Makem and Spain
Manchester, NH | Established. Jan 01, 2002 | INDIE
Music
Press
(The Makem Brothers with Mickey and Liam Spain) show people of many different backgrounds that old songs don’t have to die, if a small group of men or women love them and make sure to get together once in a while to sing them.
Pete Seeger
This is a great new CD. It’s warm, joyful, and full of life. It makes me smile when I listen to it!
Roger McGuinn
Conor, Rory, Shane, Liam and Mickey, who began touring the United States and Ireland as a folk supergroup in 2003 have now produced an inspired recording of their traditional and original music that captures the magic and infectious energy of their live stage show…The Makems and the Spains have every reason to be proud for carrying on a family tradition that has set the bar for folk musicians the world over.
The Rochester Times, Rochester, NH
Like Others Did Before us is an important musical milestone…Three of the 13 tracks are originals, and would be standouts if only the other tracks were not so darned good.
Foster’s Daily Democrat, Dover, NH
The Makem Brothers with Mickey and Liam Spain are the definitive Irish folk singers of their generation.
NY Chronicle
This album is nothing less than ‘OUTSTANDING.’ This is the best album I have received in a long time. I love the great selection of songs and the fantastic arrangements. What a sound! Great job!
Jim Larkin, WBET Radio, Brockton, MA.
What a great CD!
Pat Walke, KROS Radio, Clinton IA
Millions have become fans through the brothers' stage appearances, performances on American public television, and sit downs on Irish talk shows. If you missed all three, you must not have been visiting Heaven when God was handing out Makem Brothers concert schedules.
... If you like your Celtic traditional, with bite, substance, historical perspective and pervasive joy, you'll absolutely love Stand Together.
Foster's Daily Democrat Showcase
Dover, NH
This is America's top Irish folk group
The Sunday Chronicle
Muskegon, Michigan
... they exude class in their chosen field.
Folk Roots Magazine
UK
When it comes to gathering together an incredible, choice songbook of rare gems, the Makems simply shine.
Portsmouth Herald
Portsmouth, NH
The Makem Brothers...gave one of the best performances of the year...greeted by tumultuous applause with every song...wonderful music and song.
The Argus
Dundalk, Co. Louth Ireland
The Makem Brothers are not just entertainers, they are full-time educators and communicators...Their textures and sounds make them one of the most original traditional groups that is on the Irish music scene today.
Images
Laconia, New Hampshire
The third generation of legendary Irish folk musicians.
TV Guide
... what the Makem Brothers have done is to restore the song tradition to its rightful place at the crossroads of history and music.
The Irish Connection
Detroit, Michigan
The lads put on a fabulous show! They proved to be powerful performers, gifted musicians, their harmonies were beautiful, and they had a fun, comfortable rapport with their audience and with each other.
The Celtic Informer
New Orleans, Louisiana
The boys are able to continue the Clancy-Makem mantle and yet be uniquely themselves with a freshness that shows real affection for the music..
WRDV
Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania
The Makem Brothers ... particular strength ... lies in backing their right-on harmonies with powerful and somewhat unexpected instrumentation ... to create a synthesis of traditional Irish sound.
Dirty Linen
Baltimore, Maryland
They don't Makem like these guys anymore.
Quad City Times
Davenport, Iowa
One of the most sought after acts overnight.
The Patriot Ledger
Quincy, Massachusetts
- Various
Discography
The Makem and Spain Brothers - Like Others Did Before Us, Live
The Makem Brothers - Who Fears To Speak, Stand Together
The Spain Brothers - Fields To The Stones
Photos
Bio
Every generation has a few acts that define where a musical genre is going, performers so confident in their chosen field that they are able to completely embrace the genre and yet introduce something new to it. In Irish folk music today, that act is Makem and Spain.
Not in the past 30 years has a group taken the international stage with such vocal power and stage presence, capturing the essence of their genre, while standing out as something truly unique. A host of various instruments and three male vocals, using precise three-part harmonies blend perfectly for what many have described as a wall of sound. Makem and Spain are at their best onstage where their talent and enthusiasm draw in fans who have never experienced the joy of folk music.
They were once considered the new kids on the block, but have honed their craft over nearly two decades of international performances and are now one of the truly stalwart, road-tested Irish vocal groups available. They have played before millions of people from Canada to Texas, from California to the Caribbean and over to Ireland, highlighting national PBS specials and popular Irish talk shows along the way.
Rory Makem was born in Drogheda, County Louth, about an hour north of Dublin. He continues the lineage of one of Irish music's dynasties, begun by his grandmother Sarah Makem, who was sought after by song collectors for her store of traditional Irish songs. His father, Tommy Makem, was the modern day Bard of Armagh. Now considered an icon, he helped to bring Irish music out of the corner and into the international spotlight, where it has remained ever since.
Mickey and Liam, too, learned Irish songs at their father's knee. Mickey's rich, baritone voice and Liam's mastery of stringed instruments quickly found a home when Rory met the Spains and they realized the power of their combined talents.
But folk songs are engrained in both families and their songwriting contains the timeless qualities of folk classics, songs of the worker, songs of the sea and Irish culture. They tell the tale of Ireland and its people - a culture that has undergone terrible strife, but remains strong.
Where is Irish music going? There are instrumental bands bringing it down uncharted roads, moving it forward and keeping it living. But there is only one band that is driving Irish folk songs into the 21st century internationally. That band is Makem and Spain.
Band Members
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