Search - Clancy Brothers, Tommy Makem :: The Makem & Clancy Concert

The album that revived T. Makem and L. Clancy's career.

07/01/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After Tommy Makem left the Clancy Brothers in 1969 the remainder of the group basicly became an oldies act that explored little new material. Although The Clancy Brothers were still quite entertaining if you were lucky enough to see them live, they never again, except for the highly emotional "Reunion" album were able to recapture the majic of their '60's recordings where you would swear they were right there in your den performing for you. The Makem & Clancy Concert changed things. Tommy and Liam reunited in mid 70's and this fine live album is a testamony as to how they jump started their temporarily stalled careers. They reworked old songs like O'Donnell Abu, wrote new material like Rambles of Spring, and brought the work of new emerging song writers like Eric Bogle into their program with fresh enthusiasm. They also enriched the music from the 60's period by adding fiddle, bodrahn, concertina and flute to the usual guitar-banjo-whistle arrangements.It's all here on this live album recorded in front of an appreciative Dublin audience. It's so obvious that this also is the album that proved that Tommy and Liam did have what it takes to make it as successful solo performers, a fact that holds true for both of them to this very day. Buy this album and you will here what is awatershed performance of two of the very best folk singers at a make or break point in their careers. Be warned though that a few great performances from the original double LP including "Peter Kagan And The Wind" have been cut from the CD which enrages me. You'll have to find an old scratched up LP at the used vinyl store or maybe the library to hear the entire uncut album. Despite this flaw, I highly reccomend this album to all Clancy Brothers and TM fans. It's some of Tommy and Liam's best work."

WHY DID THEY LEAVE OFF THE BEST TRACK?

Margaret Cutts | Paris, France | 11/24/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I appreciate the fact that M & C were able to fit a two album recording on one CD Rom, but frankly would rather have paid the extra money to have two CDs that include my favourite song: Peter Kagan and the Wind. I used to own the the double album in vinyl and love every song. If you don't know them, I guess you won't know what you are missing. However, I would still recommend going on e-bay to find the original album, if you are old and sad enough (like me) to have a turntable. Or maybe we could all write to the music publishers to complain?"

Clancy and Makem Offering Up Their Love

chlorinechaise@aol.com | Boston, MA | 02/03/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Have a seat at the bar and hear yourself a treat that's not soon forgotten. Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy got together after half a decade of musical separation to perform in Ireland. This album is compiled from concerts performed over a 5 day period. As the previous reviewer suggested, you can't help but feel as though you've wonderful company with you in the living room.The two joke with one another and the audience throughout the record and just put forth some of the most beautiful performances either has ever recorded. One cannot escape the mood or ambiance, as they set the table with an upbeat, good-time song, Rambles of Spring...it suggests a sign of things to come. Town Of Ballybay brings more smiles and laughs and I highly suggest inviting a good friend or two over, pouring pints and filling glasses to capture the fullness of these performances.The Dutchman follows and emotions just come crashing down. Go back and play this song again after you've had your fill of strong drink and try to stop the tears from welling, just try it. If by some unfathomable reason you're sucessful in doing this, follow up by playing Waltzing Matilda.Thankfully, Makem and Clancy let up on the heart strings after Dutchman and deliver the laughs once more with a hilarious rendition of The Mermaid. This song is an excellent example of Irish wit, tinged with the sadness of shaking one's head at the implausibility of life. Mary Mack once again brings the grins. Waltzing Matilda, a song penned by Eric Bogle (for more Bogle, check out his album Scraps Of Paper), leaves me wondering how many times Oliver Stone spun this disk before writing Born On The Fourth Of July. It also leaves me emotional, as any great, layered ballad such as this should.O'Donnell Abu, a percussion-filled traditional Irish tune that gets the feet thumping and the blood pumping, is immediatly followed by a stunningly beautiful Gaelic-lyriced song, the title of which I don't feel like typing... My Father Loves Nikita Khrushcez is a wonderful, funny song, however it seems somewhat out of place after hearing the two songs previous...I wonder if originally there was something before this song?Sound The Pibroch and The Cobbler are staples of Liam's and Tommy's, respectively. Makem was singing and performing The Cobbler, most probably since the day he was born, and has obviously perfected this somewhat disturbing, ultimately thought-provoking ballad. 200 Year Old Alcoholic took me a little while to get used to, however it simply hit me one day as a poignant, enjoyable, and classic Makem&Clancy tune. The penultimate offering is a wonderful display of the weary, proud, down but never out spirit of the Irish, The Rocky Road To Dublin, and after its end the two songsmiths ramble and play, joke and laugh about the concert and their finale song, Leave Her Johnny. You're left knowing that they, just as much as you, do not want this to end. They've sung with exaltation and laughed with exuberance, just as you have and the entire experience has left all involved slightly more fulfilled than before.Of course, the one, slight advantage of having this wonder on record is that you can hit "PLAY" and begin it all anew."