Heh AHers, What's your favourite Irish Ballad?

RachaelVO · 19-04-2011 09:44AM

Good thread, so super answers, most of which I do really love!

Mave faves have to be Arthur McBride and Lakes of Ponchartrain. Love them both. They get taken out and dusted at family shindigs!

kfallon · 19-04-2011 09:45AM

Fav ballad sung by Luke Kelly, not sure if this is the clip of his last ever performance (if it's not it should be in the related videos, take a look) but this video of him singing and looking quite frail always brings a tear to my eye and a lump in my throat. You can see Ronnie looking at him as if making sure he is ok, heartbtreaking

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXxzYtfrdFw

RachaelVO · 19-04-2011 09:47AM

kfallon wrote: »

It's a great song when sung properly by the likes of Paddy Reilly, however the tits who have added the "Hey Baby let the free birds fly", "Sinn Fein", "IRA" parts to it have utterly destroyed a brilliant song. I once stopped singing it at a party when someone added them, only a-holes sing that part of it!

In a crowd I don't mind the "hey baby let the free birds fly" bit so much. But it only works if there's loadsa people, one or two people making tits of themselves make me blush, and I didn't do it. As for the "Sinn Fein" "IRA" ****e, can't be doing with that at all

pickarooney · 19-04-2011 09:48AM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IyvshOYelU

sensibleken · 19-04-2011 09:50AM

RachaelVO wrote: »

In a crowd I don't mind the "hey baby let the free birds fly" bit so much. But it only works if there's loadsa people, one or two people making tits of themselves make me blush, and I didn't do it. As for the "Sinn Fein" "IRA" ****e, can't be doing with that at all

urgh. I cant stand that. I can't stand that song anyway, ruined by too many Nitelinks home

kfallon · 19-04-2011 09:50AM

RachaelVO wrote: »

In a crowd I don't mind the "hey baby let the free birds fly" bit so much. But it only works if there's loadsa people, one or two people making tits of themselves make me blush, and I didn't do it. As for the "Sinn Fein" "IRA" ****e, can't be doing with that at all

It should be a hanging offence to sing any (or all) of the 3 'add ins' :pac:

Since when does the word 'baby' belong in an Irish ballad, it's not Chart music!!!

Orando Broom · 19-04-2011 09:52AM

Not an Irish Song but Christy Moore singing Beeswing is spectacular. Beeswing was originally written by Richard Thompson of Fairport Convention. It really is worth the listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0F6Wy6w3_4

Smoke and Strong Whiskey is another song I think is excellent.

Also check out Richard Thompson's song Vincent Black Lightning 1952. It is a magnificent ballad. The guitar playing is incredible, the vocals can polarise.

There is a lot of exalting adjectives there!

kfallon · 19-04-2011 09:52AM

Loving this one at the minute too (Christ I could be here all day :pac:)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TDzDJIdyfw

solerina · 19-04-2011 09:52AM

The Green Fields of France
or
Sean South (from Garryowen)

biko · 19-04-2011 09:54AM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWHo7syTQOo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PUtc2Lwuh4

kfallon · 19-04-2011 09:54AM

solerina wrote: »

The Green Fields of France
or
Sean South (from Garryowen)

Nice username!!!

Another classic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x7zgIAWzuM

sensibleken · 19-04-2011 09:54AM

kfallon wrote: »

It should be a hanging offence to sing any (or all) of the 3 'add ins' :pac:

Since when does the word 'baby' belong in an Irish ballad, it's not Chart music!!!

Never hear of weila weila waila? she stuck the penknife in the babys heart weila weila waila

Good god the songs we were taught as small kids. that and songs about hookers in the coombe by zozimus

stovelid · 19-04-2011 09:55AM

Pompey Magnus wrote: »

Carrickfergus is a wonderful song, I've seen bustling, rowdy pub go silent when someone starts playing it.

