Musicians - Johnny Moynihan

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	Musicians - Johnny Moynihan

Johnny Moynihan is a folk singer based in Dublin, Ireland. A gifted musician, he is responsible for introducing the bouzouki into Irish music in the mid 1960's. Known as "The Bard of Dalymount" as a young man he played in the band Sweeney's Men with Andy Irvine, Terry Woods and (Galway) Joe Dolan. Sweeney's Men broke the mould of Irish music and are credited with starting the folk revival there in the late 1960s. The group made two albums, "Sweeney's Men" and "The Tracks of Sweeney." The latter was without Irvine, who had taken himself off to the Balkans, an area that made a lasting impact on his subsequent music. Both albums are available on Transatlantic Records. In the 1970's Moynihan briefly joined Planxty, the great folk-supergroup, for their album "Cold Blow and the Rainy Night." His distinctive nasal drawl makes this one of the best Planxty albums ever released containing gems such as "The Frost is All Over" and "P Stands for Paddy I Suppose." After Planxty, Moynihan went his own way and for a period of time fronted the Fleadh Cowboys, a popular band in 1980's Dublin. He also flirted briefly with De Dannan and can be heard on their first album. He reunited briefly for a once off concert with Irvine in Galway in 2001 and can be seen and heard frequently in the Cobblestone Pub, Smithfield, Dublin. He is an erratic character though and it is doubtful if he and Irvine will ever play together again.

The world of Moynihan and Sweeney's Men are best summed up in Andy Irvine's song "My Heart's Tonight in Ireland" on his "Rain on the Roof" album. It is available from Irvine's own website, .

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