The Clancy Brothers was an Irish folk music singing group that began as The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem in 1956 while the members were looking for work in America. Tommy Makem left the group in 1969, after which the three brothers, Pat Clancy (1922–1998), Tom Clancy (1924–1990), and Liam Clancy (1935–2009) became The Clancy Brothers subsequently joined by the fourth Clancy brother, Bobby Clancy (1927–2002). Often credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States