Thistle Song Book

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H next to a song title is a link to more information on the song and it's writer.

The band believe the audience are as much a part of the evening as the performers and to come away from a Thistle gig is to come away with a feeling of being part of the event.  It helps to know the words to the songs.  
It's nice to join in and know more about the songs and their origins.
Thistle sometimes sing different lyrics to those here. 
If you notice any, let me know and I will change the words in this song book. (email thistle@f2s.com )

SONG INDEX

DONEGAL DANNY   



I remember the night that he came in

From the wintery cold and damp

A giant of a man in an oilskin coat

And a bundle that showed he was a tramp

He stood at the bar and called a pint

Then turned and gazed at the fire

On a night like this to be safe and dry

Is my one and only desire



   Chorus:

   So here's to those that are dead and gone

   The friends that I loved dear

   And here's to you then I'll bid you adieu

   Saying Donegal Danny's been here me boys, 

   Donegal Danny's been here



Then in a voice that was hushed and low

He said listen I'll tell you a tale

How a man of the sea became a man of the road

And never more will set sail

I've fished out of Howth and Killybegs,

Ardglass and Baltimore

But the cruel sea has beaten me

And I'll end me days on the shore



One fateful night in the wind and the rain

We set sail from Killybegs town,

There were five of us from sweet Donegal

And one from County Down,

We were fishermen who worked the sea

And never counted the cost

But I never thought 'ere that night was done

That my fine friends would all be lost



Then the storm it broke and drove the boat

To the rocks about ten miles from shore,

As we fought the tide we hoped inside

to see our homes once more

Than we struck a rock and holed the bow

And all of us knew that she'd go down

So we jumped right into the icy sea

And prayed to God we wouldn't drown



But the raging sea was rising still

As we struck out for the land

And she fought with all her cruelty

To claim that gallant men

By St John's point in the early dawn

I dragged myself on the shore

And I cursed the sea for what she'd done

And vowed to sail her nevermore



Ever since that night I've been on the road

Travelling and trying to forget

That awful night I lost all my friends

I see their faces yet

And often at night when the sea is high

And the the rain is tearing at my skin

I hear the cries of drowning men

Floating over on the wind

FIELDS OF ATHENRY          H

(Pete St. John)



By a lonely prison wall

I heard a young girl calling,

Michael they have taken you away,

For you stole Trevelyn's corn,

So the young might see the morn.

Now a prison ship lies waiting in the bay.



	Low lie the Fields of Athenry

	Where once we watched the small free birds fly.

	Our love was on the wing,

	We had dreams and songs to sing,

	It's so lonely round the Fields of Athenry.



By a lonely prison wall

I heard a young man calling,

Nothing matters Mary when you're free,

Against the Famine and the Crown,

I rebelled they cut me down.

Now you must raise our child with dignity.



	Low lie the Fields of Athenry ...



By a lonely harbour wall

She watched the last star falling,

As the prison ship sailed out against the sky,

For she'll live in hope and pray

For her love in Botany Bay.

It's so lonely round the Fields of Athenry.



	Low lie the Fields of Athenry ...

Return to Index

LIVERPOOL LOU



    Chorus:

    Oh Liverpool Lou, lovely Liverpool Lou,

    Why dont you behave just like other girls do,

    Why must my poor heart keep following you,

    Oh stay home and love me my Liverpool Lou.



When I go out walking, I hear people talking,

School children playing, I know what they're saying,

They're saying you'll grieve me, that you will deceive me,

Some morning you'll leave me all packed up and gone.



Chorus



The sounds from the river keep telling me ever,

That I should forget you, like I'd never met you,

Oh tell me their song love was never rnore wrong love,

Say I belong love to my Liverpool Lou.



Chorus



Oh Liverpool Lou, lovely Liverpool Lou,

Why don't you behave just like other girls do,

Why must my poor heart keep following you,

Oh stay home and love me my Liverpool Lou,

Oh stay home and love me my Liverpool Lou.

Return to Index

STAR OF THE COUNTY DOWN



Near to Banbridge Town, in the County Down

One morning last July,

Down a boreen green came a sweet colleen,

And she smiled as she passed me by,

She looked so sweet from her two bare feet

To the sheen of her nut-brown hair,

Such a coaxing elf, sure I shook meself

For to see I was really there



     CHORUS:

     From Bantry Bay up to Derry Quay,

     And from Galway to Dublin town,

     No maid I've seen like the fair colleen

     That I met in the County Down.



As she onward sped I shook my head

And I gazed with a feeling quare,

And I said, says I, to a passer-by,

"Who's the maid with the nut-brown hair?"

Oh, he smiled at me, and with pride says he,

"That's the gem of Ireland's crown,

She's young Rosie McCann from the banks of the Bann,

She's the Star of the County Down."



I've travelled a bit, but never was hit

Since my roving career began;

But fair and square I surrendered there

To the charms of young Rose McCann.

I'd a heart to let and no tenant yet

Did I meet with in shawl or gown,

But in she went and I asked no rent

From the Star of the County Down.



At the crossroads fair I'll be surely there

And I'll dress in my Sunday clothes

And I'll try sheep's eyes, and deludhering lies

On the heart of the nut-brown Rose.

No pipe I'll smoke, no horse I'll yoke

Though with rust my plow turns brown,

Till a smiling bride by my own fireside

Sits the Star of the County Down.

Return to Index

THE LEAVING OF LIVERPOOL



Farewell to Prince's landing stage

River Mersey, fare thee well

I am bound for California

A place I know right well



   Chorus:

   So fare thee well, my own true love

   When I return united we will be

   It's not the leaving of Liverpool that grieves me

   But my darling when I think of thee



I am bound for California

By the way of stormy Cape Horn

I will write to thee a letter, love

When I am homeward bound



I have shippedd on a Yankee clipper ship

Davy Crockett is her name

Dan Burgess is the Captain of her

And they say that she's a floating Hell



I have sailed with Burgess once before

I think I know him well

If a man's a sailor, he will get along

If not, then he's sure in Hell



Farewell to lower Frederick Street

Ensign Terrace and Park Lane

I am bound away for to leave you

And I'll never see you again

Return to Index

WILL YE GO LASSIE GO (Wild Mountain Thyme)



The summertime is coming

And the trees are sweetly blooming

And the wild mountain thyme

Grows around the blooming heather

Will ye go, Lassie go?



    Chorus:

    And we'll all go together

    To pull wild mountain thyme

    All around the blooming heather

    Will ye go, Lassie go?



I will build my love a tower

By yon' pure crystal fountain

And on it I will build

All the flowers of the mountain

Will ye go, Lassie go?



If my true love she were gone

I would surely find another

To pull wild mountain thyme

All around the blooming heather

Will ye go, Lassie go? 

Return to Index

AMERICAN PIE          H

Don Mclean



A long long time ago,

I can still remember how,

That music used to make me smile.

And I knew if I had my chance

That I could make those people dance,

And maybe they'd be happy for a while.

But February made me shiver,

With every paper I'd deliver.

Bad news on the doorstep;

I couldn't take one more step.

I can't remember if I cried

When I read about his widowed bride,

But something touched me deep inside

The day the music died.

So . . .



Chorus:

Bye, bye, Miss American Pie

Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry

Them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye

Singing "This'll be the day that I die,

This'll be the day that I die."



Did you write the book of love,

And do you have faith in God above?

If the Bible tells you so?

Do you believe in rock and roll;

Can music save your mortal soul,

And can you teach me how to dance real slow?

I know that you're in love with him;

'Cause I saw you dancin' in the gym.

You both kicked off your shoes;

Man, I dig those rhythm and blues.

I was a lonely teenage broncin' buck

With a pink carnation and a pickup truck.

But I knew I was out of luck

The day the music died.

I started singing . . .



Chorus



Now for ten years we've been on our own,

And moss grows fat on a rolling stone.

But that's not how it used to be,

When the jester sang for the king and queen

In a coat he borrowed from James Dean,

And a voice that came from you and me.

And while the king was looking down,

The jester stole his thorny crown.

The courtroom was adjourned,

No verdict was returned.

And while Lenin read a book on Marx,

The quartet practiced in the park,

And we sang dirges in the dark,

The day the music died.

We were singing . . .

Chorus

Helter Skelter in a summer swelter;

The birds flew off to a fallout shelter,

Eight miles high and falling fast.

Landed flat on the grass.

The players tried for a forward pass

With the jester on the sidelines in a cast.

The halftime air was sweet perfume

While the sergeants played a marching tune.

We all got up to dance,

But we never got a chance.

When the players tried to take the field;

The marching band refused to yield.

Do you recall what was revealed,

The day the music died?

We started singing . . .



Chorus

And there we were, all in one place,

A generation lost in space,

With no time left to start again.

So come on Jack be nimble, Jack be quick.

Jack flash sat on a candlestick,

Cause fire is the devil's only friend.

And as I watched him on the stage

My hands were clenched in fists of rage.

No angel born in hell

Could break that Satan spell.

