Irvine and Gaughan had recorded during the above-mentioned ''Folk Friends 2'' recording sessions, held in 1980. About the recording of ''Parallel Lines'', Irvine would later comment: Irvine and Gaughan did, however, perform live at Whelan's venue in Dublin on Wednesday 2 February 2011, nearly thirty years after recording ''Parallel Lines''.''Dick Gaughan & Andy Irvine'' (Wednesday 2 February 2011).
Schedule from Whelan's website. Retrieved 7 June 2015

Planxty – ''Words and Music''

The Planxty sextet continued to tour, but began to drift apart. In 1980,Sleeve notes from ''The Brendan Voyage'' CD, Tara Records, TARA CD 3006, 1980. O'Flynn recorded ''

The Brendan Voyage ''The Brendan Voyage'' was Shaun Davey's first major orchestral suite, composed for uilleann pipes played by Liam O'Flynn. It depicts Tim Severin’s adventure in reconstructing Saint Brendan’s 6th century Atlantic crossing to America. It feat ...

'' with Shaun Davey. Moore and Lunny, eager to experiment with a rhythm section and a different, more political song set, formed

Moving Hearts Moving Hearts is an Irish Celtic rock band formed in 1981. They followed in the footsteps of Horslips in combining Irish traditional music with rock and roll, and also added elements of jazz to their sound.Harris, Craig''Moving Hearts'' AllMusic ...

in 1981. Lunny also kept busy producing albums by other artists. As a result of all these parallel projects, the original quartet would end up playing their last show together on 24 August 1982, at the

National Stadium Many countries have a national sport stadium, which typically serves as the primary or exclusive home for one or more of a country's national representative sports teams. The term is most often used in reference to an association football stadiu ...

in Dublin. Nevertheless, Planxty—with Whelan and Casey still on board—reconvened at Windmill Lane Studios in late October and early November 1982, to record '' Words & Music'', which also featured fiddler James Kelly and Moving Hearts bass guitarist Eoghan O'Neill. It was released on the WEA label in 1983.''Planxty – Words & Music'' LP, WEA Ireland, 2401011, 1983. Irvine contributed three pieces to the album: "Thousands Are Sailing", "Accidentals",Sleeve notes from ''Planxty – Words & Music'' LP, WEA Ireland, 2401011, 1983. and "Aragon Mill". A final line-up that Irvine dubbed "Planxty-Too-Far"—Irvine, O'Flynn, Whelan, Arty McGlynn on guitar, James Kelly on fiddle and singer Dolores Keane, but without Casey—undertook a UK tour on Friday, 1 April 1983, followed by a series of live engagements in Ireland, an appearance on the ''Late Late Show'' and some eight shows, including the National Stadium in Dublin on 27 April 1983. Two days later, Irvine went on tour in the Balkans and, on his return in mid-June, found that: "to my surprise, the band hadn't actually split up, it has just fallen asunder. An unfortunate ending to the second coming...".

After Planxty

Irvine resumed his solo career, playing occasionally with McGlynn and Casey, and also travelled to

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

, where he played and fraternised with local musicians: The singer from Muzsikás, Márta Sebestyén, would soon thereafter be joining Irvine's next multicultural folk group:

. He also met multi-instrumentalist Nikola Parov (Sebestyén's then husband),''Márta's Cause'', by Ken Hunt in ''Folk Roots'' No.158/159, Aug/Sep 1996. who would go on to participate in several of Irvine's projects, the first being the album ''East Wind'' (1992), which featured Sebestyén. Irvine would later write a song about this period of his life in Budapest: "The Wind Blows Over The Danube", released on the album ''Changing Trains''.

Mosaic

In the winter of 1984, Irvine gathered a collection of musicians from throughout Europe and formed Mosaic, with a line-up including Irvine, Dónal Lunny along with his former Moving Hearts associate, uilleann piper Declan Masterson, Danish bassist and singer Lissa Ladefoged, Dutch guitarist and singer Hans Theessink, and singer Márta Sebestyén.''The Euro-group: Mosaic'', by Ian Anderson in ''Folk Roots'' No.29, November 1985. Their first public gig was in Budapest on 12 July 1985, followed by a further two gigs in Hungary and an appearance at the

Dranouter Dranouter (Dutch, locally known as ''Nouter'') is a village and a ''deelgemeente'' in the municipality of Heuvelland in West Flanders, Belgium. Dranouter was an independent municipality before the 1977 local government reforms. Since then, it has ...

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

in Belgium in early August, prior to their English tour. Their seventh gig was billed at the

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Iris ...

Arts Center, which Chris Hardwick of

Folk Roots ''fRoots'' (pronounced "eff-Roots", originally ''Folk Roots'') was a specialist music magazine published in the UK between 1979 and 2019. It specialised in folk and world music, and featured regular compilation downloadable albums, with occas ...

reviewed with the following introduction: "Every once in a while the folk scene throws up a new permutation in which exceptionally gifted individuals come together to produce something so innovative and exhilarating that it goes way beyond the sum of the parts".''Live Reviews: Mosaic at Southport Arts Centre'', by Chris Hardwick in ''Folk Roots'' No.28, October 1985. Their set included:

Stan Rogers Stanley Allison Rogers (November 29, 1949 – June 2, 1983) was a Canadian folk musician and songwriter. Rogers was noted for his rich, baritone voice and his traditional-sounding songs which were frequently inspired by Canadian history and ...

