Andy Irvine

ANDY IRVINE is one of the great Irish singers, his voice one of a handful of truly great ones that gets to the very soul of Ireland. Musician, singer and songwriter, Andy has maintained personal integrity and highly individual performing skills throughout his over 60-year career. He has been hailed as "a tradition in himself".

From Sweeney's Men in the 60's to the enormous success of Planxty in the 70's, to the Patrick Street since the 80's and so on with Mozaik and Ushers Island. Andy has been a world music pioneer and icon for traditional music and musicians.

As a solo performer, Andy occupies a unique place in the musical world, plying his trade as an archetypal troubadour, with a solo show and travelling lifestyle that reflects his lifelong influence, Woody Guthrie. His repertoire consists of Irish traditional songs, dexterous Balkan dance tunes and a compelling canon of his own self-penned songs.

Andy received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural RTE Radio 1 Folk Awards in 2018 and he continues passionately songwriting, gigging, touring by the rollin wheel everywhere he is called. Never Tire of the Road!!

Andy plays guitar-shaped bouzouki, bass bouzouki, mandola, octave mandola and harmonica.

Andys singing is pure emotion. His playing is both delicate and energetic. Andy invented the interlaces of bouzouki, mandolin and mandola in Irish music. Hes often been mimicked but never equalled. - Hot Press

A mighty fine snapshot of a musician still in thrall of his music - The Irish Times

"Andy Irvine remains the quintessential folk singer with a set of flesh and blood songs that touch the heart and give the mind food for thought." - Sydney Morning Herald

"What makes an evening with Irvine so special is that every note he picks and every line he sings comes from the heart. Everything he touches is performed with honesty and conviction and his playing is never less than breath taking. By any measure, Irvine is one of the towering talents on the International folk scene today." - Sydney Morning Herald

Andy is most assuredly a worthy heir to the mantle of Woody Guthrie. -WBRS Boston, MA