And as the flames climbed high into the night

To light the sacrificial rite,

I saw Satan laughing in delight,

The day the music died.

He was singing . . .



Chorus



I met a girl who sang the blues

And I asked her for some happy news,

But she just smiled and turned away.

I went down to the sacred store

Where I'd heard the music years before.

But the man there said the music wouldn't play.

And in the streets the children screamed,

The lovers cried, and the poets dreamed.

But not a word was spoken.

The church bells all were broken.

And the three men I admire most --

The father, son, and the holy ghost --

They caught the last train for the coast,

The day the music died.

They were singing . . .



Chorus



Return to Index

BROWN EYED GIRL

(Van Morrison) 

Hey where did we go, 

Days when the rains came 

Down in the hollow, 

Playin' a new game, 

Laughing and a running hey, hey 

Skipping and a jumping 

In the misty morning fog with 

Our hearts a thumpin' and you 

My brown eyed girl, 

You my brown eyed girl. 



Whatever happened 

To Tuesday and so slow 

Going down the old mind 

With a transistor radio 

Standing in the sunlight laughing, 

Hiding behind a rainbow's wall, 

Slipping and sliding 

All along the water fall, with you 

My brown eyed girl, 

You my brown eyed girl. 



Do you remember when we used to sing, 

Sha la la la la la la la la la la te da 



So hard to find my way, 

Now that I'm all on my own. 

I saw you just the other day, 

My how you have grown, 

Cast my memory back there, Lord 

Sometime I'm overcome thinking 'bout 

Making love in the green grass 

Behind the stadium with you 

My brown eyed girl 

You my brown eyed girl 



Do you remember when we used to sing 

Sha la la la la la la la la la la te da.

Return to Index

BLACK VELVET BAND          H

In a neat little town they call Belfast 

Apprenticed in trade I was bound

And many an hour of sweet happiness

I spent in that neat little town 

Till bad misfortune befell me 

And caused me to stray from the land 

Far away from my friends and relations 

To follow the black velvet band 



Chorus 

Her eyes they shone like the diamond 

You'd think she was queen of the land 

And her hair hung over her shoulder 

Tied up in a black velvet band 



Well, I was out strolling one evening

Not meaning to go very far 

When I met with a pretty young damsel 

She was selling her trade in a bar 

When I watched, she took from a customer 

And slipped it right into my hand

Then the Watch came and put me in prison 

Bad luck to the black velvet band

Chorus 



Next morning before judge and jury

For our trial I had to appear 

The judge, he said, "Young fellow 

The case against you is quite clear 

And seven years is your sentence 

You're going to Van Dieman's Land

Far away from your friends and relations 

To follow the black velvet band" 

Chorus 



So come all you jolly young fellows

I'd have you take warning by me 

And whenever you're out on the liquor

Beware of the pretty colleen

They'll fill your with whiskey and porter 

Until you're not able to stand 

And the very next thing that you know 

You're landed in Van Dieman's Land

Chorus 

Return to Index

DON'T THINK TWICE, IT'S ALL RIGHT          H

It ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe

It don't matter, anyhow

An' it ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe

If you don't know by now

When your rooster crows at the break of dawn

Look out your window and I'll be gone

You're the reason I'm trav'lin' on

Don't think twice, it's all right



It ain't no use in turnin' on your light, babe

That light I never knowed

An' it ain't no use in turnin' on your light, babe

I'm on the dark side of the road

Still I wish there was somethin' you would do or say

To try and make me change my mind and stay

We never did too much talkin' anyway

So don't think twice, it's all right



It ain't no use in callin' out my name, gal

Like you never did before

It ain't no use in callin' out my name, gal

I can't hear you any more

I'm a-thinkin' and a-wond'rin' all the way down the road

I once loved a woman, a child I'm told

I give her my heart but she wanted my soul

But don't think twice, it's all right



I'm walkin' down that long, lonesome road, babe

Where I'm bound, I can't tell

But goodbye's too good a word, gal

So I'll just say fare thee well

I ain't sayin' you treated me unkind

You could have done better but I don't mind

You just kinda wasted my precious time

But don't think twice, it's all right

Return to Index

Mr. TAMBOURINE MAN          H

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

In the jingle jungle morning I'll come followin' you.



Though I know that evenin's empire has returned into sand,

Vanished from my hand,

Left me blindly here to stand but still not sleeping.

My weariness amazes me, I'm branded on my feet,

I have no one to meet

And the ancient empty street's too dead for dreaming.



Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

In the jingle jungle morning I'll come followin' you.



Take me on a trip upon your magic swirlin' ship,

My senses have been stripped, my hands can't feel to grip,

My toes too numb to step, wait only for my boot heels

To be wanderin'.

I'm ready to go anywhere, I'm ready for to fade

Into my own parade, cast your dancing spell my way,

I promise to go under it.



Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

In the jingle jungle morning I'll come followin' you.



Though you might hear laughin', spinnin', swingin' madly across the sun,

It's not aimed at anyone, it's just escapin' on the run

And but for the sky there are no fences facin'.

And if you hear vague traces of skippin' reels of rhyme

To your tambourine in time, it's just a ragged clown behind,

I wouldn't pay it any mind, it's just a shadow you're

Seein' that he's chasing.



Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

In the jingle jungle morning I'll come followin' you.



Then take me disappearin' through the smoke rings of my mind,

Down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves,

The haunted, frightened trees, out to the windy beach,

Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow.

Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand wavingfree,

Silhouetted by the sea, circled by the circus sands,

With all memory and fate driven deep beneath the waves,

Let me forget about today until tomorrow.



Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,

In the jingle jungle morning I'll come followin' you.

Return to Index

SEVEN DRUNKEN NIGHTS

As I went home on Monday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw a horse outside the door where my old horse should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns that horse outside the door where my old horse should be?



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

That's a lovely sow that me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But a saddle on a sow sure I never saw before



And as I went home on Tuesday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw a coat behind the door where my old coat should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns that coat behind the door where my old coat should be



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

That's a woollen blanket that me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But buttons in a blanket sure I never saw before



And as I went home on Wednesday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw a pipe up on the chair where my old pipe should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns that pipe up on the chair where my old pipe should be



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

That's a lovely tin whistle that me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But tobacco in a tin whistle sure I never saw before



And as I went home on Thursday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw two boots beneath the bed where my old boots should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns them boots beneath the bed where my old boots should be



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

They're two lovely Geranium pots me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But laces in Geranium pots I never saw before



And as I went home on Friday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw a head upon the bed where my old head should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns that head upon the bed where my old head should be



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

That's a baby boy that me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But a baby boy with his whiskers on sure I never saw before



And as I went home on Saturday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw two hands upon her breasts where my old hands should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns them hands upon your breasts where my old hands should be



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

That's a lovely night gown that me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But fingers in a night gown sure I never saw before



As I went home on Sunday night as drunk as drunk could be

I saw a thing in her thing where my old thing should be

Well, I called me wife and I said to her: Will you kindly tell to me

Who owns that thing in your thing where my old thing should be



Ah, you're drunk, 

you're drunk you silly old fool, 

still you can not see

That's a lovely tin whistle that me mother sent to me

Well, it's many a day I've travelled a hundred miles or more

But hair on a tin whistle sure I never saw before

Return to Index

BALLY BAY

In the town of Bally Bay, a lassie, she was dwelling,

I knew her very well, from the stories she was telling.

Her father ran a still, he was a good distiller,

But when she went to drink, why, an ocean wouldn't fill her!

chorus

With me ringa dinga da, ringa dinga daddy-o,

Ringa dinga da, whack fol the daddy-o.

She said she wouldn't dance until she had her wellies on,

But when she had 'em on, she danced as well as anyone.

Wouldn't go to bed until she had her shimmy on,

But when she had it on, why, she'd go to bed with anyone! 

chorus

She had a wooden leg, it was hollow in the middle,

She tied it with a string, and she played it like a fiddle

She fiddled in the hall, she fiddled in the alleyway,

She didn't care at all, 'cause she had the fiddle anyway. 

chorus

She courted day and night, every Tom, Dick and Harry,

She'd lovers by the score, but she said she'd never marry.

Then she fell in love with a fellow with a stammer,

He tried to run away, but she hit him with a hammer. 

chorus

She led a simple life, kept a cabin and went boating,

She terrorized her man, 'til he up and died quite sudden.

When he passed away, she was feeling kind of sorry,

She rolled him in a bag, and she threw him in the quarry! 

chorus

Return to Index

HEY, GOOD LOOKING          H

Hey, Hey, Good Lookin', whatcha got cookin'

How's about cookin' somethin' up with me ... 

Hey, sweet baby, don't you think maybe

We could find us a brand new recipe.



I got a hot rod Ford and a two dollar bill

And I know a spot right over the hill

There's soda pop and the dancin's free

So if you  wanna have fun come along with me.



Say Hey, Good Lookin', whatcha got cookin'

How's about cookin' somethin' up with  me.



