The Irish Rovers is a group of Irish musicians that originated in Toronto, Canada. Formed in 1963'Irish Rovers are Digging out those old Folk songs', By Ballymena Weekly Editor, Ballymena Weekly Telegraph, N. Ireland – 20 August 1964 and named after the traditional song "

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 ...

" they are best known for their international television series, contributing to the popularization of

Irish Music Irish music is music that has been created in various genres on the island of Ireland. The indigenous music of the island is termed Irish traditional music. It has remained vibrant through the 20th and into the 21st century, despite globalis ...

in North America, and for the songs " The Unicorn", "

Drunken Sailor "Drunken Sailor", also known as "What Shall We Do with a/the Drunken Sailor?" or "Up She Rises", is a traditional sea shanty, listed as No. 322 in the Roud Folk Song Index. It was sung onboard sailing ships at least as early as the 1830s, and ...

", "Wasn't That a Party", "

The Orange and the Green "The Orange and the Green" or "The Biggest Mix-Up" is a humorous Irish folk song about a man whose father was a Protestant ("Orange") and whose mother was a Catholic ("Green"). It describes the man's trials as the product of religious intermar ...

", " Whiskey on a Sunday", " Lily the Pink", "

Finnegan's Wake "Finnegan's Wake" is an Irish-American comic ballad, first published in New York in 1864. Various 19th-century variety theatre performers, including Dan Bryant of Bryant's Minstrels, claimed authorship but a definitive account of the song's origi ...

" and "

The Black Velvet Band "The Black Velvet Band" (Roud number 2146) is a traditional folk song collected from singers in Ireland, Australia, England, Canada and the United States describing how a young man is tricked and then sentenced to transportation to Australia, a ...

". The primary voices heard in the group's early songs were

Will Millar Will Millar (born 1940) is a Northern Irish-Canadian singer best known as a co-founding member of The Irish Rovers. Until his departure in 1995, he was the group's front man. He plays guitar, banjo, mandolin and tin whistle. Early life and ca ...

(tenor), Jimmy Ferguson (baritone),

George Millar George Millar may refer to: * George Millar (writer) (1910–2005), awarded the MC for his escape during World War II which he wrote about in ''Horned Pigeon'' * George Millar (footballer) (1874–?), Scottish footballer * George Millar (singer), s ...

and Joe Millar, and in the last twenty years, also John Reynolds and Ian Millar. Wilcil McDowell's accordion has been a signature sound of the band throughout their more than fifty years. Founding member George Millar and his cousin Ian are both from

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from ga, an Baile Meánach , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is part of the Borough of Mid and East Antrim. The town is built on land given to the Adair family by King Charles I i ...

, Davey Walker from Armagh, Sean O'Driscoll from

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 ...

, Gerry O'Connor from Dundalk, with Morris Crum from Carnlough and percussionist Fred Graham from Belfast. Flute and whistle player

Geoffrey Kelly Geoffrey Kelly (born October 23, 1956 in Dumfries, Scotland) is a Canadian rock musician. He played guitars, flutes and bodhrán for the folk rock band Spirit of the West, for whom he was also the lead vocalist on some songs: Geoffrey Kelly and J ...

was born in

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from the ...

, Scotland. In the 1980s, the group briefly renamed itself The Rovers. During this period, their "Wasn't That a Party" led to crossover success in the country rock genre. The Irish Rovers have represented Canada at five World Expos, and in 2018 were honoured as one of Ireland's greatest exports at Dublin, Ireland's

EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, located in Dublin's Docklands, covers the history of the Irish diaspora and emigration to other countries. It was designed by the London-based design firm Event Communications, and was voted as "Europe's Leadi ...

History

Northern Ireland

The brothers

and

were both born in

, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The children grew up in a musical household as their father Bob played button-key accordion for several bands throughout the years. Their cousin Joe Millar, who also sang, took part in the family kitchen parties playing button-key accordion and harmonica. As children, George and Will performed with their sister, Sandra Beech as "The Millar Kids" in Ireland, before the family emigrated to Canada.

