TRIBUTES have been paid following the death of singer Dolores Keane.
The Irish folk star, who hailed from Caherlistrane in Co. Galway, died this week at the age of 72.
“It is with profound sadness that I learned of the death of Dolores Keane,” President of Ireland Catherine Connolly said.
“She was one of the great voices of this island, and of the world,” she added.
Hailing from a musical family, Keane was raised by her aunts Rita and Sarah Keane, who were well-known sean nós singers.
She was a founding member of the folk group De Dannan, which was formed in Spiddal, Co. Galway in 1975, and went to achieve great success.
Keane left the band in 1976 and set about pursuing a solo career.
Singer Dolores Keane has died aged 72 (Pic: Wiki Commons)She released a number of records over the course of her career, with her 1988 rendition of Caledonia, by Scottish musician Dougie MacLean, among her biggest hits.
“Shaped from childhood by the tradition of her aunts Rita and Sarah, she carried that forward with fierce, joyful intelligence, and she made it new,” President Connolly said.
“With De Dannan, in her work, on A Woman’s Heart*, and in recordings that have become part of the fabric of Irish life, she showed what it means to bring the full weight of yourself to a song,” she added.
“Nanci Griffith once said she had a sacred voice. She was right. But what made it sacred was her honesty. She gave everything, without pretence.
“To all who loved her and were moved by her, and we are many, I say simply: a voice like hers does not leave us, it moves into the air and lives forever.”
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was “deeply saddened” by Keane’s death.
“With her captivating voice, Dolores thrilled audiences up and down the country whenever she performed,” he added before describing her as “an icon of Irish folk music”.
Keane leaves behind her son Joseph, daughter Tara, brother Seán, sister Theresa and wider family members.
*A Woman’s Heart is a compilation of twelve tracks performed by six female Irish artists, namely Eleanor McEvoy, Mary Black, Dolores Keane, Sharon Shannon, Frances Black and Maura O’Connell. The album was released in July 1992 and sold over 750,000 copies, more than any other album in Irish chart history and nearly one million copies worldwide.
- “When your hero is Dolores, meet your hero. When she took to the stage to sing ‘Caledonia’, she stood at the podium, like the Queen she was… [the] love in the room for her was unmatched.” — RTE Brainstorm
- “Nanci Griffith once said that Aretha Franklin was the queen of American soul and Dolores was the queen of Irish soul.” — Tribute in Cork
- “That special voice held strength yet vulnerability, grace yet command and an intimacy that only Dolores could bring.” — RTE Brainstorm
- “How many evenings did her voice rise from the speakers like smoke from a turf fire?” — Martina Teeny Collender
- “She was one in a million, who paved the way for so many of us.” — Social Media Tribute
- “If Ireland had a voice, it was hers. And a beautiful soul too.” — Colm Flynn
- “The sugar cane is plentiful and the tea grows on each tree. Rest easy.” — McKindley Ward
- “She was the figure of what it stands for to be truly Irish… What was most charming was her lifelong connection with home.” — Father Peter Gannon
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Speaking on RTÉ, De Dannan founder and fiddle player Frankie Gavin described Dolores Keane’s death as ‘a huge loss’.
“Her personality just melted the hearts of everyone in Ireland. She was a wonderful personality. The kindest individual you could ever meet,” he said.
“Her voice was so distinctive … She was a big-hearted and super generous lady. It’s just heartbreaking.”