's "

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the ...

", an unspecified

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Ma ...

dance tune ("one of Andy's 90 mph specials"), a solo Hungarian love song from Sebestyén, a brooding cover of Eric Von Schmidt's Caribbean lament "Joshua Gone Barbados" from Theessink, the Irish three (Irvine, Lunny and Masterson) on a set of reels including "The Spike Island Lasses", and Irvine singing Andy Mitchell's "Indiana". However, the band lasted only that one summer. A couple of years later,''Andy Irvine'', by Chris Hardwick in ''Folk Roots'' No.46, April 1987. Irvine stated that he would have liked to try the experiment again by concentrating on the Irish and East European sound without bringing in the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...

influence.

Patrick Street

Also in 1985, Irvine joined up with fiddler Kevin Burke and guitarist

Mícheál Ó Domhnaill Mícheál Ó Domhnaill (; 7 October 1951 – 7 July 2006) was an Irish singer, guitarist, composer, and producer who was a major influence on Irish traditional music in the second half of the twentieth century. He is remembered for his innovativ ...

(who had been gigging together around America for some time) and toured as a trio in the USA; when Ó Domhnaill wasn't available for some of the dates, guitarist/vocalist Gerry O'Beirne stepped in.''Street Cred'', by Colin Irwin in ''Folk Roots'' No.66, December 1988. "This tour was such fun and so successful that we decided to expand the outfit into a four-piece by adding Jackie Daly", Irvine wrote.''Biography'' – Chapter 8.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 25 August 2013 Initially billed on a 1986 American tour as "The Legends of Irish Music", they soon chose to call themselves Patrick Street. The line-up for the band underwent several changes, but always included Irvine, Burke, and Daly. The guitar role, however, passed: *from O'Beirne to Arty McGlynn – before the recording of their first album, '' Patrick Street'', which began in August 1986;Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street'', Green Linnet SIF 1071, 1986. *from McGlynn to Ged Foley – after the band recorded their fourth album, '' All in Good Time'', released in 1993;Sleeve notes from ''The Best of Patrick Street'', NECTAR NTMCD503, 1995. *back to McGlynn – when they resumed touring after the completion of their ninth album, '' On the Fly'', released in 2007.''Patrick Street – On The Fly'', Loftus Music LM002, 2007. After Jackie Daly retired from Patrick Street, John Carty joined on fiddle, flute and tenor banjo in time to record ''On The Fly''.Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street – On The Fly'', Loftus Music LM002, 2007. Originally agreed to as a part-time band, they have nevertheless recorded eight studio albums together, plus one live album ('' Live from Patrick Street'') and two compilations ('' The Best of Patrick Street'' and '' Compendium: The Best of Patrick Street''). On their first album, ''Patrick Street'', released in 1986,''Patrick Street'', Green Linnet SIF 1071, 1986. Irvine sings four songs: "Patrick Street", "The Holy Ground", "The Dream/Indiana", and "The Man with the Cap". ''

No. 2 Patrick Street ''No. 2 Patrick Street'' is the second studio album by the Irish folk band Patrick Street, released in 1988 on Green Linnet Records. Recording It was recorded at Homestead Studios Dublin, Ireland, produced by the band and engineered by Enda Wals ...

'', released in 1988,''No. 2 Patrick Street'', Green Linnet SIF 1088, 1988. again features four songs sung by Irvine: "Tom Joad"; "Facing the Chair"; "Braes of Moneymore", to which Irvine changed the tune and added a verse;Sleeve notes from ''Parachilna – Andy Irvine with Rens van der Zalm'', Andy Irvine AK-4, 2013.Sleeve notes from ''Live From Patrick Street'', Green Linnet GLCD 1194, 1999. and "William Taylor"Sleeve notes from ''No. 2 Patrick Street'', Green Linnet SIF 1088, 1988.Sleeve notes from ''Compendium: The Best of Patrick Street'', Green Linnet GLCD1207, 2000. Their third album, ''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'', released in 1990,''Patrick Street – Irish Times'', Green Linnet/Special Delivery Records (a division of Topics Records) SPD 1033, 1990. includes three songs by Irvine: "Brackagh Hill"; "Forgotten Hero", his composition about

Michael Davitt Michael Davitt (25 March 184630 May 1906) was an Irish republican activist for a variety of causes, especially Home Rule and land reform. Following an eviction when he was four years old, Davitt's family migrated to England. He began his caree ...

; and "The Humours of the King of Ballyhooley".Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street – Irish Times'', Green Linnet SPD 1033, 1990.

