Paddy Tunney (28 January 1921 – 6 December 2002) was an Irish traditional singer, poet, writer, raconteur, lilter and songwriter. He was affectionately known as the Man of Songs.
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Tunney was born in Glasgow to Irish parents, Patrick Tunney from Mollybreen in County Fermanagh and Brigid Gallagher from Rusheen near Pettigo in County Donegal. His mother came from a strong musical background going back several generations in her parents' families and had a huge stock of traditional songs. Within a few weeks of his birth the family returned to Ireland to his maternal grandfather's cottage in Rusheen. His grandfather, Michael Gallagher, was his first song teacher and Paddy recalled learning his first song, "The Lark in the Morning", from him at the age of four. The following year the family moved a few miles across the border and settled in the townland of Garvery, in the parish of Mulleek, in County Fermanagh. This is why Paddy considered himself as being from Fermanagh. He always had an interest in singing and throughout his childhood and teenage years he learned traditional songs from his mother, who for the rest of his life remained the biggest influence on his style and repertoire.[1]
He attended Derryhollow NS and later Ballyshannon Technical School. His first job was as a forester and subsequently he worked as a County Council road worker. During the Second World War he became involved with the IRA and in the summer of 1943 was sentenced to seven years penal servitude for smuggling explosives. The regime in the Crumlin Road Jail at the time was particularly brutal and the four years that he spent there were made a big impression on him. Fellow IRA prisoners at the time included Hugh McAteer, Jimmy Steele, Joe Cahill, Gerry Adams Sr., Frank Morris and Arthur Kearney. On his release he went to Dublin and studied to be a health inspector. He worked for a time with Dublin Corporation and Kerry County Council before settling in Donegal in 1950. He married Julia Bradley from Manorcunningham in 1955. From this time he began attending Fleadhanna and later adjudicated at them all over the country. He attended many seminars and workshops associated with traditional music. He served for nearly 20 years at the annual Scoil Éigse, where he passed on his songs and his singing techniques to young singers.[2]
He transferred to Galway for seven years before returning to Letterkenny in 1972. He began broadcasting, first for Radio Éireann and later for BBC, working with Seán Mac Réamoinn and Seán O’Boyle. He later collaborated with Ciarán Mac Mathúna on RTE in the 1980s, and in the new century was the subject of a TG4 series Sé Mo Laoch. He also featured in a BBC award-winning documentary.[2]
He died on 6 December 2002 and his funeral took place in Letterkenny, County Donegal.
Tunney wrote an autobiography, The Stone Fiddle: My Way to Traditional Song, which was published in Dublin in 1979. Other books include Where Songs Do Thunder, and Ulster Folk Tales for Children.
He collected and sang many songs that have now become standards, including: