Leahy performing in 2005 | |
Background information | |
---|---|
Origin | Lakefield, Ontario, Canada |
Genres | Folk/Country/Celtic |
Years active | 1980s–present |
Labels | Virgin Records |
Associated acts | |
Website | www.leahymusic.com |
Members | Donnell Leahy Erin Leahy Angus Leahy Maria Leahy Siobheann Donohue Doug Leahy Agnes Enright Frank Leahy |
Past members | Denise Leahy Chrissie Leahy Julie Leahy |
Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy. 4.7 out of 5 stars 39 ratings. See all 8 formats and editions Hide other formats and editions. Listen Now with Amazon Music: One 'Please retry' Amazon Music Unlimited: Price New from Used from MP3 Music, April 28, 2015 'Please retry' $6.99. $6.99 — Audio CD, Import, April 28, 2015 'Please retry'. This Christmas season, on December 19 @8PM - our family is inviting the world to our home, virtually, to witness our music, life and preparation at Christmas. Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy Since marrying in 2002, two of Canada’s brightest stars have been captivating audiences all over North America with their exceptional musical skills and obvious joy at playing the fiddle together. Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy have received both industry-acclaim and a loyal fan base by combining. Natalie MacMaster is a globally-acclaimed Cape Breton fiddle player who has appeared on numerous CBC, CTV, and PBS TV shows and sold over 200,000 albums. Donnell Leahy is the incendiary musical leader of double Platinum-selling, festival-headlining Celtic family group Leahy.
Leahy is a Canadianfolk music group. The eight band members, all from the Leahy family of 11 siblings, are from Lakefield, Ontario and have been touring Canada and internationally since the early 1980s, when they were known as The Leahy Family. In 1985, they were the subject of a short film entitled Leahy: Music Most of All which received an Academy Award in the category of 'Best Foreign Student Film.'[1]The members of Leahy take significant pride in their Irish roots and Canadian upbringing.[2]
The line-up of the group varies depending upon the availability of its members, who are present or absent due to marriage, childrearing and other obligations. During the 1980s and early 1990s, the band recorded a number of privately released LPs and cassettes (most of which used the same title, The Leahy Family) which were sold at their concerts and they were frequent guests at the Big Valley Jamboree concerts in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
This is the first Christmas CD for the talented fiddler and step/tap dancer Natalie MacMaster, and the first Christmas CD for her husband Donnell Leahy since he recorded one with his family at age 14. The whole CD is a delight - eleven Christmas standards blended with.
In 1997, the band resumed recording with their 'relaunch' album, Leahy which also introduced the group's new branding. Leahy was an instrumental album, but the band also includes vocal performances in their live performances and subsequent albums have included both vocals and instrumentals.
Despite their established history, they were awarded two Juno awards in 1998, for Best New Group[3] and Best Instrumental Artist.[4] The following year, Leahy took a third Juno Award, for Best Country Group or Duo. Also in 1998, Leahy were added as the opening act for Canadian country singer Shania Twain's 1998 Come on Over Tour and were featured in two television specials from the tour, Live and The Specials, performing with Twain on the song 'Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)'.[5]
The group's members are both instrumentalists and dancers, with several members skilled in fiddle-playing (most notably the band's most famous member, Donnell). The female members of the band often perform step-dancing-style routines and do most of the singing.
Members[edit]
All members of the band are siblings. Each member has a main role to play in the band; although most play more than one instrument and all step dance. Donnell Leahy is married to Cape Breton fiddler Natalie MacMaster and Frank is married to champion step dancer Chanda Gibson.
In 2008, Donnell Leahy and Natalie MacMaster were awarded honorary doctorate degrees by Trent University.[6]
- Donnell Leahy — Fiddle
- Erin Leahy — Piano, Guitar, Fiddle, Mandolin, Vocals, Bass
- Angus Leahy — Fiddle
- Maria Leahy — Guitar, Banjo, Vocals
- Siobheann Donohue (née Leahy) — Bass, Vocals, Fiddle
- Doug Leahy — Fiddle
- Denise Flack (née Leahy) — Vocals
- Frank Leahy — Drums
These three sisters are not currently active in the band's touring schedule.
- Agnes Enright (née Leahy) — Keyboards, Step dancer, Vocals
- Chrissie Quigley (née Leahy) — Keyboards
- Julie Leahy — Vocals
Discography[edit]
Albums[edit]
Year | Album | Chart Positions | CRIA | |
---|---|---|---|---|
CAN Country | CAN | |||
1996 | Leahy | 1 | 36 | Platinum |
2001 | Lakefield | |||
2004 | In All Things | |||
2006 | Leahy Live | |||
2007 | Handmade |
In addition, the group released several vinyl LPs and cassettes in the 1980s as The Leahy Family. These self-titled releases were privately pressed and usually sold at their concerts, although Christmas with the Leahy Family was carried by retailers such as A&B Sound.
Singles[edit]
Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album | |
---|---|---|---|---|
CAN Country | CAN AC | |||
1986 | 'You've Got the Fiddle (I've Got the Bow)' | 52 | On the Move | |
1997 | 'The Call to Dance' | 26 | 31 | Leahy |
'B Minor' | ||||
2001 | 'Down That Road' | Lakefield | ||
'Mission' | ||||
2004 | 'Chasing Rain' | In All Things | ||
'Coyote Way' |
Music videos[edit]
Year | Video |
---|---|
1997 | 'The Call to Dance' |
2001 | 'Down That Road' |
Natalie Macmaster Donnell Leahy Cd
References[edit]
Natalie Macmaster Donnell Leahy Youtube
- ^'Student Film Award Winners -- By Year'(PDF). Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original(PDF) on February 29, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2010.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^http://irishamerica.com/2006/10/leahy-staying-true-to-the-tune/
- ^Larry LeBlanc (21 February 1998). 'McLaughlin at top of Juno nominations'. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 14–. ISSN0006-2510.
- ^'(Juno Awards Database Lookup)'. Archived from the original on 2011-07-23.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^The Specials (Winter Break / Come On Over) (DVD). Shania Twain. Nashville: Mercury. 2001. Back Cover. B00005RIIO.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
- ^'Honorary Degree Recipients'. Trent University. Archived from the original on June 9, 2011. Retrieved August 22, 2010.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)