A pub in Carrickfergus would certainly go silent anyway. :pac:

kfallon · 19-04-2011 09:57AM

Two more Luke classics, one of my fav lines ever in a song: "All along that singing river that black mass of men was seen, High above their shining weapons flew their own beloved green"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYIdrV3cdlk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXvt25IsIZ0

Ok I'll stop now :pac:

Lustrum · 19-04-2011 09:59AM

Liam Clancy singing The Band Played Waltzing Matilda, not Irish but close enough

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFCekeoSTwg

Dyr · 19-04-2011 10:00AM

trad wrote: »

Has to be the epic "The Ballad of Little Musgrave" by Planxty

Great tune but it's not Irish, neither is the bonny shoals of herring :pac:

Luke Kelly doing tramps and hawkers is great (not an irish song either)

Lustrum · 19-04-2011 10:04AM

How about The Bantry Girls Lament, Frank Harte doing the Shan Van Vocht, Planxtys Bonny Light Horseman, Karan Casey singing anything (particulary Roger the Miller and The King's Shilling), as long as the song tells a story and has none of this baby baby ****e it's good

holystungun9 · 19-04-2011 10:10AM

Glad to see She moves through the fair and also some Luke Kelly and Planxty too.

Top ones for me (which I can't embed, cause I just seem to balls it up) are

In a lifetime - Clannad and Bono, great vocal from Bono
As I roved out - planxty, particularly the live version from vicar st. - as andy roved out
Black is the colour as sang by Christy live at the piont, just beautiful, he says it wasn't his song but I don't know whose it is?

sensibleken · 19-04-2011 10:10AM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtY6mi0oS2w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AFRCWg_kOc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvECtlJQ4dU

rainbowdrop · 19-04-2011 10:10AM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77xM1h304Ao

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WonYt3wOLcE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3cl7Q2GI50

RachaelVO · 19-04-2011 10:15AM

kfallon wrote: »

It should be a hanging offence to sing any (or all) of the 3 'add ins' :pac:

Since when does the word 'baby' belong in an Irish ballad, it's not Chart music!!!

Well funnily enough, in my neck of the woods its "oh lord...." instead of baby, maybe that's why it doesn't offend me as much!

kfallon · 19-04-2011 10:17AM

RachaelVO wrote: »

Well funnily enough, in my neck of the woods its "oh lord...." instead of baby, maybe that's why it doesn't offend me as much!

They sing 'Oh lord' in a fig roll :eek:

Where is your neck of the woods btw, never heard it sang as 'Oh lord' before, it's still bad to be honest :P

Minstrel27 · 19-04-2011 10:20AM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mk5ULCOqbuE

Superb

RachaelVO · 19-04-2011 10:23AM

kfallon wrote: »

They sing 'Oh lord' in a fig roll :eek:

Where is your neck of the woods btw, never heard it sang as 'Oh lord' before, it's still bad to be honest :P

Well, you'd sing OH LORD if you were inside a fig roll too. It's very squashed in here!

I'm originally from Dun Laoghaire in Dublin, but family from all over wicklow, and I've only ever known it as OH LORD...! But I did hear it in different parts too

Will I Amnt · 19-04-2011 10:29AM

Always makes me smile:)

trad · 19-04-2011 10:52AM

Bambi wrote: »

Great tune but it's not Irish, neither is the bonny shoals of herring :pac:

Luke Kelly doing tramps and hawkers is great (not an irish song either)

Plenty of great tunes sung by the Irish are not Irish but we still sing them. The Lakes of Ponchetrain is American, I think the Lonesome Boatman is Greek, Black is the Colour mentions the Clyde so it's probably Scottish.

Do we complian when Celtic Fans sing the Fields of Athenry?

A good tune is a good tune

sensibleken · 19-04-2011 10:57AM

trad wrote: »

Plenty of great tunes sung by the Irish are not Irish but we still sing them. The Lakes of Ponchetrain is American, I think the Lonesome Boatman is Greek, Black is the Colour mentions the Clyde so it's probably Scottish.

Do we complian when Celtic Fans sing the Fields of Athenry?

A good tune is a good tune

not forgetting Ewan McColl's. It doesnt matter a bit though, tunes even vary depending on the county you play in. Theres one or two hornpipes from ulster that Ive started off in sessions in dublin to the bewilderment of people