Vale Ken O’Flaherty: Music man and community friend

Ken O’Flaherty, who passed away in February, was a familiar and much-loved figure on the Irish music scene for decades. To many in the Queensland Irish community he was simply “Ken from Blackthorn,” a familiar face and voice, and someone always willing to lend a helping hand.

Ken was best known locally for his time performing with the Irish band Blackthorn and later with McGuinness and Co, becoming a regular presence at festivals, pubs and community events across Queensland.

He toured extensively throughout the state. Irish pubs across Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast welcomed him regu-larly, as did clubs and community venues. Ken also shared the stage as a support act for well-known Irish performers including Foster and Allen, The Fureys and Geraldine Doyle.

Whether playing guitar, banjo or bodhrán, he helped keep Irish music alive in Brisbane and beyond. Alongside concerts and tours, he was also known for bringing music into the community, whether through busking, taking part in festivals or performing in nursing homes and for older Australians who appreciated the familiar song lyrics, humour and lively tunes. Ken was an expert at engaging people, and would use his wide collection of leprechaun toys and Irish bears to strike up conversations when performing.

Guitar, five-string banjo and bodhrán all sat comfortably in his hands, and he played them with the easy confidence of someone who had spent a lifetime entertaining others.

One of the more unusual chapters in Ken’s musical life came in 2013 through his friendship with billionaire Clive Palmer, when he took part in promotional events connected with the Titanic II project. Clive Palmer brought Ken’s four-piece band, McGuinness and Co, on a three-week whirlwind tour to Macau, Boston, New York, Halifax, London and Southampton to promote his plans to create a replica of the ill-fated Titanic.

Ken was born in Liverpool, with family roots in Salthill, Galway, and he carried that Irish heritage with pride throughout his life, regularly visiting Ireland. He used to joke that he’d been singing Irish songs since he was “a wee baby on his mother’s knee,” and anyone who heard him perform knew that music was second nature to him.

Ken arrived in Australia on Australia Day in 1973 to a job at RAAF Amberley. He became part of the strong Irish musical com- munity that flourished in Brisbane in the decades that followed.

Outside music, Ken was deeply involved in his local community on the Sunshine Coast, founding the Buderim Chronicle newspaper, acting as President of Sunshine FM radio station and contributing to numerous organisations, including the Buderim Chamber of Commerce, Buderim Business Association, Buderim Historical Society and Buderim War Memorial Community Association. Yet no matter how busy he became, music was always at the heart of his life.

To those who knew him personally, Ken was warm, sociable, highly intelligent and sharp, and endlessly enthusiastic — a man who loved a tune, a story and a good laugh. He will be remembered as a generous character who brought people together. He was part of the fabric of the Irish community in Queensland, and his presence will be deeply missed.

A public music memorial event for Ken will be organised at a later date — a fitting farewell for a man whose life was filled with music and friendship.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

by Mary Allen.