Early years

In 1963, George met fellow Irish native Jimmy Ferguson at an Irish function in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. They sang together until dawn, and founded the Irish Rovers. According to a Calgary Herald article in 1971, "George and Jimmy formed the first Irish Rovers for an amateur variety show in Toronto and won." George's cousin, Joe also soon emigrated to Toronto and was recruited as he stepped off the plane. The name "The Irish Rovers" was suggested by George's mother. The traditional Irish song about a sailing ship had been a favourite from their kitchen parties in Ballymena. For a short time, George, Jimmy and Joe were joined by Vic Marcus and Doug Henderson. George's father, Bob, became The Irish Rovers's first manager booking the new band at folk song festivals, clubs, hootenannies and The Port o' Call.'Irish Rovers are Digging out those old Folk songs', By Ballymena Weekly Editor, Ballymena Weekly Telegraph, N. Ireland – 20 August 1964 According to a 1964 newspaper in the Millars' home town in Ireland, "The folk singing 'boom' in the United States and Canada proved profitable for three young Ballymena men who form the nucleus of a popular, Toronto-based group who call themselves 'The Irish Rovers.'” In the early 60s,

and his friend Brian Evans performed in a Toronto Calypso group, The Kalypso Kews. After moving to Calgary, Will formed a folk trio in Calgary along with another Ulster native, Derek Swinson. He also developed quite a following singing at Phil's Pancake House, and then landing a job singing on Calgary's ''Just 4 Fun'', a local TV show for children. In the latter half of 1964, after more than six months performing in the Toronto area, George and Jimmy left to visit Will in Calgary. In 1979, Jimmy told ''Canadian Music Magazine'', "We actually formed the group in Toronto. I sang, George played guitar and at that time Joe was playing a little button key accordion. We were ambitious in those days, we'd played the clubs to death in Toronto and we didn't know what to do next; what direction to take. So we decided to visit Will in Calgary, ended up staying there, and the Irish Rovers became four. "". Joe moved his family out from Toronto, and the band continued in Calgary. George was enrolled in a local Calgary high school and Jimmy worked at a local Calgary slaughter house. Jimmy's job would last but a few hours. George soon quit school and Will's home became the new home base for the band. The Irish Rovers became regulars at Calgary's Depression Coffeehouse, a folk club operated by John Uren that also contributed to the start of

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

's career.

"US America"

Will introduced the group to his manager Les Weinstein who became the band's full-time manager, while Will became the band leader. The Rovers drove to California in 1966, hoping to perform in the folk clubs there. On the way, their car broke down near Denuchi's, an Italian restaurant owned by two Irish immigrants in northern California. The boys were given room and board and an introduction to Jan Brainerd, a booking agent who helped them secure an appearance at

The Purple Onion The Purple Onion was a celebrated cellar club in the North Beach area of San Francisco, California, located at 140 Columbus Avenue (between Jackson and Pacific). With an intimate, 80-person setting, the club was a popular influence in local musi ...

in San Francisco where they played sold-out houses for five months. The group was then booked at other folk clubs across California. In 1966, the Rovers signed a recording contract with

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

with

Charles Dant Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was "f ...

and recorded their first album, '' The First of the Irish Rovers,'' at The Ice House in Pasadena. The album was successful enough to warrant another album, which included their first hit, which was from a song originally written and recorded in 1962 by

Shel Silverstein Sheldon Allan Silverstein (; September 25, 1930 – May 10, 1999) was an American writer, poet, cartoonist, singer / songwriter, musician, and playwright. Born and raised in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, Silverstein briefly attended universit ...

, '' The Unicorn.''

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

played guitar on the original recording. After recording the album, Joe left the band for a more "reliable" income for a family man. It was at this time that they invited All-Ireland Champion Wilcil McDowell to join the band. After the success of "The Unicorn", Joe returned to the band. The album included the Irish tunes "

" and "

". Wilcil's accordion has continued to be a signature sound of the band. Starting in the late 60s, the Irish Rovers performed on various North American television programs including several appearances on the TV western '' The Virginian,'' as well as ''

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour ''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' was an American comedy and variety show television series hosted by the Smothers Brothers and initially airing on CBS from 1967 to 1969. The series was a major success, especially considering it was sc ...

,'' ''

The Mike Douglas Show ''The Mike Douglas Show'' was an American daytime television talk show that was hosted by Mike Douglas. It began as a local program in Cleveland before being carried on other stations owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting. The show went into nati ...

,'' ''

The Dating Game ''The Dating Game'' is an American television game show that first aired on December 20, 1965, and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s. ABC dropped the show on July 6, 1973, but it c ...

