Colin Randall writes: we knew Donal Lunny had been ill with cancer. It was still a shock to learn of the death of a man who, more than most if not everyone, richly deserves credit for the huge strides made in Irish music over the last six decades. He was 79 and died after a short stay in St James’s hospital, Dublin.
All at Salut! Folk offer deep condolences to his family and friends ….
At the 2016 Craiceann Bodhrán Festival 2016, Inis Oirr. Image: By Hinnerk Rümenapf
A steady stream of tributes to the life and work of Donal Lunny bears eloquent witness to the great musician, composer, producer and arranger. If legend is word devalued by overuse, it assuredly applies to Lunny.
Think of the great Irish bands Planxty, the Bothy Band, Moving Hearts and Coolfin. Lunny was a founder member of all of them, and of others. As far back as 1968, he was part of the trio Emmet Spiceland that turned the sentimental love song Mary from Dungloe, written by a Donegal stonemason Pádraig Mac Cumhaill half. century earlier, into a No 1 hit in Ireland, Last year, already ill, he received of the RTE Radio 1 Folk Awards Lifetime Achievement Award.
I last saw him with Christy Moore at one of my favourite venues, the Union Chapel in Islington, north London and it was a truly memorable evening.
Now for the tributes.
Let us start with Moore, a friend and musical companion for 60+ years (they went to school together in Newbridge, Co Kildare),
From 1962 to 2026 Donal was a constant presence in my working life, a dear friend, a sensitive and creative collaborator, a huge influence on later generations, many of whom may not yet realise what he has given.
Even better, from his speech when presenting that RTE award: “I’ve known Donal Lunny for 66 years. I met him first in 1959 in school, and what I remember most from those years were his lack of homework, that he was more interested in being out on the Liffey trying to tickle trout, or climbing trees to gaze into the wild birds’ nests.”
The Irish president Catherine Connolly said: “Donal was one of Ireland’s greatest musical figures, a wonderfully talented musician and producer who was central to so many of the most influential moments of the last 60 years of Irish music.
“… beyond his music, Donal will be remembered for his warmth and the strong connection which he had with audiences all over Ireland and beyond.”
The Irish Taoiseach (prime minister) Micheal Martin described Lumny as saddened “a colossus of Irish music, as a performer, songwriter and producer. Uniquely gifted, Donal carried traditional and folk music to new audiences through Planxty and his many other endeavours.”
The renowned accordion player Sharon Shannon, also responsible for numerous innovative collaborations (including one with Lunny for her phenomenally successful 1991 debut solo album}, said: ‘The loss of this Irish traditional music legend is immeasurable both to the world of Irish traditional music and to those of us who were lucky enough to know him and love him. I’m thinking especially of his children and grandchildren, his siblings and his partner Úna. We have lost a very very dear friend, and the whole world has lost one of its greatest musical legends.”.”
Siobhan Long captured the spirit and genius of Lunny in her excellent obituary for The Irish Times: “Perhaps his greatest legacy was his unapologetic openness to new ways of interpreting old music. He sought out novel ways of engaging with our music, informed by a deep understanding of its roots and its branches.”
Donal Lunny on bouzouki backing Cara Dillon at the 2012 Bristol folk festival. Image: Maybesometime
And on Threads, the Scottish guitarist Tony McManus posted this warm message:
I’m heartbroken at his passing. My first musical hero! From the age of 10 when I saw the Bothy Band in Glasgow.
That status of his will last my lifetime and far beyond. Few individuals can have left such a lasting imprint on their county’s music as Donal Lunny has on the music of Ireland. I was happy to run into him in Limerick a few years ago when we were teaching at UL. Funny, fascinating and fond of a cup of tea! RIP Donal.
Lunny himself gave an insight into his approach in a 2014 interview with The Irish Examiner: “I was dedicated to expanding the reach of traditional music. You want to push the boundaries and broaden the treatment of the music in an acceptable way — one that wouldn’t turn people off, that wasn’t alien to the music. It was a matter of finding approaches that worked”.
Lunny is survived by his children Oisin, Cora Venus and Sora Chan, and. by his partner Una O’Boyle.
His son Shane died in 2022 at the age of 17. Shane’s mother – the singer Sinead O’Connor – died in 2023. RIP all three.
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The last of my clips demonstrates Donal Lunny’s songwriting, here for its co-composer Christy Moore. You can despise terrorism, as I do whether it’s committed by the IRA, the UVF, Hamas or the IDF, but still insist on the decent treatment of suspects, not always even tried and convicted.
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