Formed during the great surge of interest in traditional music and song in the late 1960s, the group quickly evolved into a major force in the field. The Whistlebinkies led the revival in the use of the bellows-blown bagpipes in Scotland and were the first to combine the three national instruments: the fiddle, bagpipes and clarsach (small Scottish harp) in regular performance. Only traditional instruments are used and where possible, the group prefers to play in an acoustic setting. The repertoire is drawn from all periods of Scottish music and from all regions of the country. Members contribute new compositions within the tradition and the group is always ready to explore connections with other cultures. Arrangements develop in a workshop situation with each member bringing his or her own skills and ideas. The group has performed in many countries including China (as part of an exchange of folk ensembles in 1991), Sweden, France, Germany and USA.

The Whistlebinkies were inducted into the Traditional Music 'Hall of Fame' in 2014.

Three CD albums are on the Greentrax catalogue (A Wanton Fling, Timber Timbre, Albannach) and the best of the group's five LPs is found on the compilation CD issued by Claddagh Records (Anniversary). An earlier CD was released on Klub Records (Inner Sound) and the group recorded an LP on the Amiga label (The Whistlebinkies & Ted McKenna) in Berlin, GDR, while attending the Festival Des Politischen Liedes in February 1976. A selection of their unreleased material can be heard on the Raretunes archive website. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.