Search - Clancy Brothers, Robbie O'Connell :: Older But No Wiser

Can't match the old stuff, but still satisfying

Francis King | Calgary, AB, Canada | 11/03/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"By the time this was recorded, Tommy Makem was long since history as a member of this seminal Irish folk group. Robbie O'Connell was a talented replacement, but of course, the Clancy boys were all feeling their years, and so there simply isn't the energy and passion that even the brilliant 1984 Reunion live album had. Still, it's a nice quality recording and the singing is first-rate."

Perhaps the most under-appreciated albums in the genre

08/27/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Clancy's, here, have given us a work that pushes beyond the pub song/ballad/folksiness that defines much of their work. Very similar to the works of Bob Dylan on Time out of Mind, or Warren Zevon on Life Will Kill Ya, this record contemplates the anguish of aging without sacrificing that certain Clancy brothers charm. I would recomend this album based solely on what I consider to be the most haunting and meaningful rendition of The Final Trawl ever recorded. A star must be striken from the rating only because the rendition of When the Ship Comes In was very sub par to the live performance they gave on the Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary concert album. That album, to, may be worth buying on the strength of the single track (though, don't get me wrong, I think it's an excellent album for all of them)."