Liam Clancy, the last surviving member of the Irish band, The Clancy Brothers, passed away this morning.
I've got a lot of Clancy Brothers recordings...they were fine musicians and good singers with great harmony, and Liam was a terrific ballad singer.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/art ... gD9CCNR383

The man that Bob Dylan called 'the best ballad singer I've ever heard'

Sad. One of my favorites.

There is an Arlo connection here...on Cherish the Ladies (another Irish band I love!) recording, "The Girls Won't Leave the Boys Alone" Arlo recorded the song " The Jolly Beggerman" with Liam, with the Ladies as the band backing them. The whole CD is lovely, and worth buying just for the harmonies in first song "Broom of the Cowdenowes".

The song "The Jolly Beggerman" with Arlo and Liam is fun and worth listening to. I think it was a little under the radar here, but in my other life I'm an Irish fiddler, so I noticed!

Is "The Jolly Beggarman" the same tune as "Little Beggarman" that Arlo recorded with Shenandoah on "One Night"

I grew up listening to the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem (and sometimes my father singing their songs as he drove along). The first time I saw Pete Seeger was at Carnegie Hall, around Easter 1970 or 1971, with them (and others). It's hard to believe the brothers and Makem are all gone now.

Found this, wondering around Youtube, and it made me smile:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7WeuHGPqw8

No..this one is a different song, about a handsome begger that stays the night on the floor in the kitchen in a wealthy household; the daughter thinks he's pretending to be a begger and is really a wealthy landholder, willingly and eagerly surrenders her virginity to him, and finds out in the morning that he really is a begger, and she's quite "undone". The one Arlo recorded with Shenandoah is also known as "Johnny Dhu" and the tune is commonly known (without the words) as "Red Haired Boy". He sometimes plays it in concert on double harmonicas.

Thanks Sue, for the education......love that song!!!

So sorry to hear about him. Had no idea the others had passed. RIP...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJHqCahX ... re=related

Girl From The North Side of Town (more or less)