I'm free and ready so we can go steady

How's about savin' all your time for me

No more lookin', I know I've been (*tooken)

How's about keepin' steady company.



I'm gonna throw my date book over the fence

And find me one for five or ten cents.

I'll keep it 'til it's covered with age

'Cause I'm writin' your name down on ev'ry page.



Say Hey, Good Lookin', whatcha got cookin'

How's about cookin' somethin' up with me.

Return to Index

WILLOW (Bury me beneath)

My heart is sad and I am lonely

For the only one I love

When shall I see her, oh no never

Till we meet in heaven above

Oh bury me beneath the willow

Under the weeping willow tree

So she will know where I am sleeping

And perhaps she’ll weep for me

She told me that she dearly loved me

How could I believe it untrue

Until the angels softly whispered

She will prove untrue to you

Tomorrow was our wedding day

Oh god, oh god, where can she be

She’s out a courting with another

And no longer cares for me

Return to Index

BLARNEY ROSES



Chorus

Can anybody tell me where the Blarney Roses grow

It might be down in Limerick town it might be in Mayo

It's somewhere in the Emerald Isle and this I want to know

Can anybody tell me where the Blarney Roses grow



T'was over in old Ireland near the town of Cushendall

One morn' I met a damsel there the fairest of them all

T' was with my young affections and my money she did go

She told me she belonged to where the Blarney Roses grow



Chorus



Her cheeks were like red roses and her hair a raven hue

Before that she bad done with me she had me raving too

She sorely left me stranded not a coin she left you know

Did the damsel that belonged to where the Blarney Roses grow



Chorus



There's roses in Killarney and there's some in County Clare

But upon my word the roses lads I can't find anywhere

She blarneyed me for by the power she left me broke you know

Did the damsel that belonged to where the Blarney Roses grow



Chorus



Return to Index

CITY of NEW ORLEANS          H

by Steve Goodman



Riding on the City of New Orleans,

Illinois Central Monday morning rail

Fifteen cars and fifteen restless riders,

Three conductors and twenty-five sacks of mail.

All along the southbound odyssey

The train pulls out at Kankakee

Rolls along past houses, farms and fields.

Passin' trains that have no names,

Freight yards full of old black men

And the graveyards of the rusted automobiles.



CHORUS:

Good morning America how are you?

Don't you know me I'm your native son,

I'm the train they call The City of New Orleans,

I'll be gone five hundred miles when the day is done.



Dealin' card games with the old men in the club car.

Penny a point ain't no one keepin' score.

Pass the paper bag that holds the bottle

Feel the wheels rumblin' 'neath the floor.

And the sons of pullman porters

And the sons of engineers

Ride their father's magic carpets made of steel.

Mothers with their babes asleep,

Are rockin' to the gentle beat

And the rhythm of the rails is all they feel.



CHORUS



Nighttime on The City of New Orleans,

Changing cars in Memphis, Tennessee.

Half way home, we'll be there by morning

Through the Mississippi darkness

Rolling down to the sea.

And all the towns and people seem

To fade into a bad dream

And the steel rails still ain't heard the news.

The conductor sings his song again,

The passengers will please refrain

This train's got the disappearing railroad blues.



Good night, America, how are you?

Don't you know me I'm your native son,

I'm the train they call The City of New Orleans,

I'll be gone five hundred miles when the day is done.

Return to Index

GREEN FIELDS of FRANCE          H

Well, how do you do, Private William McBride, 

Do you mind if I sit down here by your graveside? 

And rest for awhile in the warm summer sun, 

I've been walking all day, and I'm nearly done. 

And I see by your gravestone you were only 19 

When you joined the glorious fallen in 1916, 

Well, I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean 

Or, Willie McBride, was it slow and obscene? 



Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the pipes lowly? 

Did they sound the dead march as they lowered you down? 

Did the bugles sound The Last Post in chorus? 

Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest? 



And did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind 

In some loyal heart is your memory enshrined? 

And, though you died back in 1916, 

To that loyal heart are you forever 19? 

Or are you a stranger without even a name, 

Forever enshrined behind some glass pane, 

In an old photograph, torn and tattered and stained, 

And fading to yellow in a brown leather frame? 



The sun's shining down on these green fields of France; 

The warm wind blows gently, and the red poppies dance. 

The trenches have vanished long under the plow; 

No gas and no barbed wire, no guns firing now. 

But here in this graveyard that's still No Man's Land 

The countless white crosses in mute witness stand 

To man's blind indifference to his fellow man. 

And a whole generation who were butchered and damned. 



And I can't help but wonder, no Willie McBride, 

Do all those who lie here know why they died? 

Did you really believe them when they told you "The Cause?" 

Did you really believe that this war would end wars? 

Well the suffering, the sorrow, the glory, the shame 

The killing, the dying, it was all done in vain, 

For Willie McBride, it all happened again, 

And again, and again, and again, and again.

Return to Index

KING of THE ROAD

Trailer for sale or rent

Rooms to let...fifty cents.

No phone, no pool, no pets

I ain't got no cigarettes

Ah, but..two hours of pushin' broom

Buys an eight by twelve four-bit room

I'm a man of means by no means

King of the road.



Third boxcar, midnight train

Destination...Bangor, Maine.

Old worn out clothes and shoes,

I don't pay no union dues,

I smoke old stogies I have found

Short, but not too big around

I'm a man of means by no means

King of the road.

I know every engineer on every train

All of their children, and all of their names

And every handout in every town

And every lock that ain't locked

When no one's around.



I sing,

Trailers for sale or rent

Rooms to let, fifty cents

No phone, no pool, no pets

I ain't got no cigarettes

Ah, but, two hours of pushin' broom

Buys an eight by twelve four-bit room

I'm a man of means by no means

King of the road.

Return to Index

PUB WITH NO BEER

It's lonesome away from your kindred and all

By the campfire at night where the wild dingos call

But there's nothin' so lonesome, so dull or so drear

Than to stand in the bar of a pub with no beer



Now the publican's anxious for the quota to come

There's a faraway look on the face of the bum

The maid's gone all cranky and the cook's acting queer

What a terrible place is a pub with no beer



The stockman rides up with his dry, dusty throat

He breasts up to the bar, pulls a wad from his coat

But the smile on his face quickly turns to a sneer

When the barman says suddenly: "The pub's got no beer!"



There's a dog on the verandah, for his master he waits

But the boss is inside drinking wine with his mates

He hurries for cover and he cringes in fear

It's no place for a dog round a pub with no beer



Then in comes the swagman, all covered with flies

He throws down his roll, wipes the sweat from his eyes

But when he is told he says, "What's this I hear?

I've trudged fifty flamin' miles to a pub with no beer!"



Old Billy, the blacksmith, the first time in his life

Has gone home cold sober to his darling wife

He walks in the kitchen; she says: "You're early, me dear"

Then he breaks down and he tells her that the pub's got no beer



It's lonesome away from your kindred and all

By the campfire at night where the wild dingos call

But there's nothin' so lonesome, so dull or so drear

Than to stand in the bar of a pub with no beer

Return to Index

ROSEVILLE FAIR

Oh, the night was clear and the stars were shinin'

and the moon came up,... so quiet in the sky

And all the people gathered round while the band was a-tunin'

I can hear them now ... playin' 'Comin' Through the Rye'



She was dressed in blue and she looked so lovely

just a gentle flower of a small town girl

Then he took her hand and they danced to the music

with a single smile ... she became his world



(chorus) 

And they danced all night ... to the fiddle and the banjo 

their driftin' tunes, seemed to fill the air 

so long ago, but they still remember ... 

when they fell in love, at the Roseville Fair 



Now, they courted well, and they courted dearly

They'd rock for hours in the front porch chair

Then a year went by ... from the time that he met her

and he made her his, at the Roseville Fair



(repeat chorus)



So here's a song for all of the lovers

and here's a tune ... that you can share

May you dance all night ... to the fiddle and the banjo

Oh, the way they did at the Roseville Fair

Oh, the way they did ... at the Roseville Fair

Return to Index

SALLY MAC

Well Jimmy played harmonica in the pub where I was born

He played it from the night time to the peaceful early morn

He soothed the souls of psychos and the men who had the horn

And they all looked very happy in the morning



Now Jimmy didn't like his place in this world of ours

Where the elephant man broke strong men's necks

When he'd had too many Powers

So sad to see the grieving of the people that he's leaving

And he took the road for God knows in the morning



We walked him to the station in the rain

We kissed him as we put him on the train

And we sang him a song of times long gone

Though we knew that we'd be seeing him again

(Far away) sad to say I must be on my way

So buy me beer and whiskey 'cause I'm going far away (far away)

I'd like to think of me returning when I can

To the greatest little boozer and to Sally MacLennane



The years passed by the times had changed I grew to be a man

I learned to love the virtues of sweet Sally MacLennane

I took the jeers and drank the beers and crawled back home at dawn

And ended up a barman in the morning



I played the pump and took the hump and watered whiskey down

I talked of whores and horses to the men who drank the brown

I heard them say that Jimmy's making money far away

And some people left for heaven without warning



We walked him to the station in the rain

We kissed him as we put him on the train

And we sang him a song of times long gone

Though we knew that we'd be seeing him again

(Far away) sad to say I must be on my way

So buy me beer and whiskey 'cause I'm going far away (far away)

I'd like to think of me returning when I can

To the greatest little boozer and to Sally MacLennane



When Jimmy came back home he was surprised that they were gone

He asked me all the details of the train that they went on

Some people they are scared to croak but Jimmy drank until he choked

And he took the road for heaven in the morning



We walked him to the station in the rain

We kissed him as we put him on the train

And we sang him a song of times long gone

Though we knew that we'd be seeing him again

(Far away) sad to say I must be on my way

So buy me beer and whiskey 'cause I'm going far away (far away)

I'd like to think of me returning when I can

To the greatest little boozer and to Sally MacLennane

Return to Index

MEET ME ON THE CORNER

Hey Mister Dream-Seller, where have you been, tell me,

Have you dreams I can see?