,'' ''

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,'' and ''

The Beachcombers ''The Beachcombers'' is a Canadian comedy-drama television series that ran on CBC Television from October 1, 1972, to December 12, 1990. With over 350 episodes, it is one of the longest-running dramatic series ever made for English-language Canad ...

.'' In 1968, they were named "Folk Group of the Year" by the predecessor of the

JUNO Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

s, and in 1969 they received a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nomination for "Folk Performance of the Year".

The Rovers Era

In the early 1980s, the group adjusted its style and began aiming itself towards the country-rock field. Renamed The Rovers, the group scored a major international hit with "Wasn't That a Party" and also found success with the Christmas novelty recording "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer". By the late 1980s, however, the group had reverted to their original Irish Rovers branding.

Television

In 1971, The Irish Rovers were offered their own CBC-produced television series, ''The Irish Rovers Show''. While entertaining a family audience, the show promoted Ireland and Irish music to North Americans. Guest stars included their friends

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 ...

and

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 ...

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

Carl Perkins Carl Lee Perkins (April 9, 1932 – January 19, 1998)#nytimesobit, Pareles. was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rockabilly great and pioneer of rock and roll, he began his recording career at the Sun Studio, in Memphis, Tennes ...

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, Pop music, pop, rock and roll, Folk music, folk, Swing music, swing, and country music. He started his car ...

Vera Lynn Dame Vera Margaret Lynn (; 20 March 191718 June 2020) was an English singer and entertainer whose musical recordings and performances were very popular during World War II. She is honorifically known as the " Forces' Sweetheart", having giv ...

and

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray was the fir ...

. Visits from

Shari Lewis Shari Lewis (born Phyllis Naomi Hurwitz; January 17, 1933 – August 2, 1998) was a Peabody-winning American ventriloquist, puppeteer, children's entertainer, television show host, dancer, singer, actress, author, and symphonic conductor. She wa ...

and her puppets, including Lamb Chop, were audience favourites. There were regularly taped visits to Northern and Southern Ireland, Scotland, England, New Zealand, P.E.I., Newfoundland, New Brunswick, Banff and even Alert – at the tip of Ellesmere Island – the farthest, northerly inhabited base in the world. "The Irish Rovers Show" ran for 7 years, winning an

ACTRA Award The ACTRA Awards were first presented in 1972 to celebrate excellence in Canada's television and radio industries.

for Best Variety Performance. Brothers Will and George Millar co-wrote the majority of their original Irish compositions. Producer and Director Ken Gibson and Michael Watt often hosted special effects technicians from L.A. who were learning the new green screen technology, which were used for comedic leprechaun segments featuring Will, George and Jimmy, and is later used in ''The Mother Goose Video Treasury'' in 1987. The Rovers then continued with another television series on the

Global Television Network The Global Television Network (more commonly called Global, or occasionally Global TV) is a Canadian English-language terrestrial television network. It is currently Canada's second most-watched private terrestrial television network after ...

in conjunction with

Ulster Television UTV (formerly Ulster Television, branded on air as ITV1) is the ITV region covering Northern Ireland, ITV subsidiary and the former on-air name of the free-to-air public broadcast television channel serving the area. It is run by ITV plc an ...

in Ireland. Although most of their music focuses on the band's Irish roots, in the early 1980s The Irish Rovers recorded an unknown novelty Christmas song written by Randy Brooks. Record producer Jack Richardson produced The Rovers' album, ''It Was A Night Like This.'' The single release of "

Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" is a novelty Christmas song. Written by Randy Brooks, the song was originally performed by the then-husband-and-wife duo of Elmo Shropshire and Patsy Trigg in 1979. Lyrics The lyrics tell the story of a grandm ...

" rose to the top 20 in Canada within a week of airplay. Exposure of the music on television also added to the popularity of their music. In 1980, their crossover hit recording of

Tom Paxton Thomas Richard Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is an American folk singer-songwriter who has had a music career spanning more than fifty years. In 2009, Paxton received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

's "Wasn't That a Party", which was inspired by the boys' own after-show partying, put them at the top of the charts again. In 1981, the group starred in their second Canadian TV series: ''The Rovers Comedy House,'' a seven-part CBC series of comedy and boisterous Irish music produced by Ken Gibson. For most of the 1980s the band was known as "The Rovers" and followed up hits with songs such as "

Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy" (also known as "Chattanooga Shoe Shine Boy") is a popular song written by Harry Stone and Jack Stapp and published in 1950. It is the signature song of Red Foley who recorded it in late 1949. The song has been covered ...

