(1932-2007)

The recent death of Irish folk musician Tommy Makem shook not only his friends and family on the Seacoast, but music fans around the world. Once one of the most famous Irish singers on the planet, Makem died in his Dover home on Aug. 1 after a lengthy battle with lung cancer. He was 74.

Best known as a member of the Clancy Brothers, Makem helped fuel the folk revival of the 1960s. He made his first big waves in the United States at the Newport Folk Festival in 1961, where he and Joan Baez split honors as most promising newcomers in the American folk scene. As a member of the Clancy Brothers, Makem performed on the Ed Sullivan Show and the Tonight Show, and played major concerts at venues like Carnegie Hall in New York and Royal Albert Hall in London. The band helped turn rustic Irish folk music, which had quietly existed in its homeland for centuries, into a global music phenomenon.

Makem parted ways with the Clancy Brothers in 1969 and embarked on a highly successful solo career, singing poetic lyrics in a baritone lilt while playing banjo and tinwhistle. The beloved bard’s most famous folk songs include “The Winds are Singing Freedom,” “Gentle Annie” and “Four Green Fields.”

Over the past several decades, Makem has repeatedly been recognized for his contributions to Irish music and culture. Highlights of his vast acclaim include being named one of the top 100 Irish Americans of the 20th century by Irish America Magazine and a lifetime achievement award from the World Folk Music Association in 1999.  

Locally, Makem was cherished both as a musician and as a man. His three sons, Shane, Conor and Rory, continue to help Irish folk music thrive on the Seacoast, performing as The Makem Brothers. N.H. Department of Cultural Resources Commissioner Van McLeod called Makem a “quintessential Irish troubadour” in a statement following his death.

“It is with great sadness that I have to report Tommy Makem passed away tonight after a long bout with lung cancer,” read a message posted on Makem’s Web site, www.makem.com, on Aug. 1. 

“God be good to this finest of men,” read another statement. 

“Dear Tommy may the angels take you to your rest,” read another.