I came along just to bring you this song,

Can you spare one dream for me?



You won't have met me and you'll soon forget, 

So don't mind me tugging at your sleeve. 

I'm asking you if I can fix a rendezvous, 

For your dreams are all I believe. 



Meet me on the corner when the lights are coming  on

And I'll be there, I promise I'll be there.

Down the empty streets we'll disappear into the dawn,

If you have dreams enough to share. 



Lay down your bundles of rags and reminders

And spread your wares on the ground.

Well I've got time if you'll deal in rhyme,

I'm just hanging 'round.



Meet me on the corner when the lights are coming on 

And I'll be there, I promise I'll be there. 

Down the empty streets we'll disappear into the dawn, 

If you have dreams enough to share. 



Hey Mister Dream-Seller, where have you been, tell me,

Have you dreams I can see?

I came along just to bring you this song,

Can you spare one dream for me?

Return to Index

MOUNTAINS O'MOURNE

Oh, Mary, this London's a wonderful sight

With people here working by day and by night

They don't sow potatoes nor barley nor wheat

But there's gangs of them diggin' for gold in the street

At least when I asked them, that's what I was told

So I just took a hand at this diggin' for gold

But for all that I've found there, I might as well be

In the place where the dark Mourne sweeps down to the sea



I believe that when writin' a wish you expressed

As to how the fine ladies of London were dressed

But if you'll believe me, when asked to a ball

They don't wear no tops to their dresses at all

Oh, I've seen them myself and you could not in truth

Tell if they were bound for a ball or a bath

Don't be startin' them fashions now, Mary McRee,

In the place where the dark Mourne sweeps down to the sea



There's beautiful girls here, oh, never you mind

Beautiful shapes Nature never designed

Lovely complexions of roses and cream

But let me remark with regard to the same

That if at those roses you venture to sit

The colors might all come away on your lip

So I'll wait for the wild rose that's waitin' for me

In the place where the dark Mourne sweeps down to the sea



You remember young Diddy McClaren, of course

But he's over here with the rest of the force

I saw him one day as he stood on the strand

Stopped all the traffic with a wave of his hand

As we were talking of days that are gone

The whole town of London stood there to look on

But for all his great powers, he's wishful like me

To be back where the dark Mourne sweeps down to the sea

Return to Index

THE TOWN I LOVED SO WELL          H

In my memory I will always see  

The town that I have loved so well  

Where our school played ball by the gasyard wall  

And we laughed through the smoke and smell.  

Going home in the rain running up the dark lane  

Past the jail and down beside the fountain  

Those were happy days in so many many ways  

In the town I loved so well.  

  

In the early morn the shirt factory horn  

Called women from Creggan, the Moor and the Bog  

While the men on the dole played a mothers role  

Fed the children and then trained the dog  

And when times got tough, there was just about enough  

But they saw it through without complaining  

For deep inside was a burning pride  

In the town I loved so well.  

  

There was music there in the Derry air  

Like a language that we could all understand  

I remember the day when I earned my first pay  

as I played in a small pickup band  

There I spent my youth and to tell you the truth  

I was sad to leave it all behind me  

For I'd learned about life and I'd found a wife  

In the town I loved so well.  

  

But when I returned how my eyes were burned  

To see how a town could be brought to it's knees  

By the armoured cars and the bombed out bars  

And the gas that hangs on to every breeze  

Now the army's installed by that old gasyard wall  

And the damned barbed wire  

gets higher and higher  

With their tanks and guns  

Oh my God, what have they done  

To the town I loved so well.

Return to Index

WORRIED MAN

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

I'm worried now but I won't be worried long



Got myself a Cadillac thirty dollars down

Got myself a brand new house five miles out of town

Got myself a gal named Sue treats me really fine

Yes, she's my baby and I love her all the time



It takes a worried worried man to sing a worried worried song

It takes a worried worried man to sing a worried worried song

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

I'm worried now but I won't be worried long



I've been away on a business trip travelin' all around

I got a gal and her name is Sue, prettiest gal in town

She sets my mind to worryin' every time I'm gone

I'll be home tonight so I won't be worried long



It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

I'm worried now but I won't be worried long



Well Bob is in the livin' room holdin' hands with Sue

Nicky's at that big front door, vowin' to come on through

Well I'm here in the closet, oh lord what shall I do

We're worried now but we won't be worried long



It takes a worried man to sing a worried song, oh yes

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

It takes a worried man to sing a worried song

I'm worried now but I won't be worried long

Return to Index

YOU AIN'T GOIN NO WHERE  (Easy Chair)

Clouds so swift

Rain won't lift

Gate won't close

Railings froze

Get your mind off wintertime

You ain't goin' nowhere

Whoo-ee! Ride me high

Tomorrow's the day

My bride's gonna come

Oh, oh, are we gonna fly

Down in the easy chair!



I don't care

How many letters they sent

Morning came and morning went

Pick up your money

And pack up your tent

You ain't goin' nowhere

Whoo-ee! Ride me high

Tomorrow's the day

My bride's gonna come

Oh, oh, are we gonna fly

Down in the easy chair!



Buy me a flute

And a gun that shoots

Tailgates and substitutes

Strap yourself

To the tree with roots

You ain't goin' nowhere

Whoo-ee! Ride me high

Tomorrow's the day

My bride's gonna come

Oh, oh, are we gonna fly

Down in the easy chair!



Genghis Khan

He could not keep

All his kings

Supplied with sleep

We'll climb that hill no matter how steep

When we get up to it

Whoo-ee! Ride me high

Tomorrow's the day

My bride's gonna come

Oh, oh, are we gonna fly

Down in the easy chair!

Return to Index

McAlpine's Fusiliers

(Dominick Behan)



As down the Glen came Mcalpine's men 

	with their shovels slung behind them.

It was in the pub that they drank their sub

	or down in the spike you'll find them.

We sweated blood and we washed down mud

	 with quarts and pints of beer.

But now we're on the road again 

	with McAlpines Fusiliers.



I stripped to the skin with Darky Finn 

	down upon the Isle of Grain,

With Horseface Toole I learned the rule, 

	no money if you stop for rain.

For McAlpine's god is a well filled hod 

	with your shoulders cut to bits and seared

And woe to he who looks for tea with McAlpines Fusiliers.



I remember the day that the Bear O'Shea 

	fell into a concrete stair,

What Horseface said, when he saw him dead, 

	well it wasn't what the rich call prayers.

"I'm a navvy short," was his one retort 

	that reached unto my ears,

When the going is rough, well you must be tough, 

	with McAlpine's Fusiliers.



I've worked till the sweat near had me beat 

	with Russian, Czech and Pole,

At shuttering jams up in the Hydro Dams, 

	or underneath the Thames in a hole,

I grafted hard and I got me cards 

	and many a ganger's fist across me ears.

If you pride your life, don't join, by Christ, 

	with McAlpine's Fusiliers.

Return to Index

The Holy Ground          H



Fare thee well, my lovely Dinah,

a thousand times adieu.

We are going away from the Holy Ground

and the girls we all love true.

We'll sail the salt seas over 

and we'll return for sure

To see again the girls we love

the Holy Ground once more.



Chorus:

You're the girl I do adore,

And still I live in hope to see

the Holy Ground once more.



Oh now the storm is raging

and we are far from shore;

The good old ship she's sinking fast

and the riggings they are tore.

The secrets of my mind, my girl,

you're the girl that I adore,

And still I live in hope to see

the Holy Ground once more.



Chorus:

You're the girl I do adore,

And still I live in hope to see

the Holy Ground once more.



Now the storm is over

Yes we're safe we're well

We will go into a public house 

and sit and drink like hell

We'll drink strong ale and porter

and we'll make the rafters roar,

And when our money is all spent

we'll go to sea once more.



Chorus:

You're the girl I do adore,

And still I live in hope to see

the Holy Ground once more

Return to Index

I'll tell my ma when I go home



I'll tell my ma when I go home

The boys won't leave the girls alone

They pulled my hair, they stole my comb

But that's all right till I go home.