Playing style – ''The Irish Bouzouki''

In 1989, Irvine's style of playing the bouzouki was summarised thus in ''The Irish Bouzouki'', an instructional guide: The tutor also provided simple standard notation scores and lyrics for two of Irvine's songs: "Brackagh Hill" (which he recorded with Patrick Street on the album ''Irish Times'' released the same year) and "Bridget", a song written by Jane Cassidy which he never released elsewhere. The cassette accompanying this tutor provided both songs, with Irvine accompanying himself on bouzouki. In the same tutor, Irvine's Irish bouzouki tuning (GDAD', one octave lower than the open-tuned mandolin) was also contrasted with the traditional Greek bouzouki tuning (CFAD'). In a 1985 interview with the American ''Frets'' magazine, Irvine had explained the origins of his bouzouki tuning:

1990s: Solo albums, ''East Wind'', Patrick Street

''Rude Awakening''

In December 1990 and January 1991, Irvine recorded his second solo album, '' Rude Awakening'',''Andy Irvine – Rude Awakening'', Green Linnet GLCD 1114, 1991. produced by Bill Whelan. The line-up included Whelan (keyboards), Rens van der Zalm (fiddle, mandolin, guitar), Carl Geraghty (soprano saxophone), Arty McGlynn (guitar),

Davy Spillane Davy Spillane (born 1959 in Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish musician, songwriter and a player of uilleann pipes and low whistle. Biography Irish music At the age of 12, Spillane started playing the uilleann pipes. His father encouraged him ...

(whistle) and

Fionnuala Sherry Fionnuala Sherry (born 20 September 1962) is an Irish violinist and vocalist. Together with Norwegian musician Rolf Løvland, she makes up the Celtic-Nordic group Secret Garden, which won the Eurovision Song Contest 1995 with the predominantly ...

(fiddle). The album was released on ''

Green Linnet Records Green Linnet Records was an American independent record label that specialized in Celtic music. Founded by Lisa Null and Patrick Sky as Innisfree Records in 1973, the label was initially based in Null's house in New Canaan, Connecticut. In 1975, t ...

'', later in 1991. It features " Never Tire of the Road", Irvine's tribute song to Woody Guthrie, alongside mainly self-penned material celebrating some of his other heroes:

Raoul Wallenberg Raoul Gustaf Wallenberg (4 August 1912 – disappeared 17 January 1945)He is presumed to have died in 1947, although the circumstances of his death are not clear and this date has been disputed. Some reports claim he was alive years later. 31 J ...

, James Connolly,

Emiliano Zapata Emiliano Zapata Salazar (; August 8, 1879 – April 10, 1919) was a Mexican revolutionary. He was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1920, the main leader of the people's revolution in the Mexican state of Morelos, and the ins ...

Michael Dwyer Michael Dwyer (1772–1825) was an insurgent captain in the Irish Rebellion of 1798, leading the United Irish forces in battles in Wexford and Wicklow., Following the defeat and dispersal of the rebel hosts, in July 1798 Dwyer withdrew into ...

Douglas Mawson Sir Douglas Mawson OBE FRS FAA (5 May 1882 – 14 October 1958) was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer, and academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Sir Ernest Shackleton, he was a key expedition leader duri ...

, Aeneas Mackintosh and

Sinclair Lewis Harry Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 – January 10, 1951) was an American writer and playwright. In 1930, he became the first writer from the United States (and the first from the Americas) to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, which was ...

. The only other traditional song is "Allan McLean". The sleeve notes of "Love To Be With You" show a faded, black & white photo of Vida, the heroine of his song from ten years earlier: "Rainy Sundays".

''East Wind''

Irvine had also played some Balkan tunes to Whelan and mentioned his aspiration to record them.''Biography'' – Chapter 9.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 28 July 2013 So, shortly thereafter, he was rehearsing again with Davy Spillane (uilleann pipes and low whistle) to record ''East Wind'', a collection of Bulgarian and

tunes played Irish-style Review of ''East Wind''By Richard Foss (Allmusic). Retrieved 24 April 2012 and produced by Whelan, who also contributed keyboards and piano.Sleeve notes from ''East Wind'', Tara CD 3027, 1992. The project influenced '' Riverdance'': The extensive line-up included Nikola Parov on Bulgarian instruments ( gadulka,

kaval The kaval is a chromatic end-blown flute traditionally played throughout the Balkans (in Albania, Romania, Bulgaria, Southern Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Northern Greece, and elsewhere) and Anatolia (including Turkey and Armenia). The k ...

, gaida) & bouzouki,

Máirtín O'Connor Máirtín O'Connor is an Irish button accordionist from Galway, Ireland, who began playing at the age of nine, and whose career has seen him as a member of many traditional music groups that include Skylark, Midnight Well, De Dannan, and T ...

(accordion), Noel Eccles & Paul Moran (percussion), Tony Molloy (bass), Carl Geraghty & Kenneth Edge (saxophones), John Sheahan (fiddle),

Anthony Drennan Anthony "Anto" Drennan (born on 1 November 1958) is an English-born Irish guitarist noted for his involvement with the Corrs, Genesis and Mike + the Mechanics among others. Drennan is from a musical Irish family and was born in Luton, England ...

(guitar),

Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin (; 10 December 1950 – 7 November 2018) was an Irish musician, composer, academic and educationalist. Biography Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin was a pianist, composer, recording artist and academic; he held the Pro ...

