(Down by the Glenn) The Bold Fenian Men - Clancy Brothers, Kearney, P.
Johnson's Motor Car
Irish Rover [Live]
A Nation Once Again
The Jug of Punch [Live] - Clancy Brothers, McPeake, Francis
Whisky, You're the Devil [Live] - Clancy Brothers, Clancy, J.
Isn't It Grand Boys [Live]
The Patriot Game [Live] - Clancy Brothers, Behan, D.
I'm a Free Born Man of the Traveling People [Live] - Clancy Brothers, McColl, Erwin
Mr. Moses Ri-Tooral-I-Ay [Live]
Gallant Forty TWA [Live]
The Old Orange Flute [Live]
Royal Canal [Live] - Clancy Brothers, Behan, B.
Whiskey Is the Life of Man [Live]
Paddy West
These days it's difficult to understand how big the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem were in the early 1960s. But the fact that a young Bob Dylan once claimed he was going to be more famous than they were--and then borro... more »wed the melody from their song "The Patriot Game" for his own "With God on our Side"--hints at the level of influence they had. The tracks on The Best of the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem were made between 1962 and 1969, and include a well-chosen selection of drinking songs, rebel ballads, and comic turns, most of which were recorded live in various concerts. The quartet belts out these songs with a good-natured gusto that owes more to the Weavers than it does to traditional Irish performance technique, but their renditions of classics like "The Rising of the Moon" and "A Nation Once Again" are still stirring. The group underwent many personnel changes in the years after these recordings were made, but the combination of Tommy Makem and Tom, Liam, and Paddy Clancy was never bettered. --Michael Simmons« less
These days it's difficult to understand how big the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem were in the early 1960s. But the fact that a young Bob Dylan once claimed he was going to be more famous than they were--and then borrowed the melody from their song "The Patriot Game" for his own "With God on our Side"--hints at the level of influence they had. The tracks on The Best of the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem were made between 1962 and 1969, and include a well-chosen selection of drinking songs, rebel ballads, and comic turns, most of which were recorded live in various concerts. The quartet belts out these songs with a good-natured gusto that owes more to the Weavers than it does to traditional Irish performance technique, but their renditions of classics like "The Rising of the Moon" and "A Nation Once Again" are still stirring. The group underwent many personnel changes in the years after these recordings were made, but the combination of Tommy Makem and Tom, Liam, and Paddy Clancy was never bettered. --Michael Simmons
David N. (ilikeallmusic) from GADSDEN, AL Reviewed on 10/11/2015...
Rated 4.5 out of 5.0 at All Music Guide, It took a while to get use to Celtic Folk music.
This was indeed something different and after a few listening s I do like this. I'm thinking about get some more from this group and or Genre! David N.
CD Reviews
These guys deserve better
03/25/2002
(2 out of 5 stars)
"The fan fom Las Vegas sums up beautifully how Sony has failed to do justice to this important group. If the Sony Legacy executives ever get the insight and energy to attempt to issue a compilation that actually is the best of, they might consider involving the surviving artists, Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem. It's their art, after all. Insted, we get a falsely-labelled package that is just another piece of big label product timed to meet the March demand for Irish music. It's good stuff because the artists are great, but it is certainly not "the best." In picking as "the best" mostly outakes released by Sony in the 1990's rather than the original stuff issued and sold in the 1960's, the compilers have ignored great songs (and albums), including (from "The First Hurrah!") The Leaving of Liverpool, The Mermaid, the original and superior Gallant Forty-Twa, (from "The Boys Won't Leave the Girls Alone") I'll Tell My Ma, South Australia (later covered by the Pogues), the Holy Ground, Rothsea-O, Will Ye Go, Lassie, Go?, (from "Isn't It Grand Boys") Galway Races, Nancy Whisky, Galway City and the original and superior version of the title cut, (from "Home Boys Home")Old Maid in the Garrett, New South Wales, Four Green Fields. Of the 16 cuts on this compilation, 11 are live, but excluded are superior live songs from "A Spontaneous Performance Recording!" (The Moonshiner, Tim Finnegan's Wake, Reilly's Daughter), "Freedom's Sons" (Green in the Green), "Recorded Live In Ireland!" (Wild Rover, Beggar Man, Butcher Boy), "In Concert" (MacAlpine's Fuzilliers, Red Haired Mary). Other great songs MIA: Legion of the Rearguard, Jolly Tinker, Johnny McEldoo, Wild Colonial Boy, Rocky Road to Dublin. Based on this and the other Clancys/Makem CD compilations it has issued on Legacy, Sony just doesn't know what it has. The fans only hope appears to be that Rhino will take an interest, involve Liam and Tommy and and issue a real compilation under license."
Alas, Out goes the baby with the bathwater
John P.Lesko | 04/03/2002
(2 out of 5 stars)
"In August of 1995, I saw a very detatched Liam Clancy, leaning on a railing in Milwaukee. I mentioned the recent "Ain't It Grand" release, and Mr. Clancy became extremely animated and proclaimed that, "They were suing Columbia/Legacy over that release."A year later, brother Paddy said that they had dropped the litigation, since all Columbia's recordings that they made, were, in essence Columbia's property. End of story.Oddly enough, Columbia/Legacy circled the wagons and left them circled after that little tiff. I am sure that the logistics of defending one's self against a suit are extremely resource heavy. But, two consecutive rehashes of the first five C/L releases tries my patience in extremis!I recently acquired a new pc with virtually unlimited hard drive, and have succeeded in doing what I had hoped C/L would do. I have transcribed to hard disc, every Clancy/Makem recording from "Spontanious Performance" to "Flowers Of The Valley", including a rather neat re editing of the two record "Easter Rebellion" album. Does this mean that I will never again purchase a Columbia/Legacy release of "Clancy/Makem Treasures"? NO!I am secretly hoping for a massive compilation, similar to the Simon & Garfunkel re issue. That would be, all the basic Columbia albums from 1961 to 1970, with little recordings like "Young Cassidy" and "Brennan On The Moor" and "The Bonny Earl Of Moray" included. If you are contemplating such an undertaking, please, communicate with us who hunger. Don't cling to re releasing the same nucleus of songs, time and time again. Take any one of five "live" albums and re issue them the way you did Pete Seeger. We'd die for a taste of that! You are sitting on a treasure trove of music. Please, share it with those who truly appreciate it!Thank you."
The Very very Best
Paul Lawton | Eday, Orkney , Scotland | 01/02/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have just purchased from Amazon.co.uk a Columbia/Legacy CD No.CK86022 'The Best of The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem'.The front sleeve is axactly the same as the above CD But the content is completely different. A lot of the songs are different. The sound quality is very good (I could well be back in the early 1960's listening to my original LPs) The Amazon.co.uk asin no is B000063RN6. My 5 star rating is for this CD and not the one above.
I hope this helps."
How about 0 Stars!!!
music lover | 10/03/2007
(1 out of 5 stars)
"This rating is not about the performances, which are amazing as always. The rating comes from the fact that Columbia decides to continuously reissue the same material, most of which is not that great compared to other versions of the same songs. It is a true shame that Columbia seems to think that no one would be interested in a complete reissue of the catalog of music. It is even more frustrating when you see titles on this CD like, "Royal Canal", and think "Wow, this must be from "Bold Fenian Men", only to find out it's an inferior release from "Ain't it Grand?" Same with "Old Orange Flute". We would much prefer the version from "Live in Ireland". And how about some other fantastic songs that ARE greatest hits?? Columbia, you should hang your head in shame. "Ain't it Grand?" I Think Not!"