The uilleann pipes are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Earlier known in English as "union pipes", their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms píobaí uilleann, from their method of inflation. There is no historical record of the name or use of the term uilleann pipes before the 20th century. It was an invention of Grattan Flood and the name stuck. People mistook the term 'union' to refer to the 1800 Act of Union; this is incorrect as Breandán Breathnach points out that a poem published in 1796 uses the term 'union'.
Paddy Moloney was an Irish musician, composer, and record producer. He co-founded and led the Irish musical group the Chieftains, playing on all of their 44 albums. He was particularly associated with the revival of the uilleann pipes.
The Bothy Band were an Irish traditional band active during the mid 1970s. They quickly gained a reputation as one of the most influential bands playing Irish traditional music. Their enthusiasm and musical virtuosity had a significant influence on the Irish traditional music movement that continued well after they disbanded in 1979.
Davy Spillane is an Irish musician, songwriter and a player of uilleann pipes and low whistle.
Dónal Lunny is an Irish folk musician and producer. He plays left-handed guitar and bouzouki, as well as keyboards and bodhrán. As a founding member of popular bands Planxty, The Bothy Band, Moving Hearts, Coolfin, Mozaik, LAPD, and Usher's Island, he has been at the forefront of the renaissance of Irish traditional music for over five decades.
Prosperous is the second album by Irish folk musician Christy Moore, released in 1972. His first album, Paddy on the Road, was recorded by Dominic Behan in 1969 and has long been out of print. In addition to Moore's guitar and voice, Prosperous featured musicians Andy Irvine, Liam Óg O'Flynn and Dónal Lunny. These four musicians later gave themselves the name Planxty, making this album something of the first Planxty album in all but name. Other musicians included Kevin Conneff on bodhrán, Clive Collins on fiddle, and Dave Bland on concertina.
Paddy Keenan is an Irish player of the uilleann pipes who first gained fame as a founding member of The Bothy Band. Since that group's dissolution in the late 1970s, Keenan has released a number of solo and collaborative recordings, and continues to tour both as a soloist, and with singer/guitarist Tommy O'Sullivan.
The Healing Game is the twenty-sixth studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1997 by Polydor. It reached the Top Ten in four countries, and the Top Twenty in three more. Following two overtly jazz albums, it saw Morrison adding blues and a pop sensibility. It is the only album recorded after 1980 which Rolling Stone judged to be among his ten best, calling it "a clear highlight of his mid-period discography".
Ronan Browne is an Irish musician and composer who plays the Irish pipes. He plays and sings with the band Cran, and also played in a 40-year duet with Peter O'Loughlin. He was the original piper with both Riverdance and the Afro Celt Sound System.
Seán Desmond Potts was an Irish musician. Born in The Liberties, Dublin, he was best known for his tin whistle playing and his long history with The Chieftains.
Paddy Glackin is an Irish fiddler and founding member of the Bothy Band. He is considered one of Ireland's leading traditional fiddle players.
Irish traditional music is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland.
Watermark is the third solo studio album by Art Garfunkel, originally released in October 1977 on Columbia Records. The first single, "Crying in My Sleep", failed to chart, but the follow-up, a version of "(What a) Wonderful World" reached #17 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The songs "Watermark" and "Paper Chase" had previously been performed by Richard Harris on his albums A Tramp Shining and The Yard Went On Forever. Watermark is also noted as being the final recording sessions of legendary saxophonist Paul Desmond who died of lung cancer shortly thereafter. Actress Laurie Bird, Garfunkel's girlfriend, made the album cover's photograph. Some promotional copies of the single "Crying in My Sleep", released in advance of the album, referred to the album as Art Garfunkel, suggesting Garfunkel initially planned for the album to be self-titled.
Another Country is a 1992 album by The Chieftains. It is a collaboration between the Irish band and many top country music musicians including Ricky Skaggs, Don Williams, Colin James, Emmylou Harris, members from The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Willie Nelson, Chet Atkins and Sam Bush. The album won the 1993 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album and was nominated in three other categories: Best Pop Instrumental Performance, Best Country Vocal Collaboration, and Best Country Instrumental Performance. The Chieftains also took home the Award for Best Traditional Folk Album that year for their 1992 live album, An Irish Evening. There was also an Another Country documentary with video footage of the performances.
Tomás Ó Canainn was an Irish Uilleann piper, accordion player, singer, composer, researcher, writer and lecturer in both electrical engineering and music. He was a founder of the group Na Filí with fiddler Matt Cranitch and whistle player Tom Barry in the late 1960s and 1970s. They gained considerable popularity and recorded several albums.
The Bucks were a band who played music based largely on Irish folk, touring briefly and recording and releasing one album for WEA Records in 1994. While remaining obscure, the band was formed by well-known Irish musicians Ron Kavana and Terry Woods. Paddy Keenan played pipes. James McNally was also a member, as were several members of Kavana's primary group, The Alias Band.
Na Píobairí Uilleann is a non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of the Irish Uilleann pipes and its music.
Poirt an Phiobaire is a 1983 solo release by uillean piper and whistle player Paddy Keenan.
The Woods Band was an Irish folk-rock band formed in 1970 by husband and wife team Gay & Terry Woods, shortly after their departure from Steeleye Span. The band played and recorded for four years before evolving into Gay & Terry Woods. In 2001, Terry Woods formed a new band and named it The Woods Band, which performed and recorded through 2003.
Thomas "Tommy" Joseph Reck was an Irish uilleann piper, known for his discography of traditional Irish music. Born in the Liberties area of Dublin, Reck learned to play the uilleann pipes from the age of eleven from teacher "Old John" Potts (1871–1950) who lived just around the corner from his then home in Walkinstown. Potts, in turn, had been a pupil of Martin O'Reilly of Galway (1829–1904) and several other blind pipers who were brought to Dublin annually around 1900 to play in competition at the Feis Ceoil, an annual music festival.