(piano), Márta Sebestyén (vocals) and Rita Connolly (backing vocals). In an interview with

in August 1992, Irvine stated: "We finished it eighteen months ago but ..John Cook at Tara wanted to try the avenue of big companies." The album was eventually released on the ''Tara'' label itself in mid-1992.''Reviews: Andy Irvine & Davy Spillane – East Wind'', by Ian Anderson in ''Folk Roots'' No. 108, June 1992. For a while, Irvine and Parov were joined by Rens van der Zalm and toured together in Europe as the 'East Wind Trio', and then again in the US during 1996.

Patrick Street – ''All in Good Time''

Irvine contributed six pieces to Patrick Street's fourth album, ''All in Good Time'', released in 1993:''Patrick Street – All in Good Time'', Green Linnet GLCD 1125 (1993). "A Prince Among Men (Only a Miner)"; ''Lintheads'', a trilogy comprising: "The Pride of the Springfield Road",''The Story of Belfast'' by Mary Lowry, circa 1913.
From the 'Library Ireland' website. Retrieved 6 November 2013 "Lawrence Common", and "Goodbye, Monday Blues"; Retrieved on 5 May 2015. "Carrowclare"; and "The Girls Along the Road".Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street – All in Good Time'', Green Linnet GLCD 1125, 1993.

Patrick Street – ''Cornerboys''

Patrick Street's fifth album, '' Cornerboys'', was released in 1996''Patrick Street – Cornerboys'', Green Linnet GLCD 1160, 1996. and includes seven pieces provided by Irvine:Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street – Cornerboys'', Green Linnet GLCD 1160, 1996. "Sweet Lisbweemore"; "Morlough Shore"; ''Pity the Poor Hare'' (a suite comprising: "On Yonder Hill", "Merrily Tripping O'er The Plain", "The Kilgrain Hare", and "Pity the Poor Hare"); and "Down By Greer's Grove".

''Rain on the Roof''

Recorded in June, July and August 1996, Irvine's third solo album, '' Rain on the Roof'',''Andy Irvine – Rain on the Roof'', Andy Irvine AK-1, 1996. is the closest the listener could get to the experience of attending one of his gigs. It was the first release (product number "AK-1") on his own label, ''Andy Irvine''. The album mixes some of Irvine's compositions with traditional songs and Bulgarian tunes. As he explains in the sleeve notes: Other instruments were added (on four of the eleven tracks) by Rens van der Zalm (fiddle and mandolin), Stephen Cooney (

didgeridoo The didgeridoo (; also spelt didjeridu, among other variants) is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous Drone (music), drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgeridoo wa ...

, Kpanlogo drum), Declan Masterson (low whistle) and Irvine himself, who played a second mandolin on two of the tracks.

Patrick Street – ''Made in Cork''

Patrick Street's sixth album, '' Made in Cork'', was released in 1997,''Patrick Street – Made in Cork'', Green Linnet GLCD 1184, 1997 to which Irvine contributed four songs:Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street – Made in Cork'', Green Linnet GLCD 1184, 1997. "Her Mantle So Green", "Rainbow 'Mid The Willows", "Spanking Maggie from the Ross", and "When Adam Was in Paradise", another song he learned from the singing of

Patrick Street – ''Live from Patrick Street''

'' Live from Patrick Street'', released in 1999,''Live From Patrick Street'', Green Linnet GLCD 1194, 1999. was Patrick Street's seventh album, recorded during a tour of Ireland and Britain in November 1998. It features five of Irvine's songs: "Braes of Moneymore",

's "My Son in Amerikay", " Wild Rover No More", " Stewball and the Monaghan Grey Mare", and "The Holy Ground".

2000s: Solo album, Mozaik, Patrick Street, Planxty, Marianne Green

''Way Out Yonder''

In 2000, Irvine released his fourth solo album, '' Way Out Yonder'',''Andy Irvine – Way Out Yonder'', Andy Irvine AK-2, 2000. recorded between July and December 1999 and co-produced with Steve Cooney.Sleeve notes from ''Andy Irvine – Way Out Yonder'', Andy Irvine AK-2, 2000. Irvine was joined by Rens van der Zalm (guitar, fiddle, mandolin, Bulgarian tambura and bass guitar), Lindsey Horner (double bass),

Máire Breatnach Máire Breatnach is an Irish fiddle, violin and viola player. She also sings in Irish on some of her albums. Since the early 1990s, she has recorded five solo albums, participated in many collaborations, and developed didactic material for chil ...

(viola), Cormac Breatnach (low whistle), Steve Cooney (Spanish guitar, percussion and kalimba), Declan Masterson (uilleann pipes and low whistle), Liam O'Flynn (uilleann pipes and tin whistle), Nikola Parov ( gadulka), Brendan Power (harmonica), plus Lynn Kavanagh, Mandy Murphy and Phil Callery (backing vocals).

Mozaik – ''Live from the Powerhouse''

On 1 March 2002, the seaside town of

Rye, Victoria Rye is a seaside town on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, approximately south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Mornington Peninsula local government area. Rye recorded a popu ...

in Australia witnessed the formation and six-day marathon rehearsals of multicultural group MozaikSleeve notes from ''Mozaik – Live from the Powerhouse'', Compass Records 743782, 2004.—not to be confused with his earlier, similarly named group

—featuring Irvine, Dónal Lunny,

Bruce Molsky Bruce C. Molsky (born 1955, New York City) is an American fiddler, banjo player, guitarist, and singer. He primarily performs old-time music of the Appalachian region. Early years As a young man, Molsky first became interested in blues music, but ...