" and "No More Bread and Butter". Their third television series, ''Party with the Rovers,'' ran from 1984 to 1986 with Jack Richardson as Musical Director and Ken Gibson as Executive Producer. The show was set in a traditional pub setting featuring music sessions with the band performing together with

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 ...

John Allan Cameron John Allan Cameron, (16 December 1938 – 22 November 2006) was a Canadian folk singer, "The Godfather of Celtic Music" in Canada. Noted for performing traditional music on his twelve string guitar, he released his first album in 1969. He ...

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted mo ...

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 Scotl ...

Andy Gibb Andrew Roy Gibb (5 March 1958 – 10 March 1988) was an English singer, songwriter, and actor. He was the younger brother of Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin and Maurice Gibb, Maurice, who went on to form the Bee Gees. Gibb came to pr ...

Rita Coolidge Rita Coolidge (born May 1, 1945) is an American recording artist. During the 1970s and 1980s, her songs were on '' Billboard'' magazine's pop, country, adult contemporary, and jazz charts, and she won two Grammy Awards with fellow musician and t ...

Ronnie Prophet Ronald Lawrence Victor Prophet (26 December 1937 – 2 March 2018) was a Canadian-American country musician and comedy performer. He was born in Hawkesbury, Ontario, Canada. In his childhood, Prophet lived in Calumet, Quebec, and began perfo ...

, and many others. The series was produced for

Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

in conjunction with

in Ireland, and was syndicated around the world. The band members became Canadian citizens after Canada's Prime Minister,

Pierre Elliott Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and ...

, asked them to do so, to officially represent Canada around the world. By 1989 they had represented Canada at five world Expos: Montreal (1967), Osaka, Japan (1970), Okinawa, Japan (1976), Vancouver (1986), and Brisbane, Australia (1988). In recognition of their quarter century of contributions of Canadian music to the International music world, they were awarded Canada's top music honour, the Performing Rights Organization's (PROCAN) Harold Moon Award. With their double album ''25th Anniversary Collection'' in 1989, which featured the backing of

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and songs written by, amongst others,

Randy Bachman Randolph Charles Bachman (; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Bachman recorded as a solo artist and was part of a num ...

, Bryan Adams and

Jim Vallance James Douglas Vallance (born May 31, 1952) is a Canadian songwriter, arranger and producer. He is best known as the songwriting partner of Canadian musician Bryan Adams. Vallance began his professional career as the original drummer and main song ...

, the band was, once again, officially known as The Irish Rovers, but many fans still refer to them as The Rovers. Will announced his departure in 1994 and has become a successful artist focusing on the Ireland of old as a favourite subject matter. Upon departure, George replaced him as bandleader and hired fellow musicians John Reynolds and Wallace Hood. After a court battle for the name of "The Irish Rovers", the full band continued to tour, then filmed the video "The Irish Rovers, Live and Well", plus the CD, 'Celtic Collection: The Next Thirty Years'. Over the following two years they followed up with two more albums, "Gems", and "Come Fill Up Your Glasses". While the band was on tour in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

in October 1997, Jimmy Ferguson died of a heart attack. For a return to television in 2011, the band filmed the television special, ''The Irish Rovers, Home in Ireland.'' Locations for the special included

Dunluce Castle Dunluce Castle (; ) is a now-ruined medieval castle in Northern Ireland, the seat of Clan MacDonnell. It is located on the edge of a basalt outcropping in County Antrim (between Portballintrae and Portrush), and is accessible via a bridge conne ...

Carnlough Carnlough ( ; ) is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is situated in Mid and East Antrim district, as well the historic barony of Glenarm Lower, and the civil parishes of Ardclinis and Tickmacrevan. It had a population of 1,512 peopl ...

Harbour,

Portglenone Portglenone (from ga, Port Chluain Eoghain , meaning 'landing place of Eoghan's meadow') is a village and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies 8.5 miles (14 km) west of Ballymena. It had a population of 1,174 people in ...

