Mikey Kelleher (1907-1987) Singer and Dancer

Mikey Kelleher was born in Quilty in 1907 and emigrated to England in 1942, eventually settling in Depford, London. In Quilty, he was known as a skilled dancer, but he never rated himself as a singer. On meeting him later in London the song collectors Pat Mackenzie and Jim Carroll discovered that Mikey knew a vast number of songs, which they recorded from him in the late 1970s. A selection of Mikey’s songs can be heard on Clare County Library’s Singers and Songs of County Clare from the Carroll Mackenzie Collection.

Mikey’s repertoire included many rare local songs like The Leon, The Quilty Burning, and a version of The Rineen Ambush. Pat and Jim also describe meeting and recording Mikey in an article here.

Mikey Kelleher is one of the singers featured in the Singers and Songs of County Clare at http://www.clarelibrary.ie/eolas/coclare/songs/cmc/index.htm.