, Nikola Parov and Rens van der Zalm. The Australian tour that followed culminated in two gigs recorded at the Brisbane Powerhouse on 30/31 March and released on the album ''

Live from the Powerhouse ''Live from the Powerhouse'Mozaik – Live From The Powerhouse'', Compass Records 743782, 2004. is an album rehearsed in six days, starting on 1 March 2002 in the seaside town of Rye, Victoria in Australia, by multicultural group MozaikSleeve ...

'' in 2004, under license to

Compass Records Compass Records is an independent record label founded in 1995 by musicians Garry West and Alison Brown that specializes in folk, bluegrass, Celtic, jazz, and acoustic music. In 2006, Compass purchased the Green Linnet and Xenophile catalogs ...

Patrick Street – ''Street Life''

Patrick Street's eighth album, '' Street Life'', was released in 2002.''Patrick Street – Street Life'', Green Linnet GLCD 1222, 2002. Irvine contributed four pieces:Sleeve notes from ''Patrick Street – Street Life'', Green Linnet GLCD 1222, 2002. "Barna Hill", "Down in Matewan", "Lost Indian", and "Green Grows the Laurel".

Planxty ("The Third Coming") – ''Live 2004''

In late 2002, broadcaster and journalist Leagues O'Toole was working as presenter and researcher for the

television show ''

No Disco ''No Disco'' is RTÉ's former flagship music television programme, broadcast on Irish television channel, Network 2, from 1993 – 2003. It was presented by Donal Dineen, Uaneen Fitzsimons and, following the death of Fitzsimons, Lawrence ...

'' and persuaded the programme editor, Rory Cobbe, to develop a one-off documentary about Planxty. O'Toole proceeded with interviewing Moore, Irvine and O'Flynn but Lunny, who was living in Japan, was unavailable. After also shooting links at key landmarks from the Planxty history, the programme aired on 3 March 2003, receiving a phenomenal response from the public and some very positive feedback from the Planxty members themselves. In a final comment about the constant speculation of the original line-up regrouping, Moore had stated, on camera: "There's nobody longs for it more than myself and the other three guys. Definitely the time is right. Let's go for it". A few months later, Paddy Doherty, owner of the Royal Spa Hotel in

Lisdoonvarna Lisdoonvarna () is a spa town in County Clare in Ireland. The town is famous for its music and festivals. Although the music festival was discontinued in the 1980s, Lisdoonvarna still hosts its annual matchmaking festival each September. The pop ...

(and co-founder of the Lisdoonvarna Festival), arranged for the band's use of the hotel's old dining room for rehearsals, which led to a one-off concert there in front of 200 people on 11 October 2003. Moore, on stage, credited the ''No Disco'' documentary with inspiring the reunion. Pleased with the results and the experience of playing together again, the original Planxty quartet agreed to the longed-for reunion (dubbed "The Third Coming") and would perform together again, on and off, for a period of just over a year. Planxty first played a series of concerts at the

Glór Theatre glór, formerly ''glór Irish Music Centre'', is a concert and events venue in Ireland, located in the town of Ennis County Clare. Its capacity allows for 485 people for seated performances. glór also has a studio space for smaller events and ...

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

, County Clare (on 23 & 24 January 2004) and at Vicar Street in Dublin (on 30 & 31 January and on 4 & 5, 11 & 12 February 2004), which were recorded and from which selected material was released on the CD '' Live 2004'' and its associated DVD. In late 2004 and early 2005, another round of concerts took place at the following venues: * Radisson SAS Hotel in

(6, 7 and 8 October 2004); * Point Theatre in Dublin (28, 29 and 30 December 2004, plus extra dates on 3, 4 and 5 January 2005); * Waterfront Hall in

(19, 20 and 21 January 2005); *

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhib ...

in London (29, 30 and 31 January 2005). Since then, the original Planxty quartet have neither performed live nor recorded new material together.

Solo version of "As I Roved Out"

In May 2005, Irvine wrote in his website journal: "Also premiered "As I Roved Out" with my own accompaniment. It's always been a Planxty number till now with Dónal playing Baritone Guitar and me just singing it."''Andy's journal: April–May 2005 (May 4th 2005 entry)''.
Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 28 July 2013 A recording of this version of "As I Roved Out" was eventually released on Peter Ratzenbeck's album ''Resonances'' in 2007,''Peter Ratzenbeck – Resonances'', Woodcraft Productions WP-963, 2007. where Irvine appeared as a guest and played it solo on his "Stefan Sobell mandola, tuned CGDG (Capo 0)".Sleeve notes from ''Peter Ratzenbeck – Resonances'', Woodcraft Productions WP-963, 2007.

Mozaik – ''Changing Trains''

In January and April 2005, Mozaik rehearsed new material for ''Changing Trains'',''Mozaik – Changing Trains'', Compass Records 744682, 2007. their first studio album recorded in Budapest during November of the same year. This album was initially released by the band in Australia in 2006 and, after additional re-mixing by Lunny at Longbeard Studios in Dublin, was re-released in the autumn of 2007 under license to Compass Records.Sleeve notes from ''Mozaik – Changing Trains'', Compass Records 744682, 2007.

