Martin, I'm sorry I missed your message above. