Leahy

Originally known by the name Leahy Family, the nine-sibling Celtic pop ensemble hailing from Lakefield, Ontario comprises, from eldest to youngest, vocalist and songwriter Julie, bassist Siobheann, fiddler Donnell, guitarist Maria, drummer Frank, pianist Agnes, fiddler Doug, pianist Erin, and fiddler Angus. Beginning in the 1970s, these siblings, together with parents Frank and Julie plus two additional siblings who opted against professional music careers, started appearing in public and cultivated an original approach shaped by Celtic roots alongside Canadian folk elements and French-Canadian step dancing. Their profile climbed sharply after the musicians became the focus of the Academy Award-winning 1985 student documentary The Leahy's: Music Most of All, yet everyday obligations such as schooling, employment, and marriage soon confined Leahy Family appearances to infrequent events. In the mid-'90s the now-adult offspring resolved to make music their full-time pursuit. Adopting the streamlined name Leahy, the group delivered its self-titled first album on the Narada label in 1997, joined Shania Twain on tour the next year, and kept issuing recordings through the early 2000s.