Patrick Street – ''On the Fly''

Patrick Street's ninth album, ''On the Fly'', was released in 2007. Irvine provided three songs: "Sergeant Small", "The Rich Irish Lady", and " Erin Go Bragh".

Marianne Green – ''Dear Irish Boy''

Irvine arranged and produced Marianne Green'sMarianne Green biography
performingacts.co.uk. Retrieved 28 December 2013. debut album, ''Dear Irish Boy'', released in 2009.''Dear Irish Boy – Marianne Green with Andy Irvine'', Glas Records MEGCD02, 2009.
Review by Tony Hendry for ''Living Tradition Magazine''. Retrieved 28 December 2013. Personnel included: Marianne Green (vocals), Irvine (bouzouki, mandolin, mandola, bass-bouzouki, harmonica), Colum Sands (double bass, concertina) and Gerry O'Conner (violin).Sleeve notes from ''Dear Irish Boy – Marianne Green with Andy Irvine'', Glas Records MEGCD02, 2009. The tracks are: "The Banks of the Bann" (trad.), "You Make Me Fly" (M. Green), "Tá Mé 'Mo Shuí" (trad.), "The Doffin Mistress" (trad.), "Bonny Portmore" (trad.), "Ar A Ghabháil Go Baile Átha Cliath Damh" (trad.), "Cian's Song" (M. O'Hare), "The Dear Irish Boy" (trad.), "The Wife's Lamentation" (M. Green), "The Road To Dundee" (trad.), "The Wreck of the Newcastle Fishermen" (trad.) and "Carrickmannon Lake" (trad.).

2010s: Solo albums, LAPD, duo with Rens van der Zalm, Usher's Island

''Abocurragh''

In August 2010, Irvine released his fifth solo album: ''Abocurragh'',''Andy Irvine – Abocurragh'', Andy Irvine AK-3, 2010.''Andy Irvine launches new album in barn''
Review of the launch of ''Abocurragh'' by Julian Fowler for

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadc ...

Northern Ireland, 18 September 2010. Retrieved 8 September 2013. recorded in Dublin, Norway, Australia, Hungary and Brittany between February 2009 and April 2010 and produced by Dónal Lunny, who also plays on all but one of the tracks.Sleeve notes from ''Andy Irvine – Abocurragh'', Andy Irvine AK-3, 2010. They were joined by Liam O'Flynn (uilleann pipes, tin whistle), Nikola Parov (

, nyckelharpa), Máirtín O'Connor (accordion), Bruce Molsky (fiddle), Rens van der Zalm (fiddle), Rick Epping (harmonica), Paul Moore (double bass), Graham Henderson (keyboards), Liam Bradley (percussion), Jacky Molard (violas, violins and string arrangement),

Annbjørg Lien Annbjørg Lien (born 15 October 1971) is a Norwegian musician, playing the hardingfele (Hardanger fiddle), violin, and nyckelharpa. Career She first came to national prominence in 1986. Shortly afterwards got a recording deal with the Heilo ...

(

hardanger fiddle A Hardanger fiddle ( no, hardingfele) is a traditional stringed instrument considered to be the national instrument of Norway. In modern designs, this type of fiddle is very similar to the violin, though with eight or nine strings (rather than ...

s),

Lillebjørn Nilsen Bjørn "Lillebjørn" Falk Nilsen (born 21 December 1950) is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and folk musician. He was born in Oslo, and is considered by some to be the leading "voice of Oslo", thanks to numerous classic songs about the city from th ...

(guitar), plus Kate Burke and Ruth Hazleton (backing vocals).

LAPD (Liam/Andy/Paddy/Dónal)

Friday, 20 January 2012 ushered in the inaugural gig, at Dublin's Vicar Street, of a quartet named 'LAPD' after the initials of its members' first names: Liam O'Flynn, Andy Irvine,

, and Dónal Lunny. They played a set combining tunes and songs from the repertoires of: * Planxty: "Jenny's Wedding/The Virginia/Garrett Barry's", "Paddy Canny's" ("The Starting Gate"), "The Jolly Beggar/The Wise Maid", "Arthur MacBride", "As I Roved Out (Andy)", "The Blacksmith" and "West Coast of Clare"; * Irvine & Lunny: "My Heart's tonight in Ireland/West Clare Reel", "Braes of Moneymore", "Suleiman's Kopanitsa", "The Dream/Indiana", "O'Donoghue's" and "Siún Ni Dhuibhir"; * O'Flynn & Glackin: "Kitty's Rambles/Humours of Ennistymon", "The Green Island/Bantry Hornpipe", "Young Tom Ennis/Nora Crean", "A Rainy Day/The Shaskeen", "Two Flings", "Speed the Plough/Colonel Fraser" and "The Gold Ring". LAPD performed only occasionally, to rave reviews, but never recorded before disbanding; their last performance took place at Sligo Live, on Saturday, 26 October 2013.''Andy Irvine is still going strong in his seventies.''
Interview by Gerry Quinn in the Irish Examiner, 5 February 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2015.