, and various spots along the northeast coast of Northern Ireland. The show was transmitted in 2011 and 2012 across the PBS Network in North America. In 2012 ''The Irish Rovers Christmas'' television special, which was filmed at various locations in

Banff National Park Banff National Park is Canada's oldest National Parks of Canada, national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park. Located in Alberta's Rockies, Alberta's Rocky Mountains, west of Calgary, Banff encompasses of mountainous terrain, wi ...

Sunshine Village Banff Sunshine Village (formerly Sunshine Village) is a ski resort in western Canada, located on the Continental Divide of the Canadian Rockies within Banff National Park in Alberta and Mt Assiniboine Provincial Park in British Columbia. It is on ...

and

Chatham-Kent Chatham-Kent ( 2021 population: 104,316)Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it is known as "The Harbour City." The city was previously known as the "H ...

, Canada.

Shaw Communications Shaw Communications Inc. is a Canadian telecommunications company which provides telephone, Internet, television, and mobile services. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Shaw provides home telecommunications services primarily in Alberta and Br ...

also filmed behind the scenes at the event for a music documentary titled "The Irish Rovers 50th Anniversary Special". It was broadcast nationally in Canada on SHAW Video on Demand in 2015 and 2016. The two-DVD set "LIVE on St. Patrick's Day" which was filmed at The

Port Theatre The Port Theatre is a venue for performing arts, located in Nanaimo, British Columbia Nanaimo ( ) is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. As of the 2021 census, it had a population of 99,863, and it i ...

on Vancouver Island and Lismore, Ireland, was released in 2017. All three television specials were released on DVD and may be rebroadcast during the holiday seasons.

Rover Records and touring

The band continued to tour and record. Joe Millar retired from the band in 2005 when his son, Ian Millar, took up the family ranks. Joe and Ian performed once together on stage before Ian took over his father's spot. The present line-up of

, Wilcil McDowell, Ian Millar, Sean O'Driscoll, Fred Graham, Morris Crum,

and Gerry O'Connor continues to tour Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand. In 1993 the band formed their own record company, Rover Records, which allowed them artistic freedom that as a younger band they could not afford. George Millar continues to write songs for the band, with Rover Records producing their last sixteen albums including ''Celtic Collection,'' ''Come Fill Up Your Glasses,'' ''Down by the Lagan Side,'' '' Still Rovin' After All These Years,'' and their Greatest Hits albums, ''40 Years a-Rovin','' and ''The Irish Rovers's Gems.'' Their Irish homeland continues to be the primary subject of their music, as in "Erin's Green Isle", "I'll Return", "Dear Little Shamrock Shore", "

", "Home to

Bantry Bay Bantry Bay ( ga, Cuan Baoi / Inbhear na mBárc / Bádh Bheanntraighe) is a bay located in County Cork, Ireland. The bay runs approximately from northeast to southwest into the Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 3-to-4 km (1.8-to-2.5 mil ...

", "The

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

Pub Crawl", and " Gracehill Fair". Recently, their recording of "

" reached a younger audience on YouTube. In 2010, The Irish Rovers marked their 45th anniversary with the release of the CD ''Gracehill Fair,'' which won a local music award on their home base of Vancouver Island. The band returned to the World Music charts in 2011 with their album, ''Home in Ireland.'' In 2012, their single, "The Titanic", released from their ''Drunken Sailor'' album, focused attention on Belfast and the

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shipyard that had built the ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...

'' a century before. After the song, and accompanying video made headlines in Belfast, N. Ireland, it was also featured in a Canadian documentary for the CBC which aided in returning the credit of building the ship to the Northern Ireland shipyards of

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 Kingdo ...

. The album was produced in response to YouTube activity. The band slowed down their touring schedule in their fiftieth year. The release of ''The Irish Rovers, 50 Years'' compilation album supported their Farewell To Rovin' Tour which will take a few years to complete. In 2018, Wilcil McDowell retired from touring and keyboardist Morris Crum replaced him, leaving George Millar as the only remaining current member tied to the 1960s lineup. After the long tours are done, the band intends to continue recording and performing for special events. Former band member John Reynolds passed away in February 2021 in his home in

Comox, British Columbia Comox () is a town on the southern coast of the Comox Peninsula in the Strait of Georgia on the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Thousands of years ago, the warm dry summers, mild winters, fertile soil, and abundant sea life ...

