''The First Hurrah!'' is a collection 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 ...

Irish folk songs 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 ...

performed by

The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

. It was their fifth album for Columbia Records and was released in 1964. The album's title is likely a play on

Edwin O'Connor Edwin Greene O'Connor (July 29, 1918 – March 23, 1968) was an American journalist, novelist, and radio commentator. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1962 for his novel '' The Edge of Sadness'' (1961). His ancestry was Irish, and his no ...

's 1956 novel ''

The Last Hurrah ''The Last Hurrah'' is a 1956 novel written by Edwin O'Connor. It is considered the most popular of O’Connor's works, partly because of a 1958 movie adaptation starring Spencer Tracy. The novel was immediately a bestseller in the United Stat ...

''. The original LP featured

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desc ...

by critic Robert Sherman. The album appeared on the '' Billboard'' charts and its single, "The Leaving of Liverpool," on the Irish Top 10 charts.

Reception

''Billboard'' chose the album as a "Special Merit Pick." The magazine's review praised the Clancys and Makem's "fun and exuberance" and referred to the record as "another strong sampling of the boys' zesty and humorous approach" to Irish folklore. ''Billboard'' also reviewed the singles record taken from ''The First Hurrah!'', which Columbia released prior to the full LP. The article rated "The Leaving of Liverpool" with four stars. Side B of the single, " The Gallant Forty-Twa," received three stars.

Track listing

All songs

Side one

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 ...

" - 2:46 #" The Mermaid" – 3:00 #"

Rocky Road to Dublin "Rocky Road to Dublin" is a 19th-century Irish song written by Irish poet D. K. Gavan about a man's experiences as he travels to Liverpool, England from his home in Tuam, Ireland. Originally popularized by Harry Clifton, it has since been per ...

" – 2:28 #"Johnny Todd" – 2:02 #"Rosin the Bow" – 2:37 #"The West's Awake" – 3:22

Side two

#"Row, Bullies, Row" – 1:39 #"Gallant Forty-Twa" – 2:29 #"An Poc Ar Buile (The Mad Goat)" – 2:31 #"

Carrickfergus Carrickfergus ( , meaning " Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,998 at the 2011 Census. It is County Antrim's oldest ...

" – 2:30 #" Bonny Charlie" – 3:30 #" Kelly, the Boy from Killann" – 2:35

Personnel

Liam Clancy Liam Clancy ( ga, Liam Mac Fhlannchadha; 2 September 1935 – 4 December 2009) was an Irish folk singer from Carrick-on-Suir, County Tipperary. He was the youngest member of the influential folk group the Clancy Brothers, regarded as Ireland's ...

- vocals, guitar * Pat Clancy - vocals, harmonica *

Tom Clancy Thomas Leo Clancy Jr. (April 12, 1947 – October 1, 2013) was an American novelist. He is best known for his technically detailed espionage and military-science storylines set during and after the Cold War. Seventeen of his novels have ...

- vocals *

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 banj ...

- vocals, banjo, tin whistle The sound of a drum can be heard on the eighth track, but it is not certain who played it. Also, a mandolin is played on the first track, but it is also not certain who played it.

Chart positions

''The First Hurrah!'' spent six weeks on ''Billboard Magazine's'' list of the top 150 full-length albums of all genres released in the United States. On 30 May the album reached #91 in the chart, its highest position. "The Leaving of Liverpool" from the album stayed on the singles chart in Ireland for a few weeks. It reached #6 on the chart and stayed there for two weeks in late March 1964.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:First Hurrah!, The 1964 albums The Clancy Brothers albums Albums produced by Tom Wilson (record producer) Columbia Records albums