Leahy is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

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 b ...

group. The eight band members, all from the Leahy family of 11 siblings, are from Lakefield, Ontario and have been touring Canada and internationally since the early 1980s, when they were known as The Leahy Family. In 1985, they were the subject of a short film entitled ''Leahy: Music Most of All'' which received an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

in the category of "Best Foreign Student Film." The members of Leahy take significant pride in their Irish roots and Canadian upbringing. The line-up of the group varies depending upon the availability of its members, who are present or absent due to marriage, childrearing and other obligations. During the 1980s and early 1990s, the band recorded a number of privately released LPs and cassettes (most of which used the same title, ''The Leahy Family'') which were sold at their concerts and they were frequent guests at the

Big Valley Jamboree The Big Valley Jamboree, commonly referred to as "BVJ", is an annual country music festival held in Camrose, Alberta, Canada. Established in 1992, the Jamboree is held during the Civic Holiday in August and features country singers from North A ...

concerts in

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...

and

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. In 1997, the band resumed recording with their "relaunch" album, ''

Leahy Leahy is a Canadian folk music group. The eight band members, all from the Leahy family of 11 siblings, are from Lakefield, Ontario and have been touring Canada and internationally since the early 1980s, when they were known as The Leahy Family ...

'' which also introduced the group's new branding. ''Leahy'' was an instrumental album, but the band also includes vocal performances in their live performances and subsequent albums have included both vocals and instrumentals. Despite their established history, they were awarded two Juno awards in 1998, for Best New Group and Best Instrumental Artist. The following year, Leahy took a third Juno Award, for Best Country Group or Duo. Also in 1998, Leahy were added as the opening act for Canadian country singer

Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...

's 1998

Come on Over Tour The Come On Over Tour was the debut concert tour by Canadian singer-songwriter Shania Twain. Visiting North America, Australia and Europe, the tour supported of her third studio album ''Come On Over'' (1997). Deemed one of the most anticipated to ...

and were featured in two television specials from the tour, '' Live'' and ''

The Specials The Specials, also known as The Special AKA, are an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, Lynval ...

'', performing with Twain on the song "

Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You) "Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)" is a song by Canadian country music singer Shania Twain. It was released in November 1997 as the second single from Twain's album ''Come On Over'' but was the seventh to be released to international market ...

". The group's members are both instrumentalists and dancers, with several members skilled in fiddle-playing (most notably the band's most famous member, Donnell). The female members of the band often perform step-dancing-style routines and do most of the singing.

Members

All members of the band are siblings. Each member has a main role to play in the band; although most play more than one instrument and all step dance. Donnell Leahy is married to Cape Breton fiddler

Natalie MacMaster Natalie MacMaster (born June 13, 1972) is a Canadian fiddler from Troy, Inverness County, Nova Scotia who plays Cape Breton fiddle music. MacMaster has toured with the Chieftains, Faith Hill, Carlos Santana, and Alison Krauss, and has recorded ...

and Frank is married to champion step dancer Chanda Gibson. In 2008, Donnell Leahy and Natalie MacMaster were awarded honorary doctorate degrees by Trent University. *Donnell Leahy — Fiddle *Erin Leahy — Piano, Guitar, Fiddle, Mandolin, Vocals, Bass *Angus Leahy — Fiddle *Maria Leahy — Guitar, Banjo, Vocals *Siobheann Donohue (née Leahy) — Bass, Vocals, Fiddle *Doug Leahy — Fiddle *Denise Flack (née Leahy) — Vocals *Frank Leahy — Drums These three sisters are not currently active in the band's touring schedule. *Agnes Enright (née Leahy) — Keyboards, Step dancer, Vocals *Chrissie Quigley (née Leahy) — Keyboards *Julie Leahy — Vocals

Discography

Albums

In addition, the group released several vinyl LPs and cassettes in the 1980s as The Leahy Family. These self-titled releases were privately pressed and usually sold at their concerts, although ''Christmas with the Leahy Family'' was carried by retailers such as A&B Sound.

Singles

Music videos

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Canadian country music groups Canadian folk music groups Juno Award for Breakthrough Group of the Year winners Canadian people of Irish descent Musical groups from Ontario Canadian Celtic music groups Juno Award for Instrumental Album of the Year winners Canadian Country Music Association Group or Duo of the Year winners