''70th Birthday Concert at Vicar St 2012''

On 16 and 17 June 2012, Irvine's 70th birthday was celebrated at Dublin's Vicar Street venue in a pair of concerts. He was joined onstage by Paul Brady and various combinations of members of Sweeney's Men, Planxty, Mozaik and LAPD, plus brothers George and Manoli Galiatsos who came unexpectedly all the way from Athens for the concerts,''Andy's 70th Birthday Concerts – 16 & 17 June 2012''.
Review & photos. Published at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 5 September 2013 which were recorded and released on the CD ''Andy Irvine/70th Birthday Concert at Vicar St 2012''''Andy Irvine 70th Birthday Concert At Vicar St 2012''.
'CD & DVD Announcement' Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 3 October 2014 and its associated DVD.

Playing Woody Guthrie again

A week later, Irvine was invited to participate with Billy Bragg in the ''Woody 100 Legacy Show'' scheduled at Dublin's Vicar Street on Monday, 17 September 2012, to celebrate Woody Guthrie's Centenary.Cuff, Aidan. (23 May 2012)
''Billy Bragg & Andy Irvine Celebrate Woody Guthrie's Centenary'' (Monday, 17 September 2012).
GoldenPlec website. Retrieved 3 August 2016 In his web journal, Irvine wrote at the time: "I recently located my old Gibson L0 guitar. It was in the shed where it has been languishing for some years. I used to be able to do a pretty good impression of Woody's Carter Family picking, 'Church lick' guitar playing. Hope I can get it all back! ..I'd better get practising!..."''The Woody 100 Legacy Show'' (Monday, 17 September 2012).
Announcement published at Andy Irvine's website on 22 June 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2013

''Parachilna'' with Rens van der Zalm

On 13 November 2013, Irvine released his first duo album with Rens van der Zalm: ''Parachilna (album), Parachilna'',''Parachilna'', by Andy Irvine & Rens van der Zalm.
'CD Announcement' Page at Andy Irvine's website. Retrieved 7 November 2013 Retrieved on 21 April 2014. an album of Irish and Australian songs recorded live in July 2012 while camping in Parachilna, South Australia and New South Wales. It was co-produced by Irvine (vocals, bouzouki, mandola and harmonica) and van der Zalm (backing vocals, guitar, mandolin, fiddle and viola), and recorded by Cian Burke in disused buildings using top-quality microphones, a laptop and Pro Tools. Most of the time, there are only two instruments playing–three when Irvine also plays harmonica–and the resulting sound is bright and pristine.

Usher's Island

On 27 January 2015, Irvine launched his latest musical association at Celtic Connections in Glasgow: a band called Usher's Island (a reference to the Dublin quays, Dublin quay), with Dónal Lunny (guitar, bouzouki, bodhrán, keyboards), Paddy Glackin (fiddle), Michael McGoldrick (uilleann pipes, flute and whistle), and John Doyle (guitar)."Usher's Island" page at Andy Irvine website
andyirvine.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014''Celtic Connections: Usher's Island at Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow''
''The Herald'' (Glasgow), 28 January 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.

Selected discography

;Solo * '' Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams'' (1980) * '' Rude Awakening'' (1991) * '' Rain on the Roof'' (1996) * '' Way Out Yonder'' (2000) * ''Abocurragh (album), Abocurragh'' (2010) * ''Old Dog Long Road – Vol.1 (1961–2012)'' (2019) – 2 discs * ''Old Dog Long Road – Vol.2 (1961–2015)'' (2020) – 2 discs ;With Christy Moore * '' Prosperous'' (1971) * ''Christy Moore (album), Christy Moore'' (1976) * ''

'' (1978) * ''Ordinary Man (Christy Moore album), Ordinary Man'' (1985) ;With Paul Brady * '' Andy Irvine/Paul Brady'' (1976) * ''

'' (1978) * '' The Missing Liberty Tapes'' (2002) ;With Maddy Prior & June Tabor * ''Silly Sisters (album), Silly Sisters'' (1976) ;With Mick Hanly * ''As I Went Over Blackwater'' (1980) ;With various artists * ''The Gathering'' (1981) ;With Dick Gaughan * ''

'' (1982) ;With Peter Ratzenbeck * ''Over the Years'' (1990) * ''Outremer'' (1995) * ''Travelogue'' (1997) * ''Resonances'' (2007) ;With Davy Spillane * ''EastWind, East Wind'' (1992) ;With Marianne Green * ''Dear Irish Boy'' (2009) ;With Rens van der Zalm * ''Parachilna (album), Parachilna'' (2013) ;With Luke Plumb * ''Precious Heroes'' (2017) ;With Sweeney's Men * '' Sweeney's Men'' (1968) ;With Planxty * ''

'' (1973) * '' The Well Below the Valley'' (1973) * ''

'' (1974) * '' After The Break'' (1979) * '' High Kings of Tara'' (1980) – Planxty & various artists * ''