She is handsome, she is pretty

She is the bell of Belfast city

She is counting one, two, three

Please won't you tell me who is she.

Albert Mooney says he loves her

All the boys are fighting for her

They knock at the door and they ring at the bell

Sayin' "Oh my true love, are you well?"

Out she comes as white as snow

Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes

Old John Murray says she'll die

If she doesn't get the fellow with the roving eye.

I'll tell my ma when I go home

The boys won't leave the girls alone

They pulled my hair, they stole my comb

But that's all right till I go home.

She is handsome, she is pretty

She is the bell of Belfast city

She is counting one, two, three

Please won't you tell me who is she.

Let the wind and rain and the hail blow high

And the snow come tumblin' from the sky

She's as nice as apple pie

She'll get her own lad by and by.

When she gets a lad of her own

She won't tell her ma when she goes home

Let them all come as they will

For it's Albert Mooney she loves still.

Return to Index

DIRTY OLD TOWN          H

(Ewan McColl)



I met my love by the gas works croft 

Dreamed a dream by the old canal 

I kissed my girl by the factory wall 

Dirty old town, dirty old town



Clouds are drifting across the moon 

Cats are prowling on their beat 

Springs a girl  in the street at night 

Dirty old town, dirty old town 



Heard a siren from the docks 

Saw a train set the night on fire 

Smelled the spring in the smokey wind 

Dirty old town, dirty old town 



I'm going to make a good sharp axe 

Shining steel tempered in the fire 

I'll chop you down like an old dead tree 

Dirty old town, dirty old town 

Dirty old town, dirty old town

FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK          H



It was Christmas Eve babe

In the drunk tank

An old man said to me,

Won't see another one

And then he sang a song

The Rare Old Mountain Dew

And I turned my face away

And dreamed about you



Got on a lucky one

Came in eighteen to one

I've got a feeling

This year's for me and you

So happy Christmas

I love you baby

I can see better times

When all our dreams come true



They've got cars

Big as bars

They've got rivers of gold

But the wind goes

Right through you

It's no place for the old



When you first took my hand

On a cold Christmas Eve

You promised me

Broadway was waiting for me



You were handsome

You were pretty

Queen Of New York City

When the band finished playing

They howled out for more



Sinatra was swinging,

All the drunks they were singing

We kissed on the corner

Then danced through the night



The Boys of the NYPD choir

Were singing 'Galway Bay'

And the bells were ringing

Out for Christmas day



You're a bum

You're a punk

You're an old slut on junk

Lying there almost dead on a drip

In that bed



You scum bag

You maggot

You cheap lousy faggot

Happy Christmas you arse

I pray God

It's our last



The Boys of the NYPD choir

Were singing 'Galway Bay'

And the bells were ringing

Out for Christmas day



I could have been someone

So could anyone

You took my dreams from me

When I first found you

I kept them with me babe

I put them with my own

Can't make it all alone

I've built my dreams around you



The Boys of the NYPD choir

Were singing 'Galway Bay'

And the bells were ringing

Out for Christmas day



I love you baby

I can see better times

When all our dreams come true.

Return to Index

THE GALWAY SHAWL



At Oranmore in the county Galway,

One pleasant evening in the month of May,

I spied a damsel, she was young and handsome,

Her beauty fairly took my breath away.



She wore no jewels, nor costly diamonds,

No paint nor powder no one at all,

But she wore a bonnet with ribbons on it,

And around her shoulders was the Galway shawl.



We kept on walking, she kept on talking,

'Till her father's cottage came into view,

Said she, Come in sir and meet my father,

And play to please him, The foggy Dew.



She sat down beside the hearth stone,

I could see her father he was six feet tall,

And soon her mother had the kettle singing,

All I could think of was the Galway shawl.



She wore no jewels, nor costly diamonds,

No paint nor powder no one at all,

But she wore a bonnet with ribbons on it,

And around her shoulders was the Galway shawl.



I played the Blackbird, the Stack of Barley,

Rodney's Glory and the Foggy Dew,

She sang each note like an Irish linnet,

And tears welled in her eyes of blue.



'Twas early, early all in the morning,

I hit the road for old Donegal,

Said she 'Goodbye Sir', she cried and kissed me,

But my heart remains with the Galway shawl.



She wore no jewels, nor costly diamonds,

No paint nor powder no one at all,

But she wore a bonnet with ribbons on it,

And around her shoulders was the Galway shawl.

Return to Index

THE IRISH ROVER



On the fourth of July eighteen hundred and six

We set sail from the sweet cove of Cork

We were sailing away with a cargo of bricks

For the grand city hall in New York

'Twas an elegant craft, she was rigged fore and aft

And how the wild wind drove her

She could stand a great blast in her twenty seven masts

And we called her the Irish Rover



We had one million bags of the best Sligo rags

We had two million barrels of stones

We had three million sides of old blind horses hides

We had four million barrels of bone

We had five million hogs, six million dogs

Seven million barrels of porter

We had eight million bales of old nanny goats tails

In the hold of the Irish Rover



There was Barney McGee from the banks of the Lee

There was Hogan from County Tyrone

There was Johnny McGuirk who was scared stiff of work

And a chap from Westmeath called Malone

There was Slugger O'Toole who was drunk as a rule

And fighting Bill Tracy from Dover

There was Dolan from Clare, just as strong as a bear

All aboard on the Irish Rover



We had sailed seven years when the measles broke out

And our ship lost it's way in the fog

Then the whole of the crew was reduced down to two

Just myself and the captain's old dog

The ship struck a rock, Lord what a shock

The boat it flipped right over

Turned nine times around and the poor old dog was drowned

I'm the last of the Irish Rover

Return to Index

THE WILD ROVER          H



Chorus: 

And it's no, nay, never, no, nay, never, no more,

Will I play the wild rover, no, never no more



I've been a wild rover for many's the year,

And I've spent all my money on whiskey and beer,

But now I'm returning with gold in great store,

And I never will play the wild rover no more.



(Chorus)



I went into an alehouse I used to frequent,

And I told the landlady my money was spent,

I asked her for credit, she answered me

"Nay, such a custom as yours I can have every day."



(Chorus)



I then took from my pocket ten sovereigns bright,

And the landlady's eyes opened wide with delight,

She says, "I have whiskies and wines of the best,

And the words that I told you were only in jest."



(Chorus)



I'll go home to my parents, confess what I've done,

And I'll ask them to pardon their prodigal son,

And when they've caressed me as oft times before,

The I never will play the wild rover no more.

Return to Index

PADDY On The RAILWAY



In eighteen hundred and forty one

My corduroy breeches I put on

My corduroy breeches I put on

To work upon the railway

The railway

Im weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway



In eighteen hundred and forty two

From Hartlepool I moved to Grove

And found myself a job to do

Working on the railway

I was wearing

Corduroy breeches

Digging ditches

Pulling switches

Dodging hitchers

I was working on the railway



In eighteen hundred and forty three

I broke me shuffle across me knee

I went to work for the company

And leave me seldom railway

I was wearing

Corduroy breeches

Digging ditches

Pulling switches

Dodging hitchers

I was working on the railway



In eighteen hundred and forty four

I landed on the Liverpool shore

Me belly was empty me hands were raw

With working on the railway

The railway

Im weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway



In eighteen hundred and forty five

When Daniel OConnell he was alive

And Daniel OConnell he was alive

And working on the railway

I was wearing

Corduroy breeches

Digging ditches

Pulling switches

Dodging hitchers

I was working on the railway



In eighteen hundred and forty six

I changed me trade from carrying bricks

Changed me trade from carrying bricks

To working on the railway

I was wearing

Corduroy breeches

Digging ditches

Pulling switches

Dodging hitchers

I was working on the railway



In eighteen hundred and forty seven

Poor Paddy was thinking of going to Heaven

Poor Paddy was thinking of going to Heaven

To work upon the railway

The railway

Im weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway



I was wearing

Corduroy breeches

Digging ditches

Pulling switches

Dodging hitchers

I was working on the railway

 Return to Index

  IF YOU GOTA GO, GO NOW
(Bob Dylan)

Listen to me baby there's something

that you must see

I want to be with you babe

If you want to be with me. 

But if you gotta go, its alright.

But if you gotta go, go now

or else you got to stay all night. 

It's not that I'm questioning you to take part

in any kind of quest

It's just that I ain't got no watch 

and you keep asking me what time it is.

But if you gotta go, its alright.

But if you gotta go, go now

or else you got to stay all night.

I am just a poor girl trying to connect

I certainly don't want you thinking

that I ain't got any respect.

But if you gotta go, its alright.

But if you gotta go, go now

or else you gotta to stay all night.

It ain't that I am wanting anything

that you never gave before.

It's just that I'll be sleeping and it'll be too dark

for you to find the door.

But if you gotta go, its alright

But if you gotta go, go now

or else you got to stay all night.

Return to Index

IN SEARCH OF A ROSE

Where will I wander and wonder ?

