Finbar Furey

Finbar Furey was born on 28 September 1946 in Ballyfermot, Dublin, Ireland. Finbar's well-known musician father, Ted started him on the Uilleann pipes while he was very young. By his teens, he had won three All Ireland Medals, The Oireachtas, and many Feisanna. He was the only piper to win the All Ireland, the Oireachtas medal and the four province titles in the same year. Finbar is an Irish Traveller.

Finbar popularized the pipes worldwide while on tour with his brother Eddie in the 1960s. In 1969, Finbar and Eddie began touring as backup musicians for the influential Irish folk group, The Clancy Brothers. Finbar played the pipes, as well as the banjo, tin whistle, and guitar with the group live, on television, and on recordings. The Furey brothers left the group the following year and began performing as a duo again. Finbar and Eddie were awarded Single of the Year by John Peel in 1972.

In 1997, after nearly thirty years as The Fureys' front man, Finbar decided the time was right to follow his own path as a singer songwriter. He decided to step aside and pursue his solo career, to present his definitive one-man show and to explore new pastures as a singer, producer and writer.

In 2011 he released the album Colours on Dolphin Music. The album featuring guest performances from Mary Black and Shayne Ward was released in North America in 2012 on the Valley Entertainment record label.

In August 2013, Furey appeared on the Irish television show The Hit. He recorded a single pitched by a songwriter, Gerry Fleming. The single, "The Last Great Love Song", charted at number one in the Irish charts against Mundy's song "Jigsaw Man" written by Mark Walsh which charted at number five. The song was performed again with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in the final and came first place in the public vote earning the title "The Ultimate Hit".