Interesting story on Tommy Makem in today’s Boston Globe. The photo is from the paper. The link to the story is below. If the link doesn’t open for non-subscribers, the story is from an interview. Tommy is 74 and has inoperable lung cancer. He’s working and singing and about to begin touring.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2006/11/21/he_still_sings_to_irish_ears?mode=PF
He discusses his arrival in the US in the 1950s and expresses concern that
Despite an uncertain future, Makem carries on, spreading the gospel of song at a brisk, peripatetic pace. Makem has plenty of work, but he is concerned by what he sees as cultural amnesia among Ireland’s young.
“We’re so obsessed with modernity, we don’t realize what we’re losing,” Makem said. “They’re making gazillions of dollars in Ireland, but they’re losing their culture.”
…
Although its popularity might wane, Makem said, the music will survive.
The article ends with this
When asked to reflect on his career, Makem chose a singular moment from his first hour in the United States.
Nervous and alone, he was flabbergasted, Makem said, when a customs agent welcomed him to the country by saying: “Have a great life.”
Savoring the scene in his mind’s eye, Makem paused, smiled, and added a predictably upbeat coda.
“I took him at his word,” he said
