Have Moicy! We Missed the Passing of Michael Hurley - Outsider Folk Singer/Songwriter

Michael Hurley, 2020

Michael Hurley may not ring a bell for all of you, or any of you, in fact. He came out of the Greenwich Village 1960’s folk scene, composing and singing entertaining satirical and silly songs. Perhaps best known through his 1976 album “Have Moicy!” with the Unholy Modal Rounders, backed by Holy Modal Rounders and Fugs alum Pete Stampfel and by Jeffrey Frederick of the Clamtones. Hurley died April 1, 2025.

For the folkie/string band aficionados amongst us, Hurley is/should be a hero.

The Guardian ran a profile in December 2021, which you can read here.

Here he is performing the Slurf Song, a track on Have Moicy, it is the first of his songs I remember:

In the folk tradition, there are numerous additional verses added by fans and by Hurley, himself. Among the songs I can recommend on the album:

Robin’ Banks:

Sweet Lucy

And finally, a performance from 2020 for Democracy Now (performance starts at 2:53):

RIP, Michael Hurley — Singer, songwriter, surrealist and advocate for the humanity within us all.