Made with MAGIX © M M 2012 ♫ ♪ Typical backstage “still life picture” for many of years. Skipper hut & the banjo. Altrought the tenor banjo was Barney’s primary instrument (he also can be heard playing it on the recordings by Boys of the Lough, the Chieftains, Christy More and  The Pogues), Barney McKenna also was adept on the mandolin &  melodeon.  He also sang comical songs & sea shanties. Another of his standarts was amazing ballad  “ I wish I had somebody to love me”, beloved by audience.  The Dubliners’ concerts always included banjo solos from Barney McKenna such as  The Maind Behind Bar, High Reel, Fermoy Lasses, Swallows Tall and Sporting Paddy.  The genle banjo man has become a strong source of inspiration for other musicians,  especially other banjo players, because of his enormous love for music & his unique character.  Traditional Irish Music, of course had always a very special place in his ♥heart.    Barney had a GOD given gift for music. Mister Banjo lerned & played all by ears, deep from the soul, with his whole ♥heart. He never lerned how to read & write sheet music. By the way The Beatles never learned it & great Jimmy Hendrix (B: he looks like black Luke Kelly) either. Happiest when playing his banjo,  sharing tunes and talking about  music. If somebody showed an interest  in playing banjo, he always took the   time to show you what he was doing.  Banjo Barney from Donnycarney took his tenorbanjo around  the world with the Dubliners & introduced thousands to  beautiful Irish tunes.  Barney’s banjo & melodeon ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♪ Barney’s banjo “Banjo Barney from Donnycarney” is one of the most renowned Irish banjo players. He began playing the banjo at very early age. McKenna originally wanted to play mandolin, but couldn’t afford one. His mother bought him his first Glee Club banjo, in Goodwin’s of Capel Street. By the early teens Barney was showing the skills by his uncle Jim. By retuning his tenor banjo like a mandolin and playing with a plectrum, he popularised the GDAE tuning and gave the instrument mobility to interpreting traditional music on the banjo like old traditional fiddle players, flute players or pipers. McKenna busked in the streets of Dubline and developed a reputation as an inovative performer on a specialy tuned four-stringed tenor banjo. He made the almost unknown instrument in Irish traditional music an Irish folk favorite. Barney embedded the banjo at the ♥heart of Irish traditional music. Barney’s Gripp = His special technique of playing with the plectrum in his right hand. His self-taught unique style of picking on the banjo. Barney used to play Clifford Essex paragon banjo. ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ ♫  Home Musically, the banjo was a natural extension of McKenna himself. (Irish Times)