Martin Mulhaire

Martin Mulhaire (1936–2020) grew up in Eyrecourt, where his father Tommy, who played a number of instruments and led a band, was his musical mentor. He took up the B/C accordion when he was 12 and was All-Ireland champion by 17, by which time he was already beginning to compose a sizeable collection of reels and jigs, many of them now session standards. Recruited to the Tulla Céilí Band by Paddy Canny and P.J. Hayes, Martin was with the band for a tour of England, an All-Ireland championship at the Dungarvan fleadh, and a 1958 trip to New York, where the band played Carnegie Hall and recorded a Dublin Records LP, Echoes of Erin. The band went home to Ireland, but Martin stayed in New York, where he and his wife Carmel raised a family. Reels and jigs took a back seat for years while Martin worked as a carpenter during the day and played electric guitar on weekends with the Majestic Showband, a group that also included uilleann piper Matty Connolly on the electric bass.

For more information on Martin Mulhaire and his music see Mulhaire Music.com