Originally recorded by Liam Devally, the song was made famous in the early 1960s when recorded by Sean O Se to an arrangement by Sean O Riada. From an original poem by Donal O Mullain in the early 20th century, the words have probably been amended (the reference to showjumping champion Eddie Macken in the [...]

This song was written by Jimmy McCarthy (b1956, Macroom, Co Cork) who also wrote No Frontiers for Mary Black. Other songs he penned include Missing You, Bright Blue Rose and Mystic Lipstick. It was the title track of Christy Moore’s 1984 album.
The author explained on Radio Eireann in February 2010 that he once worked as an apprentice [...]

It has rang out at packed sports arena, been done to death by drunks at closing time,denounced as sectarian, balladed, rocked and punked.
Often mistaken as a folk song, The Fields of Athenry was actually written by Dublin songwriter Pete St John in the mid 1970s. It is set during the Great Famine which devestated Ireland [...]

Virginia-born Steve Earle established himself in country music and rock generally, with his 1986 album Guitar Town. Ten years and a spell in rehab later, he was living in Barna, west of Galway, writing songs and stories and contemplating a life without booze and heroin. It was during this sojourn that he wrote the slow [...]

This is a tale of the unexpected insofar as nothing about it – except maybe the lyrics – conforms to the stereotype.
The song Danny Boy was written by an Englishman. Barrister Frederick Edward Wheaterly (1848 – 1929) wrote the lyrics in 1910. However his original air was so poor, the song was destined for obscurity.
It was [...]

There is only one Galway Bay – but there are two songs of that name. The first, known to many as The Old Galway Bay was written by-
Francis Fahy (1854-1935).
Born on September 29, 1854, into a family of 17, eight of whom survived. Francis Fahy’s father, Thomas, came from the Burren area and his mother [...]

Singer Liam Clancy writes on his messageboard:
So… Frank is gone. His legacy is that he took misery and made into a laughing matter. A good legacy! The more things we can laugh at the better.
The Clancys and McCourts were very close. Angela used to baby-sit my nieces and I recall Sunday dinners together at Frank’s [...]