Mary Duff

Mary Duff has been one of the brightest and most recognizable stars of the Country Music scene for more than 30 years. With a string of albums to her credit and having appeared on prestigious stages such as London’s Royal Albert Hall, New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Sydney Opera House and the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Mary Duff has a resume that few can match.

Born in Lobinstown, Co. Meath, Mary Duff’s first experience of singing came aged 12 after recording herself singing two songs she had learned at primary school on a cassette recorder. The recordings were found by her father Tom Duff, an accomplished Gaelic footballer and Irish traditional musician, who subsequently invited his daughter to sing with his own band.

Upon finishing school, Mary Duff joined the band Jukebox, a breakaway band which performed a mixture of Rock ‘n’ Roll and modern pop songs. She would go on to win the Sunday World Nationwide Talent Competition, and on the back of this success was invited to join now renowned Irish singer Daniel O’Donnell on tour. Mary Duff proved very popular as Daniel O’Donnell’s Special Guest, that their singing partnership continued for over thirty years as they toured the world.

From the late 1980s onwards, Mary Duff became a recognized name on the International Country Music scene. In 1988, she shared the bill with Tammy Wynette, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Hoyt Axton, Crystal Gayle, Don Gibson, Freddie Fender, George Hamilton IV, Wanda Jackson, The Jordanaires, Patty Loveless, Jerry Lee Lewis and others. She appeared on the prestigious Wembley International Country Music Festival. She would then go on to appear with Garth Brooks as special guest on his first UK tour. Some years later, Garth would go on to co-write two original songs – «Looking Forward to the Past» and «Mr. Noble» which featured on one of Mary Duff’s albums and received considerable airplay on radio stations worldwide.

Mary Duff has fifteen studio albums to her credit, including a top ten UK chart hit. Over the years, she has explored a number of different genres and influences including American Country, Blues, Traditional Irish, Old-School Jazz and a collaboration with the Prague Film Harmonic Orchestra and Dublin Gospel Choir on a well-received inspirational album.

She has appeared on several television shows including PBS television in America with an estimated viewership of 66 million. She has also appeared on BBC Television’s Opry An Luir and recorded a live show from the Royal Air Force’s East Kirkby Aviation Heritage Centre in Lincolnshire, UK.

Mary Duff has a string of awards to her credit including having been recognized as Best Female Artist by Ireland’s top selling Sunday World Newspaper and the British Country Music Association. In 1989 Mary represented Ireland and won the Euro Masters Gold Star Award in The Netherlands amid competition from 18 other European countries. This achievement opened doors for her to perform and headline at many major festivals throughout Europe including Schuetzenhaus Albisguetli Festival, Trucker Treffen Kloten Festival in Switzerland, and the Floralia Festival in Oosterhout in The Netherlands.

Mary Duff cites her award for Meath Person of the Year in 1990 as one of her proudest achievements. In 2019, she was also recognized by Irish President Michael D. Higgins as one of a number of Irish artists who had contributed significantly to Country Music around the world.

In late 2019, Mary Duff announced her intention to give up the security of touring with Daniel O’Donnell as it was the right time to spread her wings and focus full-time on a new path for a new career. She subsequently signed a worldwide record deal with AGR Television Records in Germany, and the forthcoming album on the label had been two years in production. This also afforded Mary the opportunity to record with a collective of some of Ireland’s top musicians – Tramyard, whose recent recordings have received worldwide radio airplay, downloads and streams.