Joe Burke (keyboardist)

Joe Burke (born 1939) is an Irish button accordion player.

Burke was born in Kilnadeema, south of Loughrea in County Galway. He began playing at age four, and in the 1950s bought an accordion in Waltons of Dublin for £5, which he still owns. He won the All-Ireland Senior Accordion Championship in Thurles in 1959 and again in 1960 in Boyle.

In 1955 he joined the Leitrim Ceile Band, which included players such as Ned Coleman, Oliver Roland, Sean McGlynn, Paddy Doorhy, Jack Derven, and Mick Darcy. Later the band was joined by the flute player Paddy Carty.

Burke continues to perform, and to influence accordion music, as one of Ireland's top accordion players. He joined Cajun player Marc Savoy and jazz accordionist Art Van Damme, while representing Ireland at the 1989 and 1992 International Accordion Festivals, in Montmagny, Quebec. Joe Burke also played the banjo and released solo records of his record

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