Legendary singer Liam Clancy has died aged 74.Mr Clancy, who found fame as a member of the Clancy Brothers and Tommie Makem, died in hospital this afternoon. He had been ill for some time.
Born in Carrick on Suir, he was the youngest of 11 children.
As a young man he dreamed of life on the stage, but there was music in his blood too.
In his late teens he met and travelled Ireland with US song collector Diane Hamilton Guggenhim and eventually travelled to the US with her.
His brothers Paddy and Tom had emigrated before him - and the three along with renowned Armagh singer Tommy Makem began performing together.
With their trademark aran jumpers - sent by Mrs Clancy to protect against the hard New York winters - The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem played legendary venues such as the White Horse Tavern in New York.
They became international stars following a performance on the Ed Sullivan television show.
The band played a key role in the 60s folk revival - reworking traditional ballads for both an international and an Irish audience.
When the Clancy Brothers later went their separate ways, Liam pursued a solo career in Canada before reuniting with Tommy Makem to form the hugely popular duo Makem and Clancy.
The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem did play together again in the 1980s, and in later years Liam - by now living in Co Waterford - maintained a successful solo career.
The man that Bob Dylan called 'the best ballad singer i've ever heard' died in hospital in Cork late this afternoon.
He is survived by his wife Kim and five children.
RTE
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