He needed a harmonica player for an afternoon’s recording session and wondered if they knew of anyone. One day they got a phone call from the legendary John Hammond of Columbia Records. They became instant celebrities and soon were being courted by record company executives. The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in America in 1962 and had a huge impact. It too was about a rebel folk hero and was written to the tune he had learnt from The Clancys, called Roddy McCorley. One day, Dylan showed Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem a new song he had written called Ramblin Gamblin Willie. They reminded him of the folk heroes of American songs sung by people like Woody Guthrie. Like many idealist young men, Dylan had a rebellious streak at that time and he was attracted to the stories of Irish rebels in the songs being sung by The Clancys. Roddie McCorley becomes Ramblin Gamblin’ Willieĭylan described Liam Clancy as the best ballad singer he had ever heard in his life. He later incorporated some of those techniques in his own songs. He not only liked the powerful melodies and the rebel themes, he was also influenced by the structure and storytelling techniques. The Clancy Brothers - Tom, Paddy and Liam - and their buddy Tommy Makem sang them all the time.” He wrote: “What I was hearing pretty regularly, though, were rebellion songs, and those really moved me. By contrast, Dylan found a better source of inspiration in the songs The Clancys were singing.

In Chronicles, Dylan described how a lot of his contemporaries in the early 1960s were trying to write topical songs based on stories they may have heard in the papers.ĭylan felt most of the resulting songs were quite tame they lacked power and emotion.

Irish rebellion songs really moved me – Bob Dylan They introduced him to numerous Irish songs like The Ould Triangle and Brennan on the Moor which Dylan loved. He became close friends with the band, particularly Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem. Most biographies of Dylan, such as Down the Highway: The Life of Bob Dylan, also cover his relationship with The Clancys during his formative years as an artist.

Clancy brothers when the ship comes in