In Dublin in 1966, Andy Irvine was a founding member of Sweeney’s Men. Alongside The Dubliners and The Clancy Brothers, this small group of musicians sowed the seeds of the transformation of Irish music which blossomed in the 1970s to inspire successive generations of musical pollinators. Seeking inspiration himself as a young musician, Andy had been fired up by the discovery of the album “More Songs by Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston”. He regarded it as treasure and Woody’s music has motivated him ever since.
That’s how it goes.
We all know what it’s like when something gets under your skin and in the 1990s Andy set his heart on recording a selection of Woody Guthrie’s songs with a uniquely Irish approach. Eventually, between 2019 and 2025 with support from the Arts Council of Ireland, Andy was able to fulfil his ambition and recorded eleven tracks with a group of renowned musicians.
Devoted: Songs of Woody Guthrie is the resultant album.
Woody’s works have been covered by plenty of artists over the years, still railing against the same issues that spawned the songs, in the endless process of challenging fascism, promoting social justice and laying bare the greed behind human suffering. In a relatively short life he masterfully set his thoughts and words to music in songs that are unremittingly relevant. More important perhaps is the fact that the words cannot be re-written by those who seek to distort history for their own benefit. Folk songs provide us with a history that has been preserved by the victims not written by the victors. (Having said that, Andy has slightly altered Woody’s lyrics to “The Wallace Taylor Train” to include Wallace’s famous phrase “the century of the common man” – which is entirely appropriate and acceptable when you read his liner notes on the subject.)
Incredibly, Woody wrote more than three thousand songs in his lifetime. Many are just handwritten on scraps of paper and of course – largely unrecorded by the writer. Andy’s choice from this vast archive exemplifies his understanding of the subject. What he has achieved with this collection is a thing of rare beauty, shaped by the many years of his devotion to the songs of Woody Guthrie. His vocal and instrumental interpretations of Guthrie’s source material coupled with flawless contributions from a fine assembly of musicians make a truly admirable project. Woody’s words are passionately communicated by Andy and register with the listener in a new light when performed through this emerald prism. He sings all the lead vocals and plays bouzouki, mandola, ‘bassouki’, guitars and harmonicas and is joined on this project by Donal Lunny, Bruce Molsky, Michael McGoldrick, John Doyle, Rens van der Zalm and Nikola Parov.
For many years, Andy has usually self-released his albums rather than work with record companies. So, when he contacted me to see if the Last Music Company would be interested releasing the finished album and sent me the recordings and notes – I was up for it in a heartbeat. The whole thing is perfectly executed, and it is a joy to listen to.
I urge you to read the liner notes that come with the CD or vinyl editions. Each song has been annotated jointly by Andy and the noted Guthrie scholar - Will Kaufman. Their comments about each track provide us with a clear understanding of the reason for its selection for an album that is released in 2026 – regardless of when these timeless songs were written. It’s a fascinating and essential accompaniment to this album.
The closing track on the album was bashfully added as a bonus by Andy because it is one of his own. Don’t be shy Andy! “Never Tire Of The Road” deserves its place here among Woody’s songs not only because it is a very personal tribute from Andy to his prime source of inspiration but also because this extended version includes an extra verse to the original recording and also the chorus from Woody’s “You Fascists Bound To Lose”. A more apposite finale would be hard to find.
Songs of Woody Guthrie performed by Andy Irvine and friends says it all in 2026.
I have nothing to add.