Nobody knows

but wherever I'm going I'll go

in search of a rose



Whatever the will of the weather

and whether it shines or snows

wherever I'm going I'll go

in search of a rose



I don't know where it's found

but I don't mind

as long as the world spins around

I'll take my time



I may follow the fellow who fiddles

I may put on a merchant's clothes

but wherever I'm going I'll go

in search of a rose



I don't know where I'm bound

Oh, and I don't care

As long as the world spins around

I'll be there !



I'll savour the softness of summer

I'll wrap up when winter blows

and wherever I'm going I'll go

in search of a rose

Return to Index

THE WEIGHT

(J. R. Robertson) 

I pulled into Nazareth, was feelin' about half past dead;

I just need some place where I can lay my head.

"Hey, mister, can you tell me where a man might find a bed?"

He just grinned and shook my hand, and "No!", was all he said.



CHORUS:

Take a load off Fanny, take a load for free;

Take a load off Fanny, And (and) (and) you can put the load right on me.



I picked up my bag, I went lookin' for a place to hide;

When I saw Carmen and the Devil walkin' side by side.

I said, "Hey, Carmen, come on, let's go downtown."

She said, "I gotta go, but m'friend can stick around."



CHORUS



Go down, Miss Moses, there's nothin' you can say

It's just ol' Luke, and Luke's waitin' on the Judgement Day.

"Well, Luke, my friend, what about young Anna Lee?"

He said, "Do me a favor, son, woncha stay an' keep Anna Lee company?"



CHORUS



Crazy Chester followed me, and he caught me in the fog.

He said, "I will fix your rack, if you'll take Jack, my dog."

I said, "Wait a minute, Chester, you know I'm a peaceful man."

He said, "That's okay, boy, won't you feed him when you can."



CHORUS



Catch a cannon ball now, t'take me down the line

My bag is sinkin' low and I do believe it's time.

To get back to Miss Fanny, you know she's the only one.

Who sent me here with her regards for everyone.



CHORUS

Return to Index

I'LL BE YOURS (Baby Tonight)

Close your eyes, close the door

You don't have to worry any more

I'll be your baby tonight

Shut the light, shut the shade

You don't have to be afraid

I'll be your baby tonight

Well, that mockingbird's gonna sail away

We're gonna forget it

That big, fat moon is gonna shine like a spoon

But we're gonna let it

You won't regret it

Kick your shoes off, do not fear

Bring that bottle over here

I'll be your baby tonight

Return to Index

GOODNIGHT IRENE          H

Irene goodnight, Irene Goodnight

Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene

I will see you in my dreams.



Sometimes I live in the country

Sometimes I live in town

Sometimes I take a great notion

To jump in the river and drown



Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight

Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene

I will see you in my dreams



Stop your ramblin

Stop your gamblin

Stop staying out late at night

Go home to your wife and family

And stay by thr fireside bright



Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight

Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene

I will see you in my dreams



Sometimes I live in the counry

Sometimes I live in town

Sometimes I take a great notion

To jump in the river and drown



Irene goodnight, Irene Goodnight

Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene

I will see you in my dreams



Stop your ramblin

Stop your gamblin

Stop staying out late at night

Go home to your wife and family

And stay by the fireside bright



Oh Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight

Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene

I will see you in my dreams

Return to Index

CIGARETTES AND WHISKEY



cho: Cigarettes, whiskey and wild wild women

     They'll drive you crazy, they'll drive you insane;

     Cigarettes, whiskey and wild wild women

     They'll drive you crazy, they'll drive you insane;



Once I was happy and had a good wife

I had enough money to last me for life

Then I met with a gal and we went on a spree

She taught me smokin' and drinkin' whiskee

  (CHORUS)



Cigarettes are a blight on the whole human race

A man is a monkey with one in his face;

Take warning dear friend, take warning dear brother

A fire's on one end, a fools on the t'other.

  (CHORUS)



And now good people, I'm broken with age

The lines on my face make a well written page

I'm weavin' this story -- how sadly but true

On women and whiskey and what they can do

 (CHORUS)



Write on the cross at the head of my grave

For women and whiskey here lies a poor slave.

Take warnin' poor stranger, take warnin' dear friend

In wide clear letters this tale of my end.

 (CHORUS)

Return to Index

O'REILY'S DAUGHTER

As I was sitting by the fire,

Talking to old Reilly's daughter

Suddenly a thought came into my head:

I'd like to marry old Reilly's daughter,



Chorus

Giddy I Ay, Giddy I Ay, Giddy I Ay

For the one eyed Reilly,

Giddy I Ay, (bang, bang, bang)

Play it on your big brass drum.



For Reilly played on the big brass drum

Reilly had a mind for murder and slaughter,

Reilly had a bright red gilttering eye,

And he kept an eye on his lovely daughter.



Chorus



Her hair was black and her eyes were blue

The colonel and the major and the captain sought her

The sergeant and the private and the drummer boy, too

But they never had a chance with O'Reilly's daughter.



Chorus



I got me a ring and a parson, too,

I got me a 'scratch' in the married quarter

Settled me down to a peaceful life,

As happy as a king with O'Reilly's daughter.



Chorus



Suddenly a footstep on the stair,

Who should it be but the one-eyed Reilly

With two pistols in his hand

Look for the man who married his daughter.



Chorus



I took O'Reilly by the hair,

Rammed his head in a pail of water,

Fired his pistols in the air,

A darned sight quicker than I married his daughter.



Chorus

Return to Index

ALL FOR ME GROG            H

And it's all for me grog me jolly, jolly grog

All for my beer and tobacco

Well, I spent all me tin with the ladies drinkin' gin

Far across the Western Ocean I must wander 



I'm sick in the head and I haven't been to bed 

Since first I came ashore with me plunder

I've seen centipedes and snakes and me head is full of aches

And I have to take a path for way out yonder 



And it's all for me grog me jolly, jolly grog

All for my beer and tobacco

Well, I spent all me tin with the ladies drinkin' gin

Far across the Western Ocean I must wander 



Where are me boots, me noggin', noggin' boots

They're all sold for beer and tobacco

See the soles they were thin and the uppers were lettin' in

And the heels were lookin' out for better weather 



And it's all for me grog me jolly, jolly grog

All for my beer and tobacco

Well, I spent all me tin with the ladies drinkin' gin

Far across the Western Ocean I must wander 



Where is me shirt, me noggin', noggin' shirt

It's all sold for beer and tobacco

You see the sleeves were all worn out and the collar been torn about

And the tail was lookin' out for better weather 



And it's all for me grog me jolly, jolly grog

All for my beer and tobacco

Well, I spent all me tin with the ladies drinkin' gin

Far across the Western Ocean I must wander 



Where is me wife, me noggin', noggin' wife

She's all sold for beer and tobacco

You see her front it was worn out and her tail I kicked about

And I'm sure she's lookin' out for better weather 



And it's all for me grog me jolly, jolly grog

All for my beer and tobacco

Well, I spent all me tin with the ladies drinkin' gin

Far across the Western Ocean I must wander 



Where is me bed, me noggin', noggin' bed

It's all sold for beer and tobacco

You see I sold it to the girls until the springs were all in twirls

And the sheets they're lookin' out for better weather 



And it's all for me grog me jolly, jolly grog

All for my beer and tobacco

Well, I spent all me tin with the ladies drinkin' gin

Far across the Western Ocean I must wander

Return to Index

BLUE MOON of KENTUCKY          H

Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.

Shine on the one that's gone and proved untrue.

Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.

Shine on the one that's gone and left me blue. 

It was on a moonlight night, the stars were shining bright,

An' they whispered from on high: "Your love has said goodbye."

Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.

Shine on the one that's gone and said goodbye. 

Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.

Shine on the one that's gone and said goodbye.

Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.

Shine on the one that's gone and made me cry. 

It was on a moonlight night, the stars were shining bright,

They whispered from on high: "Your love has said goodbye."

Blue moon of Kentucky, keep on shining.

Shine on the one that's gone and said goodbye. 

Return to Index

HILLS OF CONNEMARA          H

Chorus 

Gather up the pots and the old tin cans 

The mash, the corn, the barley and the bran. 

Run like the devil from the excise man 

Keep the smoke from rising, Barney.



Keep your eyes well peeled today

The excise men are on their way 

Searching for the mountain tay 

In the hills of Connemara.



Swinging to the left, swinging to the right 

The excise men will dance all night 

Drinkin' up the tay till the broad daylight 

In the hills of Connemara.



Chorus 



A gallon for the butcher and a quart for John 

And a bottle for poor old Father Tom

Just to help the poor old dear along 

In the hills of Connemara. 



Stand your ground, for it's too late 

The excise men are at the gate. 

Glory be to Paddy, but they're drinkin' it straight 

In the hills of Connemara.



