ABOUT
Joe was raised in Corrandulla, Galway, Ireland in a singing household. Joe recalls his mother was always singing and every year when the relations from America would visit, singing would be heard through the wee hours.
As a young lad he frequented “Forde’s” pub in Headford, Ireland, a live music hotspot throughout the 70s and 80s owned by his uncle Sean. He grew up with the privilege of listening to the likes of such stellar performers as his cousin Gerry Forde (now of Naples, Fla.) and Brendan Burke. But it would not be until he was 18 that he would find the confidence to sing a song at a cousin’s wedding. The applause and encouragement that followed led him to invest in his first guitar.
Most inspired by Paddy Reilly and Luke Kelly, Joe played throughout Ireland. Eventually he was invited to play in Michael Commins of Midwest Radio’s annual concert where he shared the stage with such prominent artists as Seán Keane, Big Tom, Declan Nerney, Philomena Begley, Dolores Keane to name but a few. In 2014, Joe released his first song “The Promise,” which was hugely popular on Midwest Radio and many other local stations across Ireland.
​Joe and wife Maureen were raising their family in Galway until the opportunity to purchase Maureen’s Mayo home house presented itself in 2018, and the Forde family came to Mayo. Shortly thereafter, the COVID-19 pandemic hit and Joe carried on singing traditional songs and ballads for patients in hospital. Joe recalls, “Once things started opening up, I met Joe O’Malley and asked if he would like me to sing in his pub, and here I am.”