News of Packie Manus Byrne

[StevieJ]

I had one of my periodic long phone conversations with Packie the other day and thought some of you might like to hear how he is doing. He's now in his 92nd year and as on the ball as ever, cheerful despite all the aches and pains, and his sharp sense of humour is still firing on all 12 cylinders.

Packie is still living at home, in a small council house in Ardara, Donegal. As always, and especially during the summer months, he has a steady flow of visitors, known and previously unknown, from all over the world. And as always, there is a creative project in the works: recently he has been collaborating with a young singer, Cliona Heena, who has been taking an interest in his songwriting output.

Recently she recorded two of Packie's songs and another (Phil Colclough's Song for Ireland) on a benefit CD, with proceeds to go to the Alzheimer's society. At the launch in Ardara in April, sales brought in over €5,000! In the wake of this success, Cliona has decided to make a full-length CD of 14 of Packie's songs (he probably has half a hundred lying about on bits of paper and in his head).

You can see some pictures of the launch on the official photographer's website. Scroll down to nos. 19-21 for some nice shots of Cliona and Packie.

Nobody will fail to be struck by the irony of a fundraising project for Alzheimer's research using the work of a man whose mental acuity seems entirely undiminished at the age of 91. I'm sure, in fact, that it is his lively mind that is keeping his body alive - miraculous really, in view of all the health problems he has endured, particularly over the past 25 years: heart problems, nasty bouts of bronchitis, and more recently recurring attacks of very severe head pain. This last is the result, doctors think, of a spot they found on his brain, possibly a lesion from a prior stroke, but which they didn't think it wise to operate on (a verdict Packie was only too happy to concur with, despite the intense and debilitating nature of the pain).

For those of you unfamiliar with Packie and his relevance to the world of whistling, see http://www.rogermillington.com , and reviews on this board by our own Carrie of his tunebook Dossan of Heather and also Recollections of a Donegal man (currently out of print, I'm afraid).

Cheers
Steve

[Bloomfield]

Thanks for the news from Packie. It's great to see him still going strong, especially this year with its heavy toll on the older generation of trad musicians. And I must say that Packie has excellent taste in young singers! Congratulations to both of them.

[s1m0n]

I'm glad to hear he's still sharp; whenyour post mentioned "alzheimer" is got the "Oh no!" feeling for a second.

[Bubbie]

It's great to see him still going strong, especially
this year with its heavy toll on the older generation of trad musicians.

I, too, feared for the worse for that very reason when I saw the thread.
It's grand to have a bit of good news comin' round for a change.

Thanks for the post.

[susnfx]

Thanks for the update, Steve--loved the photos. I'm glad to hear he's doing so well.

Susan

[carrie]

I'm so happy for Packie and for all he's touched. Those pictures of him and Cliona express so much of what is right with the world!