The Flanagan Brothers were an Irish American band formed in the 1920s which consisted of brothers Michael, Joseph, and Louis Flanagan. Their choice of instruments and related skill gave them a unique sound, which led them to become one of the leading attractions in New York City's Irish dancehalls during the 1920s and 1930s. Subsequently, their phonograph records extended their popularity and fame to Ireland proper and into the homes of Irish emigrants throughout the world. They became a household name among Irish entertainers and were on par with the other great music ambassadors of the time, Michael Coleman and John McCormack.
Early history
The Flanagan brothers—Joe, Louis, and Mike—were born at the end of the nineteenth century and raised in the city of Waterford, on the south coast of Ireland. Their father, Arthur Flanagan, was a coachman and quay laborer in Waterford, where he met and, in 1890, married Ellen Keane. Working on the quays, Arthur was familiar with the ships that plied the trade to the United States, and as a young man he had made several working trips there. Ellen and Arthur began their married life in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where their eldest daughter was born, followed by a son in 1894, Arthur Joseph, "Joe." The family subsequently returned to Waterford and settled in a three-room house on Summerhill Terrace where five more children were born – two girls and three boys. Louis, named after his maternal grandfather, arrived in October 1896; and Michael was born in November 1897. Thomas, the family's last child, arrive three years later but was frail from birth and his absence from official records suggest that he died in infancy. The children were educated at the local school – conducted by religious order, the De La Salle Brothers – not far from the family home near Waterford's city center.
Arthur and Ellen, along with all of their children, returned to America in 1911, this time settling in Albany, New York, where Arthur's uncle, Ed Lynch, lived. The family's passage was paid by Ed, and it was in his home on Morton Avenue in Albany that the Flanagans settled initially and begin a new life. Louis and Mike completed their education at St. Anne's School in Albany.
Music was an every day part of life in the Flanagan household. Father Arthur played the single row accordion or melodeon, while mother Ellen was a singer with a large repertoire of Irish songs, which she taught to her children. Mike recalled that his first introduction to playing music was in Waterford when, at the age of ten, he plucked out a tune on a charred mandolin he had recovered from a fire. Later, in Albany, he joined family music sessions with his father and brother Joe, who was learning to play the accordion.
When school days ended, the brothers were attracted to the bright lights of New York City. Joseph found a job as a clerk in Manhattan in 1918. Mike joined him there and found work shoeing horses for a blacksmith and working as a furrier in the colorful midtown Irish neighborhood known as Hell's Kitchen. Louis, along with sisters Mary and Margaret followed and, along with their father, Arthur, set up house on E. 88th St.
Initial success
In their free time, the brothers teamed up to play music for their own entertainment, and the Flanagan sound gradually evolved. Joe was becoming a fine accordion player while Lou added banjo accompaniment and later introduce the guitar – an instrument then new to accompanying Irish music. Mike switched from mandolin to banjo. He remembered buying his first tenor banjo from Eddie Peabody‘s music store on 34th St. The banjo was then uncharted territory in Irish music and Mike and Lou developed their own method of playing – Mike picking out tunes in unison with Joe’s accordion while Lou provided a chordal accompaniment with driving rhythm on his banjo or guitar. Between tunes, Joe lilted and sang all kinds of Irish and popular songs, with Mike providing harmony and choruses. Mike also learned to play the Jew's harp.