'' (1980) * ''Live at Olympia Theatre, Dublin'' (1980) – Cassette; withdrawn shortly after release * '' Words & Music'' (1983) * ''Arís!'' (1984) * '' Live 2004'' (2004) – Separate CD and DVD * ''Between the Jigs and the Reels: A Retrospective'' (2016) – CD and DVD combo * ''One Night in Bremen'' (2018) ;With Patrick Street * '' Patrick Street'' (1986) * ''

'' (1988) * ''

'' (1990) * '' All in Good Time'' (1993) * '' The Best of Patrick Street'' (1995) * '' Cornerboys'' (1996) * '' Made in Cork'' (1997) * '' Live from Patrick Street'' (1999) * '' Compendium: The Best of Patrick Street'' (2000) * '' Street Life'' (2002) * '' On the Fly'' (2007) ;With Mozaik * ''

'' (2004) * ''

'' (2007) * ''The Long And The Short Of It'' (2019) ;With Sweeney's Men, Mozaik, Paul Brady, LAPD * ''Andy Irvine/70th Birthday Concert at Vicar St 2012'' (2014) – Separate CD and DVD ;With Usher's Island * ''Usher's Island'' (2017) ;With Lillebjørn Nilsen * ''Live In Telemark'' (2021)

Filmography

* ''Planxty Live 2004'' (2004), DVD * ''Come West Along The Road/Irish Traditional Music Treasures From RTÉ Archives 1960s – 1980s'' (2005), DVD * ''Come West Along The Road 2/Irish Traditional Music Treasures From RTÉ Archives 1960s – 1980s'' (2007), DVD * ''From Clare To Here'' (2008), DVD * ''Come West Along The Road 3/Irish Traditional Music Treasures From RTÉ Archives 1960s – 1980s'' (2010), DVD * ''Come West Along The Road/The Collection'' (2014), DVD (Volumes 1–4 Boxset) * ''Ar Stáitse – RTÉ TV Series'', DVD * ''The Transatlantic Sessions Series 6'' (2014), DVD * ''Andy Irvine 70th Birthday Concert at Vicar St 2012'' (2014), DVD * ''Mozaik on Tour 2014'' (2014), YouTube video clip * ''Planxty Between the Jigs and the Reels: A Retrospective'' (2016), DVD

Selected early acting performances

The following table shows a selection of acting roles and performances by Andrew Irvine, between 1950 and 1964.

Awards

* 2018: Won the first Lifetime Achievement Award bestowed at

's inaugural Folk Music Awards.

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * ''Planxty'' (Songbook; 1973), London: Mews Music. * *

Notes

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Irvine, Andy 1942 births Living people English male singer-songwriters English folk singers English people of Irish descent English people of Scottish descent Irish folk singers Irish mandolinists Irish bouzouki players Irish harmonica players Irish people of Scottish descent Hurdy-gurdy players Industrial Workers of the World members People from St John's Wood Mozaik members Patrick Street members Planxty members Sweeney's Men members Usher's Island (band) members De Dannan members Green Linnet Records artists

Early life and acting career

Influences

Music

Social justice

Music career

1960s: Dublin, Sweeney's Men, Eastern Europe

Move to Dublin and transition from acting to folk music

Sweeney's Men – ''Sweeney's Men''

Discovering Eastern Europe and Bulgarian folk music

1970s: Duo with Dónal Lunny, ''Prosperous'', Planxty, duos with Paul Brady and Mick Hanly

Duo with Dónal Lunny – "The Blacksmith"

Christy Moore – ''Prosperous''

Planxty

Duo with Paul Brady – ''Andy Irvine/Paul Brady''

Duo with Mick Hanly – ''As I Went Over Blackwater''

''The Gathering''

Paul Brady – ''Welcome Here Kind Stranger''

Planxty – ''After The Break''

1980s: Solo album, Planxty, ''Parallel Lines'', Mosaic, Patrick Street

''Rainy Sundays... Windy Dreams''

''High Kings of Tara''

Planxty – ''The Woman I loved So Well''

''Parallel Lines'' with Dick Gaughan

Planxty – ''Words and Music''

After Planxty

Mosaic

Patrick Street

Playing style – ''The Irish Bouzouki''

1990s: Solo albums, ''East Wind'', Patrick Street

''Rude Awakening''

''East Wind''

Patrick Street – ''All in Good Time''

Patrick Street – ''Cornerboys''

''Rain on the Roof''

Patrick Street – ''Made in Cork''

Patrick Street – ''Live from Patrick Street''

2000s: Solo album, Mozaik, Patrick Street, Planxty, Marianne Green

''Way Out Yonder''

Mozaik – ''Live from the Powerhouse''

Patrick Street – ''Street Life''

Planxty ("The Third Coming") – ''Live 2004''

Solo version of "As I Roved Out"

Mozaik – ''Changing Trains''

Patrick Street – ''On the Fly''

Marianne Green – ''Dear Irish Boy''

2010s: Solo albums, LAPD, duo with Rens van der Zalm, Usher's Island

''Abocurragh''

LAPD (Liam/Andy/Paddy/Dónal)

''70th Birthday Concert at Vicar St 2012''

Playing Woody Guthrie again

''Parachilna'' with Rens van der Zalm

Usher's Island

Selected discography

Filmography

Selected early acting performances

Awards

Bibliography

See also

Notes

References

External links