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Moore, Christy. (1945– ). Singer, songwriter. Born in Newbridge, Co. Kildare, to Andy Moore from that town, and Neans de Paor of Yellow Furze, Navan. From his mother he learned to sing, and became absorbed in rock ’n’ roll initially, then was deeply moved by the Clancy Brothers. He learned guitar in 1961 from Dónal Lunny, and while still in his teens he formed with him a duo, The Rakes of Kildare. He worked briefly in the Bank of Ireland, but left during the strike of 1966 to tour folk clubs in England, during his stay there recording his first album, Paddy on the Road, with Dominic Behan as producer. Out of Ireland he was influenced by music heard in pubs in Fulham, Camden Town, Cricklewood, Moss Side, Glasgow and Blairgowrie. Singers John Reilly, Luke Kelly, Ewan MacColl, Martin Carthy, Hamish Imlach, Joe Heaney and Annie Briggs also influenced him.
Planxty. He returned to Ireland in 1971, and recorded Prosperous, released in 1972. With three of the musicians who played on that album – Liam O’Flynn, Dónal Lunny and Andy Irvine – he formed the group Planxty, the most popular band of the 1970s. When they split in 1975 he pursued a solo career; they re-formed in 1978, but within a few years Moore and Lunny had left to form Moving Hearts. He left after that band’s second album and developed a successful solo career, playing to huge audiences at home and abroad. An uncompromisingly political singer, Moore has espoused such causes as the Carnsore Point antinuclear protest, H-Block hunger strikes and the lot of the ordinary worker. His lyrics are intense, rhythmical in a ‘talking blues’ style, and when not (as sometimes), bitingly sarcastic, moralistic, sentimental or angry, can radiate an intense humorous understatement. Other members of the Moore family are involved in music. Brother Barry performs as ‘Luka Bloom’, nephew Conor Byrne plays flute (album Wind Dancer).
recordings. Moore performed on all of Planxty’s recordings and on Moving Hearts (1982) and The Dark End of the Street (1982) with Moving Hearts. By 2009 he had recorded twenty-six solo albums, as well as six with Planxty and two with Moving Hearts. Although Moore retired from public performance in 1998, like many others he returns to the stage intermittently. In 1994 Hummingbird recorded Christy, a documentary for RTÉ on his life and music, and another, Live at the Point, in 2006. His choice of songs, including his own lyrics, are recorded in Frank Connolly’s 1984 The Christy Moore Songbook, and his own autobiographical One Voice in 2000.

Jimmy McBride comes from Gaoth Dobhair in north-west Donegal but has spent his working life and still lives in Buncrana. A teacher by profession, he has spent many years collecting and recording songs from Inishowen and surrounding areas. It is this collection of recordings upon which the Inishowen Song Project is largely based. A fine singer himself, Jimmy's repertoire includes songs learned locally and many songs in Irish from his native west Donegal area.

A Glaswegian of Highland and Irish descent, Geordie's lifetime involvement in song, ballad and poetry is reflected in his singing, collecting and songwriting.
His early years as a radio and television technician and later as a Modern Studies teacher, coupled to his passion for the outdoors have, in diverse ways, fueled and complemented his central interest in folk music; as a concert and folk club organiser, author and record producer.
For many years Geordie has collected songs, working with Hamish Henderson, Helen Fullerton and A.L. Lloyd. He has an interest that combines hearing the songs in the community and researching their background.
He has written song notes for numerous recordings along with album reviews. His first-hand experience has added greatly to his articles on the legacy of Hamish Henderson, edited by the late Paddy Bort, in the Gracenote Publications.
Geordie has sung at clubs and festivals in most corners of Britain and Ireland as well as Italy and the USA.

Nellie Walsh (1913-1997) was a singer and aficionado of Irish traditional song who wrote a weekly column for 'Ireland's own' from the mid 1960s until the mid 1990s. 'Ireland's own' is a family-run Irish magazine published out of Walsh's home county of Wexford since 1902. Nellie Walsh died 8 June 1997.