Personnel

Current members

– vocals, guitar, bouzouki (1963–present) *Ian Millar – vocals, bass guitar, guitar (2005–present) *Fred Graham – drums, bodhran, bones, vocals (2007–present) *

– tin whistle, flute, uilleann pipes, vocals (2008–present) * Gerry O'Connor – fiddle (2013–present) *Davey Walker – keyboards, vocals (2019–present) *Kevin Evans – vocals, guitar (2021–present) *Shane Farrell – banjo, mandolin (2021–present) * Jimmy Keane – accordion (2021–present)

Former members

* Jimmy Ferguson – vocals (1963–97; died on tour 1997) *Joe Millar – vocals, accordion, harmonica, bass guitar (1963–68 / 1969–2005) *

– vocals, guitar, banjo, mandolin, tin whistle (1964–94) *Vic Marcus - vocals, bass guitar (1963-64) *Doug Henderson - vocals, banjo (1963-64) * Wilcil McDowell – accordion (1968–2020; retired from touring 2018) *Kevin McKeown – drums, bodhran, bones, vocals (1984–2002) *John Reynolds – vocals, guitar, harmonica (1995–2012; died 2021) *Wallace Hood – mandolin, Irish bouzouki, cittern, tenor banjo, guitar, tin whistle (1995–2005) *Sean O'Driscoll – mandolin, tenor banjo, bouzouki, box, vocals (1997–2021) *Paul Lawton – drums, bodhran, bones (2002–2005; died 2005) *

Bruce Aitken Bruce Aitken (born 1953 in Invercargill, New Zealand) is a rock and world jazz drummer. Later in his career he also became a singer and songwriter. Aitken began his career in New Zealand, performing with the band Rogers Dodgers and later Heathe ...

– drums (2007–2008) *Morris Crum – accordion, keyboards, vocals (2012–2021)

Honours

* 1968 Winners, RPM Awards (predecessor of the

), "Folk Group of the Year" * 1968

GRAMMY Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

Nomination, "Folk Performance of the Year” * 1971 Winners

ACTRA Award The ACTRA Awards were first presented in 1972 to celebrate excellence in Canada's television and radio industries.

, Best Variety Performance * 1975

Nomination, Best Album Cover, "Emigrate! Emigrate!” * 1979 Winners, PROCAN Harold Moon Award for International Achievement for TV Program * 1981

Nomination, Single of the Year, "Wasn’t That A Party” * 1981

Nomination, Folk Artist of the Year * 1982

Nomination, Group of the Year * 1982

Nomination, Country Group of the Year * 1982

Nomination, Folk Artist of the Year * 1983

Nomination, Country Group of the Year * 2010 Winners, VIMA Award (Vancouver Island Music Awards),

SOCAN The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) is a Canadian performance rights organization that represents the performing rights of more than 135,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers. The organization collects ...

Song of the Year, "Gracehill Fair" * 2023

Canadian Folk Music Awards The Canadian Folk Music Awards are an annual music awards ceremony presenting awards in a variety of categories for achievements in both traditional and contemporary folk music, and other roots music genres, by Canadian musicians. The awards progr ...

Nomination, Single of the Year, "Hey Boys Sing Us A Song”

Television specials / VHS & DVD

* ''America's Music: Folk 1 olume 7' – VHS, 1983 * ''Party with the Rovers'' – VHS, 1988 * ''The Irish Rovers Silver Anniversary'' – CBC, 1989 * ''The Irish Rovers Celebrate 30 Years'' – CBC,1994 * ''Celebrate! The First Thirty Years'' – VHS, 1994 * ''Live and Well'' – VHS, 1995 * ''Home In Ireland'' – PBS TV / DVD, 2011 * ''The Irish Rovers Christmas'' – PBS TV / DVD, 2012 * ''50th Anniversary, LIVE on St. Patrick's Day'' – SHAW TV on Demand / 2 DVD Set, 2017

Television Series, International

* ''The Irish Rovers'' – 1971, 7 years. CBC * ''The Rovers Comedy House'' – 1981, 2 years. Global Television / Ulster TV * ''Party with The Rovers'' – 1984, 3 years. Global Television / Ulster TV * ''Superspecial'' – 1980's. CBC

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

*
Will Millar's Website
*
Canadian Encyclopedia entry

Entries at 45cat.comIrish Rovers YouTube Channel
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Irish Rovers, The Irish folk musical groups Canadian folk music groups Canadian Celtic music groups Musical groups established in 1963 Attic Records (Canada) artists 1963 establishments in Ontario