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Mickey MacConnell was born in Bellanaleck, close to Enniskillen in County Fermanagh, Ireland, on 12th February 1947. His father Sandy owned a local store and was steeped in Irish traditional music, his mother Mary was a school teacher and musician, one brother - Cathal - would become the flute player with Boys Of The Lough, while another - Cormac, later penned the hit song "Christmas In The Trenches 1914".
Having left school, Mickey took up journalism, reporting the Fermanagh County Council meetings for his local newspaper The Fermanagh Herald. In 1965 at the age of 17 and saddened by political events in Northern Ireland, he penned the song "Only Our Rivers Run Free" which would become an anthem for the Irish Civil Rights Movement, and be later recorded by hundreds of artistes, including Christy Moore, The Wolfe Tones, Mary Black and the James Last Orchestra.
Soon after writlng the song, Mickey moved to Dublin where he joined the staff of The Irish Press, reporting mainly on events in the Irish Senate, and later went on to work for The Irish Times", during which time he continued to write songs and perform.
However, at the height of his journalistic career, he left Dublin for Listowel in County Kerry in order to devote himself full-time to music. He frequently sang at playwright John B Keane's famous pub in that town, while also holding down a three night a week residency at McMunns in Ballybunion for more than twenty years.
Mickey released just three albums, "Peter Pan And Me", "Joined Up Writing" and "Live At John B Keane's", the last of which which also included a number of songs sung by the playwright himself. His most popular compositions include "Beethoven Played The Blues", "Boys Of The Byline Brigade", "Lament For Judy Garland", "Diamonds Are Forever", "Supermarket Wine", "The Ballad Of Lidl And Aldi" and "The Politician Song".
Endowed with a distinctive voice, and posessed of an incisive but yet never divisive social conscience, Michael could easily have sliped into the nationalist balladeer mode, but he didn't. His public performances were the stuff of legend, and although "Only Our Rvers Run Free" achieved iconic status, he seemed singularly unawed by its success, occasionally introducing it as "a medley of my greatest hit". But his "Ballad Of Lidl & Aldi" amassed over 100,000 views on YouTube for example, while "The Politician Song" (penned he once said out of exasperation at the meaningless collection of clichιs being uttered by members of parliament), could deflate the most pompous statesman without ever seeming offensive.
Mickey MacConnell died at the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital, Cork, Ireland on 3rd July 2025, of undisclosed causes.
© Jim Liddane
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