The Rovers
The Irish Rovers is a group of Irish musicians that formed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1963 and named after the traditional song "The Irish Rover". They are best known for their international television series, contributing to the popularization of Irish music in North America, and for the songs "The Unicorn", "Drunken Sailor", "Wasn't That a Party", "The Orange and the Green", "Whiskey on a Sunday", "Lily the Pink", "Finnegan's Wake", and "The Black Velvet Band".
The primary voices heard in the group's early songs were Will Millar (tenor), Jimmy Ferguson (baritone), George Millar, and Joe Millar, and in the last twenty years, also John Reynolds and Ian Millar. Wilcil McDowell's accordion was a signature sound of the band for more than fifty five years, until his retirement in 2020.
Founding member George Millar and his cousin Ian are both from Ballymena, Davey Walker from Armagh, Sean O'Driscoll from Cork, Gerry O'Connor from Dundalk, percussionist Fred Graham from Belfast. Flute and whistle player Geoffrey Kelly was born in Dumfries, Scotland.
In the 1980s, the group briefly renamed itself The Rovers. During this period, their song "Wasn't That a Party" led to crossover success in the country rock genre.
The Irish Rovers have represented Canada at five World Expos, and in 2018 were honoured as one of Ireland's greatest exports at Dublin, Ireland's EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum.
In 2023, they celebrated their 60th Anniversary, and their song, "Hey Boys Sing Us A Song" was nominated for Single of the Year in the Canadian Folk Music Awards.
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