''The Clancy Brothers' Greatest Hits'' is an original studio album of some of

The Clancy Brothers The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music group that developed initially as a part of the American folk music revival. Most popular during the 1960s, they were famed for their Aran jumper sweaters and are widely credited with popu ...

' most popular hits re-recorded with

Louis Killen Louisa "Lou" Jo Killen (born Louis Killen; 10 January 1934 – 9 August 2013) was an English folk singer from Gateshead, Tyneside, who also played the English concertina. Killen formed one of Britain's first folk clubs in 1958 in Newcastle upon ...

. The Clancys had performed each of these songs previously with different arrangements with their former partner

Tommy Makem Thomas Makem (4 November 1932 – 1 August 2007) was an internationally celebrated Irish folk musician, artist, poet and storyteller. He was best known as a member of the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. He played the long-necked 5-string banjo ...

in the 1960s. This was the group's first of three albums for

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City. It was a primarily classical label at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but also has a catalogue of recordings by a n ...

, their last album with Killen, and the final album they would release for almost a decade. The recording was initially released as a double album. A backing musician on a few of the tracks is

Don McLean Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his 1971 hit song " American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early ...

, best known for his song " American Pie". In 2000, Vanguard re-released the album on a CD entitled ''The Best of the Vanguard Years''. In addition to including the entirety of the ''Greatest Hits'' album, the CD included four previously unreleased tracks from the Clancy Brothers' follow-up album ''Live!'' (1982).

Track listing

Maid of Fife The Bonnie Lass o' Fyvie (Roud # 545) is a Scottish folk song about a thwarted romance between a soldier and a girl. Like many folk songs, the authorship is unattributed, there is no strict version of the lyrics, and it is often referred to by its ...

" – 2:19 #"Jug of Punch" – 2:55 #" Gallant Forty-Twa" – 2:15 #" Whistling Gypsy" – 3:11 #"

The Leaving of Liverpool "(The) Leaving of Liverpool" (Roud 9435), also known as "Fare Thee Well, My Own True Love", is a folk song. Folklorists classify it as a lyrical lament and it was also used as a sea shanty, especially at the capstan. It is very well known in ...

" – 3:50 #"

Mountain Dew Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Brid ...

" – 1:45 #"The Nightingale" – 3:27 #"

Roddy McCorley Roddy McCorley (died 28 February 1800) was an Irish nationalist from the civil parish of Duneane, County Antrim, Ireland. Following the publication of the Ethna Carbery poem bearing his name in 1902, where he is associated with events around the B ...

" – 3:11 #"Castle of Dramore" – 2:46 #"Father's Grave" – 2:08 #"Johnny McAdoo" – 1:39 #"

The Irish Rover "The Irish Rover" is an Irish folk song about a magnificent though improbable sailing ship that reaches an unfortunate end. It has been recorded by numerous artists, some of whom have made changes to the lyrics over time. The song describes a ...

" – 2:58 #" Old Woman from Wexford" – 1:59 #"

Bonnie Charlie "Bonnie Charlie", also commonly known as "Will ye no come back again?", is a Scots poem by Carolina Oliphant (Lady Nairne), set to a traditional Scottish folk tune. As in several of the author's poems, its theme is the aftermath of the Jacobite Ri ...

" – 4:35 #"Jolly Tinker" – 1:52 #"Haul Away Joe" – 2:18 #"

The Shoals of Herring "The Shoals of Herring" (Roud 13642) is a ballad, written by Ewan MacColl for the third of the original eight BBC ''Radio ballads'' ''Singing the Fishing,'' which was first broadcast on August 16, 1960. Ewan MacColl writes that the song was based on ...

" – 3:32 #"The Mermaid" – 2:41 #" Kelly-The Boy from Killarn" – 2:31 #"

Rosin the Bow "Old Rosin the Beau" (or "Rosin the Bow") is an American folk song popular in the 19th century, probably of British or Irish origin, first published in Philadelphia during 1838. An earlier version, "Rosin the Bow" (not ":wikt:Beau#Noun, Beau") ref ...

" – 2:48 #"Whiskey is the Life of Man" – 2:44 #" MacPherson's Lament" – 3:08 #"Whiskey You're the Devil" – 2:12 #" Holy Ground" – 2:02 The Clancy Brothers albums 1973 greatest hits albums Vanguard Records compilation albums {{1970s-folk-album-stub