The indisputable king of the Irish uilleann pipes, and recipient of the prestigious "National Musician of the Year" award by Ireland's TG4 in 2002, Paddy Keenan produces recordings of astounding perfection, bringing traditional and original tunes into a tapestry of soul and reverie. During the sixties, as a teenager, Paddy left Ireland to play blues and rock in England and Europe, then returning to Dublin, he recorded a self-titled solo album to critical acclaim at 24. Founding member of the Bothy Band in 1973, Paddy's playing has remained at the top for thirty years.
Making an unprecedented impact on Irish traditional music, The Bothy Band merged a driving rhythm section with traditional Irish tunes in ways that had never been heard before, thus changing the face of Irish music. Paddy's virtuosity combined with the ferocity of his playing, made him, in the opinion of many, its driving force. Bothy Band-mate Donal Lunny once described Paddy as "the Jimi Hendrix of the pipes"; more recently, due to his genius for improvisation and counter-melody, he has been compared to jazz great John Coltrane.
In the years following the tremendous success of The Bothy Band, his solo career has spanned from the deepest roots of Irish traditional music to Americana roots music and Bluegrass with folks like Steve Morse of Deep Purple (and formerly of the Dixie Dreggs), Bela Fleck (and the Flecktones), Mary Chapin Carpenter and Tim O'Brien, to experimental fusion of jazz and Celtic melodies with such jazz greats as Regina Carter, Steve Kroon, Louis Nash and David O'Rourke. He has worked on film scores for documentaries that focus on cultures on the edge of extinction including Native Americans and Travellers in both Ireland and America. Throughout the year, Paddy delights audiences all around the world, Australia, Japan, Europe and North America.
"Paddy Keenan returned to Celtic Connections and presided over one of the most white-hot, most gloriously musical displays in, never mind the festival's, but, one suspects, the Royal Concert Hall itself's history."
-Rob Adams
(Glasgow Herald)
Na Keen Affair
"Keenan's wild and free style of piping is at its unfettered best. With a front man like Keenan and a cast of musicians as distinguished as this, it's not surprising that this disk rocks."
-Steve Winick
(Dirty Linen)
"In Irish music there are legends and legends and then there's Paddy Keenan. Paddy Keenan's playing is now at its peak. 'Na Keen Affair' is one hell of a comeback."
-John O'Regan
(Rock'n Reel)
"Paddy Keenan has consistently been one of the enigmas of Irish traditional music. 'Na Keen Affair' is the first recorded evidence for 14 years that Keenan is still untouchable."
-Colin Harper
(Q Magazine)
Available here is a limited edition of Paddy Keenan's latest self-released album, "The Long Grazing Acre", with Tommy O'Sullivan.
The CD was picked up by Compass Records!
