''Planxty'' is the first album by the

Irish folk Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland. In ''A History of Irish Music'' (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Ireland, there we ...

group

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 ...

, recorded in London during early September 1972 and released in early 1973.

Overview

Because of its dark cover, ''Planxty'' is sometimes referred to as "the black album." Author Leagues O'Toole has written that the album "crystallises the 1972 set" performed live by the band during their first year of touring. The album features a variety of

traditional A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...

and modern Irish folk songs and tunes. It was influential in popularising this genre. The last track revealed the impact of

Balkan 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 ...

folk music on

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 ...

ist Andy Irvine. The traditional song "

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 ...

" concludes with Irvine playing "Blacksmithereens", a tune reflecting the influences he gathered during his travels in

Eastern Europe 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 ...

. Although ''Planxty'' is nominally the first album by the band, all four members performed together on

Christy Moore Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. In addition to his significant success as an individual, he is one of the founding members of Planxty and Moving Hearts. His first album, ...

's previous album '' Prosperous'', which opened with the same song, " Raggle Taggle Gypsy/

Tabhair dom do Lámh "Give Me Your Hand" (Irish: ''Tabhair dom do Lámh'') is a tune from early 17th century Ireland by Rory Dall O'Cahan. It is one of the most widely recorded pieces of Irish traditional music. Composer According to Edward Bunting, in The Ancient M ...

". An earlier recording of " Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór" had been included as a b-side to Planxty's first single, "Three Drunken Maidens". Recordings completed during the sessions but excluded from the album were new versions of the singles "Three Drunken Maidens" and "

The Cliffs of Dooneen The "Cliffs of Dooneen" is an Irish ballad made famous by Planxty. It is often performed by Christy Moore. The song was written by Jack McAuliffe from Lixnaw, County Kerry about the cliffs around Dooneen Point near Beale, Kerry in the west of Ire ...

", as well as "When First unto this Country" (sung by Lunny) and the traditional Southern Appalachian song "Down In The Valley" featuring all members of the band, including O'Flynn on vocal harmonies. The latter track has since been released on

's 2004 box set.

Track listing

#" Raggle Taggle Gypsy/

Tabhair Dom Do Lámh "Give Me Your Hand" (Irish: ''Tabhair dom do Lámh'') is a tune from early 17th century Ireland by Rory Dall O'Cahan. It is one of the most widely recorded pieces of Irish traditional music. Composer According to Edward Bunting, in The Ancient M ...

" (song/waltz) – 4:25
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #"

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 ...

" (song) – 2:51
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #" Planxty Irwin" (

Turlough O'Carolan Turlough O'Carolan ( ga, Toirdhealbhach Ó Cearbhalláin ; 167025 March 1738) was a blind Celtic harper, composer and singer in Ireland whose great fame is due to his gift for melodic composition. Although not a composer in the classical sense, ...

) (planxty) – 2:14
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #"Sweet Thames Flow Softly" (song) – 3:09
(

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 ...

) #"Junior Crehan's Favourite/Corney is Coming" (

reels A reel is an object around which a length of another material (usually long and flexible) is wound for storage (usually hose are wound around a reel). Generally a reel has a cylindrical core (known as a '' spool'') with flanges around the ends ...

) – 2:36
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #"The West Coast of Clare" (song) – 5:30
( Andy Irvine) #"

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 ...

/The Wise Maid" (song/

reel A reel is an object around which a length of another material (usually long and flexible) is wound for storage (usually hose are wound around a reel). Generally a reel has a cylindrical core (known as a '' spool'') with flanges around the ends ...

) – 4:23
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #" Only Our Rivers" (song) – 4:04
(

Mickey MacConnell Mickey MacConnell (born 1947) is an Irish musician and songwriter. Life and work MacConnell was born in Bellanaleck near Enniskillen in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. He is the youngest member of a musical family. He worked in Dublin for Ir ...

) #"

Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór ''Sí Beag, Sí Mór'', "Small Fairy Mound, Big Fairy Mound", is an Irish folk tune. The title uses the word ' Sí', the Irish for 'fairy mound'.Dictionary of the Irish Language: síd, síth' Origins The tune is usually attributed to blind harpist ...

" (waltz) – 3:33
(Turlough O'Carolan, arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #" Follow Me Up to Carlow" (song) – 2:20
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #"Merrily Kissed the Quaker" ( slide) – 2:39
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny) #"

" (song) – 4:09
(Traditional; arranged by Moore, O'Flynn, Irvine, Lunny)

Personnel

- vocals,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

bodhrán The bodhrán (, ; plural ''bodhráin'' or ''bodhráns'') is a frame drum used in Irish music ranging from in diameter, with most drums measuring . The sides of the drum are deep. A goatskin head is tacked to one side (synthetic heads or oth ...

* Andy Irvine - vocals,

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 The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica in ...

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 ...

Dónal Lunny Dónal Lunny (born 10 March 1947) is an Irish folk musician and producer. He plays left-handed guitar and bouzouki, as well as keyboards and bodhrán. As a founding member of popular bands Planxty, The Bothy Band, Moving Hearts, Coolfin, Mozai ...

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

, bouzouki, vocals *

Liam O'Flynn Liam Óg O'Flynn ( ga, Liam Ó Floinn, 15 September 1945 – 14 March 2018) was an Irish uilleann piper and Irish traditional musician. In addition to a solo career and as a member of Planxty, O'Flynn recorded with: Christy Moore, Dónal Lun ...

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 ...

tin whistle The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute, putting it in the same class as the recorder, Native American flute, and other woodwind instruments that meet such criteria ...

References

{{Authority control 1973 debut albums Planxty albums Albums produced by Phil Coulter Polydor Records albums