Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026

Subject: Obit: Dolores Keane
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 01:33 PM

RTE just announced the death of Dolores Keane:

Dolores Keane RIP

Subject: 2026 Obit: RIP Dolores Keane
From: Paul Burke
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 01:35 PM

From RTE:

Irish folk singer Dolores Keane has died. She was 72.

The popular musician died peacefully in her sleep at her home in Caherlistrane, Co Galway overnight.

Funeral arrangements have yet to be finalised but Dolores Keane is expected to be laid to rest in her native Caherlistrane on Friday.

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 01:42 PM

Young Dolores was such a beautiful singer. I am not sure where I heard her first but likely her contribution to the Chieftains' Bonaparye's retreat or the first De Dannan one. Het recording for Claddagh and the first one with John Faulkner were on constant rotation during the mud seventies. I wasn't necessarily taken with some if the directions she went in later but that early stuff has remained very close to my heart

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 02:00 PM

ÝAnd there was, ifcourse thus. Still gives me goosebumps

Sonny - Dolores Keane, Emmylou Harris, Mary Black, Donal Lunny, Liam O'Flynn, Davy Spillane,

Subject: RE: 2026 Obit: RIP Dolores Keane
From: r.padgett
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 02:28 PM

Sorry to hear this condolences to followers, friends and family

Ray (uk)

Subject: RE: 2026 Obit: RIP Dolores Keane
From: Felipa
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 02:28 PM

Frances Black, who had toured with Dolores, was interviewed on Radio Ulster news this evening about the singer. The last time I saw Dolores Keane she was performing in Derry, N Ireland with her younger brother Seán. She was in her sixties but seemed older, and her voice wasnt as rich as it had been. She remembered her songs okay and seemed to be enjoying herself. Seán seemed genuinely fond of and supportive of his sister. He did the second half of the concert on his own and Dolores came on stage again just at the end. That was probably the 2015 tour: https://audioboom.com/posts/3618193-when-mark-met-dolores-keane

Subject: RE: 2026 Obit: Dolores Keane
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 03:15 PM

I saw her a good few yikes during the second half of the seventies with the early De Dannan, with Reel Union and a few times with John Faulkner.
There was an rte documentary perhaps ten years ago where she looked back on life, and it wasn't an easy one, music, illness and all that. She was trying to get back into singing, which wasn't easy. I found it sad and moving to see her then but she was determined to push on. The special for her 70th, with the whole family and many friends coming together in Caherlistrane to pay tribute was very moving too.

Subject: RE: 2026 Obit: Dolores Keane
From: GUEST,gillymor
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 03:25 PM

She was a wonderful singer. Craigie Hills

Subject: RE: 2026 Obit: Dolores Keane
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 03:35 PM

Irish Music Magazine official
nptooSredsl7mi2089i6huma6ma4i9276mu1cc08fugh2lc2tfc0f1a589lh ·
DOLORES KEANE (1953–2026)
The world of Irish traditional music has today lost one of its most powerful and influential voices with the passing of Dolores Keane, a singer whose artistry helped shape the modern revival of Irish folk and traditional song.
Renowned for the emotional depth of her performances and the unmistakable strength of her voice, she leaves behind a legacy that profoundly influenced Irish music both at home and around the world.
Born in 1953 in Caherlistrane, County Galway, Dolores was raised in a family steeped in musical tradition. Her parents were both singers, and her early musical environment was rich with the sounds of Irish song and storytelling.
Dolores first came to national prominence in the 1970s as a founding member of the ground breaking traditional group De Dannan. With the band, she helped bring Irish traditional music to new international audiences through vibrant performances and inventive arrangements that fused traditional melodies with contemporary energy. Her expressive and commanding vocal style quickly became one of the defining elements of the group’s sound.
After leaving De Dannan in the late 1970s, Dolores embarked on a successful solo career that further established her as one of Ireland’s finest folk vocalists. During the 1980s and 1990s, she released a series of acclaimed recordings, including There Was a Maid, Broken Hearted I’ll Wander, and Solid Ground.
Over the decades, she toured extensively throughout Europe, North America, and Australia, performing at leading folk festivals and concert halls. Her singing was distinguished by its honesty, emotional power, and deep connection to Ireland’s storytelling traditions.
Though she stepped back from performing for a period in the early 2000s, Dolores later returned to the stage and remained widely regarded as one of the most important voices in Irish folk music. Her legacy endures through the songs she preserved, the recordings she created, and the generations of singers she inspired.
A tribute to the remarkable music career of Dolores Keane will feature in the next edition of Irish Music Magazine.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam.

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2006
From: The Sandman
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 05:06 PM

A charismatic singer.RIP

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2006
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 06:19 PM

Very sad news, a fine singer and musician. RIP.

Dolores Keane, ‘Never Be The Sun’.

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2006
From: GUEST,Derek Schofield
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 07:20 PM

Very sad news ... a great singer.
Derek

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2006
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 16 Mar 26 - 07:42 PM

So sorry to hear this sad news. My Facebook feed is full of tributes to her fine singing, with many examples in YouTube clips: have listened to a fair few this evening. I had but one of her albums on tape, but nearly wore it out playing it over and over again.

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026
From: Beer
Date: 17 Mar 26 - 08:59 AM

When Tom Russell put out his C/D, Man From God Knows Where, he had Dolores and Iris DeMent singing in the background "When Irish Girls Grow Up" Don't know if she recorded the song separately from Tom's recording.
https://youtu.be/LryRo3OIwok?si=0ArVzx8LwSTxEwPa

R.I.P.

Adrien

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 17 Mar 26 - 09:28 AM

Here she is, talking about things on the Tommy Tiernan show, two years or so ago:

Dolores Keane on the Tommy Tiernan show

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026
From: Nick Dow
Date: 17 Mar 26 - 10:06 AM

Another great voice gone. Sad news RIP.

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026
From: Beer
Date: 17 Mar 26 - 02:15 PM

Thank you Peter for posting this. Very moving indeed.
Adrien

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026
From: Tony Rees
Date: 17 Mar 26 - 02:18 PM

Unfortunately the Irish Post tribute ran with a poor enlargement of my snapshot previously placed on Wikimedia Commons, see President leads tributes following death of Irish folk singer Dolores Keane. I have taken the opportunity to improve that image a bit, best version now at

File:D-keane-1985 Restored.jpg

Tony

Subject: RE: Obit: Dolores Keane, Irish Trad. singer, 1953-2026
From: StephenH
Date: 17 Mar 26 - 04:10 PM

Very sad to hear this. Such a fine voice.
RIP