"He was probably the first folk musician to have had his engraved likeness adorn the cover of a widely read journal, “The Irish Penny Journal”, in the 1840s. Penny journals were the popular medium of the period. The engraving, based on a watercolour portrait by Frederic William Burton, was accompanied by a three-page article, by George Petrie, on the piper’s life and character. This media exposure resulted in an unprecedented level of national fame for any folk musician and, as a result, Conneely was sought out by patrons, musicians and collectors of Irish music such as piper Lord Rossmore, the Hudson brothers and William Forde." ()