Chorus (Twice)

Return to Index

STREAMS OF WHISKEY          H

Last night as I slept

I dreamt I met with Behan

I shook him by the hand and we passed the time of day

When questioned on his views

On the crux of life's philosophies

He had but these few clear and simple words to say



I am going, I am going

Any which way the wind may be blowing

I am going, I am going

Where streams of whiskey are flowing



I have cursed, bled and sworn

Jumped bail and landed up in jail

Life has often tried to stretch me

But the rope always was slack

And now that I've a pile

I'll go down to the Chelsea

I'll walk in on my feet

But I'll leave there on my back



Oh the words that he spoke

Seemed the wisest of philosophies

There's nothing ever gained

By a wet thing called a tear

When the world is too dark

And I need the light inside of me

I'll go into a bar and drink

Fifteen pints of beer

Return to Index

MOLLY MAGUIRES          H

Make way for the Molly Maguires

They're drinkers, they're liars but they're men

Make way for the Molly Maguires

You'll never see the likes of them again



Down the mines no sunlight shines

Those pits they're black as hell

In modest style they do their time

It's Paddy's prison cell

And they curse the day they've travelled far

Then drown their tears with a jar



So make way for the Molly Maguires

They're drinkers, they're liars but they're men

Make way for the Molly Maguires

You'll never see the likes of them again



Backs will break and muscles ache

Down there there's no time to dream

Of fields and farms, of womans arms

Just dig that bloody seam

Though they drain their bodies underground

Who'll dare to push them around



So make way for the Molly Maguires

They're drinkers, they're liars but they're men

Make way for the Molly Maguires

You'll never see the likes of them again



So make way for the Molly Maguires

They're drinkers, they're liars but they're men

Make way for the Molly Maguires

You'll never see the likes of them again

Return to Index

CITY of CHICAGO

In the City of Chicago,

As the evening shadows fall,

There are people dreaming,

Of the hills of Donegal.



1847, was the year it all began,

Deadly pains of hunger, drove a million from the land,

They journeyed not for glory,

Their motive was not greed,

A voyage of survival,

Across the stormy sea.



In the City of Chicago,

As the evening shadows fall,

There are people dreaming,

Of the hills of Donegal.



Some of them knew fortune, some of them knew fame,

More of them knew hardship,

And died upon the plain,

They spread throughout the nation,

They rode the railroad cars,

Brought their songs and music,

To ease their lonely hearts.



In the City of Chicago,

As the evening shadows fall,

There are people dreaming,

Of the hills of Donegal.

Return to Index

DANNY BOY          H

Oh Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling 

From glen to glen, and down the mountain side 

The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying 

'tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide. 

But come you back when summer's in the meadow 

Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow 

'tis I'll be there in sunshine or in shadow 

Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy, I love you so. 

And if you come, when all the flowers are dying 

And I am dead, as dead I well may be 

You'll come and find the place where I am lying 

And kneel and say an "Ave" there for me. 

And I shall hear, tho' soft you tread above me 

And all my dreams will warm and sweeter be 

If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me 

I simply sleep in peace until you come to me. 

Return to Index

HEY JUDE

Hey, Jude, don't make it bad

Take a sad song and make it better

Remember to let her into your heart

Then you can start to make it better 

Hey, Jude, don't be afraid

You were made to go out and get her

The minute you let her under your skin

Then you begin to make it better. 

And any time you feel the pain, hey, Jude, refrain

Don't carry the world upon your shoulders

Well don't you know that its a fool who plays it cool

By making his world a little colder 

Hey, Jude! Don't let her down

You have found her, now go and get her

Remember, to let her into your heart

Then you can start to make it better. 

So let it out and let it in, hey, Jude, begin

You're waiting for someone to perform with

And don't you know that it's just you, hey, Jude,

You'll do, the movement you need is on your shoulder 

Hey, Jude, don't make it bad

Take a sad song and make it better

Remember to let her into your heart

Then you can start to make it better

Return to Index

LAS VEGAS IN THE HILLS OF DONEGAL

You may talk about Atlantis, how it’s lost beneath the sea

Or the grave of the unknown soldier and the cry of the old banshee

Who was the man in the iron mask, was Jack the ripper set free?

But ask them all where’s Donegal, and it’s still a mystery



And if I could I’d build a wall around old Donegal

The north and south to keep them out, my god I’d build it tall

Casinoes, chicken ranches, I’d legalize them all

We’d have our own Las Vegas in the hills of Donegal

Yeah!! Las Vegas in the hills of Donegal



Late night clubs and all night pubs, black jack and roulette

Mel Gibson, Brigitte Nilsen, Mike Tyson having a bet (bite)

Iniseoghain would then be known for it’s multi-millionaires

Where Donald Trump would have a chunk to live in solitaire



And if I could I’d build a wall around old Donegal

The north and south to keep them out, my god I’d build it tall

Casinoes, chicken ranches, I’d legalize them all

We’d have our own Las Vegas in the hills of Donegal

Yeah!! Las Vegas in the hills of Donegal



To stand on top of fairy hill would give me such a thrill

I’ve heard them say in Dublin there’s gold in them there hills

So don’t despair, ‘cos if you dare, the answer lies with me

There’s a wall that’s steep and it’s going cheap somewhere in Germany



And if I could I’d build a wall around old Donegal

The north and south to keep them out, my god I’d build it tall

Casinoes, chicken ranches, I’d legalize them all

We’d have our own Las Vegas in the hills of Donegal

Yeah!! Las Vegas in the hills of Donegal

Return to Index

N 17

Well I didn't see much future 

When I left the Christian brothers school 

So I waved it goodbye with a wistful smile 

And I left the girls of Tuam 

And sometimes when I'm reminiscing 

I see the prefabs and my old friends 

And I know that they'll be changed or gone 

By the time I get home again 



Chorus: 

And I wish I was on that N 17 

(Stone walls and the grasses green) 

Yes I wish I was on that N 17 

(Stone walls and the grasses green) 

Travelling with just my thoughts and dreams 



Well the ould fella left me to Shannon 

Was the last time I travelled that road 

and as I turned left at Claregalway 

I could feel a lump in my throat 

As I pictured the thousands of times 

That I travelled that well worn track 

And I know that things would be different 

If I ever decide to go back 



Chorus: 



Now as I tumble down highways 

Or filthy overcrowded trains 

There's no one to talk to in transit 

So I sit there and daydream in vain 

And behind all these muddled up problems 

Of living on a foreign soil 

I can still see the twists and turns on the road 

From the square to the town of the tribes

Return to Index

RIDE ON

True you ride the finest horse I've ever seen

Standing sixteen one or two

With eyes wild and green

You ride the horse so well

Hands light to the touch

I could never go with you

No matter how I wanted to



Ride on, see you

I could never go with you

No matter how I wanted to

Ride on, see you

I could never go with you

No matter how I wanted to



When you ride into the night

Without out a trace behind

Run your claw along my gush one last time

I turn to face an empty space

Where you used to lie

And look for the spark that lights the night

Through the teardrop in my eye



Ride on, see you

I could never go with you

No matter how I wanted to

Ride on, see you

I could never go with you

No matter how I wanted to

Return to Index

SLOOP JOHN B

We come on the sloop john b

My grandfather and me

Around nassau town we did roam

Drinking all night

Got into a fight

Well I feel so broke up

I want to go home



So hoist up the john b’s sail

See how the mainsail sets

Call for the captain ashore

Let me go home, let me go home

I wanna go home, yeah yeah

Well I feel so broke up

I wanna go home



The first mate he got drunk

And broke in the cap’n’s trunk

The constable had to come and take him away

Sheriff john stone

Why don’t you leave me alone, yeah yeah

Well I feel so broke up I wanna go home



So hoist up the john b’s sail

See how the mainsail sets

Call for the captain ashore

Let me go home, let me go home

I wanna go home, let me go home

Why don’t you let me go home

(hoist up the john b’s sail)

Hoist up the john b

I feel so broke up I wanna go home

Let me go home



The poor cook he caught the fits

And threw away all my grits

And then he took and he ate up all of my corn

Let me go home

Why don’t they let me go home

This is the worst trip I’ve ever been on



So hoist up the john b’s sail

See how the mainsail sets

Call for the captain ashore

Let me go home, let me go home

I wanna go home, let me go home

Why don’t you let me go home

Return to Index

CASTLE IN THE AIR

And if she asks you why, you can tell her that I told you

That I’m tired of castles in the air.

I’ve got a dream I want the world to share

And castle walls just lead me to despair.



Hills of forest green where the mountains touch the sky,

A dream come true, I’ll live there till I die.

I’m asking you to say my last goodbye.

The love we knew ain’t worth another try.



Save me from all the trouble and the pain.

I know I’m weak, but I can’t face that girl again.

Tell her the reasons why I can’t remain,

Perhaps she’ll understand if you tell it to her plain.



But how can words express the feel of sunlight in the morning,

In the hills, away from city strife.

I need a country woman for my wife;

I’m city born, but I love the country life.



For I cannot be part of the cocktail generation:

Partners waltz, devoid of all romance.

The music plays and everyone must dance.

I’m bowing out. I need a second chance.



Save me from all the trouble and the pain.

