Lucy Picco Simpson, (1940 - 2006) born in Cicero, Illinois, was an avid folk singer deeply involved in the Pinewoods Folk Music Club of New York. Simpson graduated from Park University in Parkville, Missouri in 1962, with a B.A. in political science. She later attended Weslyian College in Middle-town, Connecticut, where she earned an M.A. in teaching in 1964.

Joe Heaney (AKA Joe Éinniú; Irish: Seosamh Ó hÉanaí) (1919 - 1984) was an Irish traditional (sean nós) singer from County Galway, Ireland. He spent most of his adult life abroad, living in England, Scotland and New York City, in the course of which he recorded hundreds of songs. A magnificent singer in both Gaelic and English, Heaney sings in sean-nos, the highly ornamented style of traditional Irish song.