I know I’m weak, but I can’t face that girl again.

Tell her the reasons why I can’t remain,

Perhaps she’ll understand if you tell it to her plain.



And if she asks you why, you can tell her that I told you

That I’m tired of castles in the air.

I’ve got a dream I want the world to share

And castle walls just lead me to despair.

Return to Index

MOUNTAIN DEW

Chorus:

Ah didlee ay dum 

ah diddlee ay dum

Ah doo ray diddlee ai ay 

Ah didlee ay dum 

ah diddlee ay dum

Ah doo ray diddlee ai ay 

Let grasses grow and waters flow

In a free and easy way

Just give me enough of that fine old stuff 

that's made near Galway Bay

The police men from old Donegal

Sligo and Lietrin too

We'll give them the slip and we'll take a sip

Of that real old Mountain Dew

At the foot of the hill there's a neat little still

Where the smoke curls up to the sky

By the smoke and the smell you can plainly tell 

There's poitin brewin near by

It fills the air with a perfume rare

But betwixt both me and you

When home we go you can take a bowl

Or a bucket of the Mountain Dew

Now learned men who use a pen

Have wrote your praises high

That sweet poitin from Ireland green

is stilled from wheat and rye

Put away your pills, it'll cure all ills

Be ye Christian, pagan or Jew

Take off your coat and grease your throat

With a bucket of the Mountain Dew

Return to Index

SPANISH LADY

As I went out through Dublin City

At the hour of twelve o'clock at night

Who should I see but the Spanish lady

Washing her feet by candlelight

First she washed it

Then she dried it

Over a fire of amber coals

In all my life I never did see

A maid so sweet about the soul



Whack for the tur a lur a laddy

Whack for the tur a lur a lay

Whack for the tur a lur a laddy

Whack for the tur a lur a lay



As I went our thru Dublin City

At the hour of half past eight

Who do I see but the Spanish lady

Combing her hair so trim and neat

First she brushed it

Then she combed it

On her lap was a silver comb

In all my life I never did see

A maid so sweet since I did roam



As I walked out through Dublin City

As the sun began to set

Who should I see but the Spanish lady

Catch a moth in her golden net

First she spied me then she fled me

Hitchin' her petticoat over her knee

In all my life ne'er did I see

A maid so fair as the Spanish Lady

Return to Index

WHISKEY IN THE JAR

As I was goin' over the Cork and Kerry mountains 

I met with Captain Farrell and his money he was countin'

I first produced my pistol and then produced my rapier

I said stand and deliver or the devil he may take you 



Musha ring dum a doo dum a da 

Wept for my daddy-o 

Wept for my daddy-o 

There's whiskey in the jar-o 



I took all of his money and there was a pretty penny 

I took all of his money and I brought it home to Molly 

she swore that she loved me and never would she leave me 

but the devil take that woman for she deceived me easy 



Musha ring dum a doo dum a da 

Wept for my daddy-o 

Wept for my daddy-o 

There's whiskey in the jar-o 



Now some men like the fishin', and some men like the fowlin'

some men like to hear cannon balls rollin'

but me I like the sleeping, especially in my Molly's chamber

but here I am in prison, here I am with ball and chain, yeah



Musha ring dum a doo dum a da 

Wept for my daddy-o 

Wept  for my daddy-o 

There's whiskey in the jar-o



Repeat chorus

Return to Index

RED IS THE ROSE

Chorus

Red is the rose that in yonder garden grows

Fair is the lily of the valley

Clear is the water that flows from the Boyne

But my love is fairer than any.

Come over the hills, my bonnie Irish lass

Come over the hills to your darling

You choose the rose, love, and I'll make the vow

And I'll be your true love forever.



'Twas down by Killarney's green woods that we strayed

When the moon and the stars they were shining

The moon shone its rays on her locks of golden hair

And she swore she'd be my love forever.



Chorus



It's not for the parting that my sister pains

It's not for the grief of my mother

'Tis all for the loss of my bonny Irish lass

That my heart is breaking forever.



Chorus 

Return to Index

EILEEN OGE          H

Eileen Oge, an’ that the darlin’s name is,

Through the barony her features they were famous,

If we loved her, who is there to blame us

For wasn’t she the Pride of Petravore?

But her beauty made us all so shy.

Not a man could look her in the eye.

Boys, oh Boys! Sure that’s the reason why 

We’re in mournin’ for the Pride of Petravore.



Eileen Oge! Me heart is growin’ grey,

Ever since the day you wandered far away

Eileen Oge! There’s good fish in the say

But there’s no one like the Pride of Petravore.



Friday at the fair of Ballintubber,

Eileen met McGrath the cattle jobber

I’d like to set me mark upon the robber

For he stole away the Pride of Petravore.

He never seemed to see the girl at all

Even when she ogled him underneath her shawl

Lookin’ big and masterful when she was lookin’ small

Most provoking for the Pride of Petravore. (chorus)



So it went as it was in the beginning

Eileen Oge was bent upon the winning

Big McGrath contentedly was grinning

Being courted by the Pride of Petravore.

Sez he, “I know a girl who could knock you into fits.”

At that Eileen nearly lost her wits

The upshot of the ruction was that now the robber sits

With his arm around the Pride of Petravore. (chorus)



Boys, oh boys! With fate ‘tis hard to grapple

Of me eye ‘tis Eileen was the apple

And now to see her walkin’ to the chapel

With the hardest featured man in Petravore.

And now boys this is all I have to say

When you do your courtin’ make no display

If you want them to run after you then run the other way

For they’re mostly like the Pride of Petravore. (chorus)

Return to Index

Dublin in the Rare Old Times          H

Raised on songs and stories, heroes of renown,
The passing tales and glories, that once was Dublin town;
The hallowed halls and houses, the haunting children's rhymes,
That once was Dublin city in the rare old times.

Ring-a-ring-a-rosie as the light declines,
I remember Dublin city in the rare old times.

Oh, my name it is Sean Dempsey, as Dublin as can be,
Born hard and late in Pimlico, in a house that ceased to be;
By trade I was a cooper, lost out to redundancy,
Like my house that fell to progress, my trade to memory.

I courted Peggy Diegnan, as pretty as you please,
Oh, a rogue and a child of Mary from the rebel Liberties;
I lost her to a student chap, with skin as black as coal,
When he took her off to Birmingham, she took away my soul.

Ring-a-ring-a-rosie as the light declines,
I remember Dublin city in the rare old times.

The years have made me bitter, the gargle dims my brain,
For Dublin keeps on changin', and nothing seems the same;
The Pillar and the Met are gone, the Royal long since pulled down,
As the gray unyielding concrete makes a city of our town.

Ring-a-ring-a-rosie as the light declines,
I remember Dublin city in the rare old times.

Fare thee well, sweet Anna Liffey, I can no longer stay,
And watch the new glass cages that spring up along the Quay;
My mind's too full of memories, too old to hear new chimes,
I'm part of what was Dublin, in the rare old times.

Ring-a-ring-a-rosie as the light declines,
I remember Dublin city in the rare old times.
Ring-a-ring-a-rosie as the light declines,
I remember Dublin city in the rare old times.

Return to Index

P for Paddy



As I walked out on a bright May morn,

to take a pleasant walk.

I sat me down upon an old stone wall,

to hear two lovers talk.

For to hear what they might say my friend,

hear what they might say.

So I might learn a little more about life 

before I go away.



Chorus:

	P stands for Paddy, I suppose.

	J for my love John.

	W stands bold William 

	and Johnny is the fairest man.

	Johnny is the fairest man my dear,

	Johnny is the fairest man.

	And I don't care what anybody says

	for Johnny is the fairest man.





Don't sit you down beside me, he said.

Not now nor any other day.

I hear that you have another little lad

and your heart's no longer mine.

Your heart's no longer mine he said,

Your heart's no longer mine.

I hear that you have another little lad

and your heart's no longer mine.



Chorus



I'll go climb a tall fine tree,

up to a Wild Bird's nest.

When I'll come down I'll care a little more

about the girl that I love best.

The girl that I love best he said,

the girl that I love best.

When I'll come down I'll care a little more

about the girl that I love best.



Chorus

Return to Index

Bound for South Australia        H

In South Australia I was born

Heave away, haul away

South Australia round Cape Horn

We're bound for South Australia







Chorus

Heave away, you rolling king

Heave away, haul away 

Heave away, oh hear me sing

We're bound for South Australia



There ain't but one thing grieves my mind

Heave away, haul away

To leave Miss Nancy Blair behind

We're bound for South Australia



Oh when I sailed across the sea

Heave away, haul away

My girl said she'd be true to me

We're bound for South Australia



I rung her all night I rung her all day

Heave away, haul away

I rung her before we sailed away

We're bound for South Australia



And now I'm on some foreign strand

Heave away, haul away

With a bottle of whiskey in my hand

We're bound for South Australia



And as we wallop around Cape Horn

Heave away, haul away

You wish to God you'd never been born

We're bound for South Australia

Return to Index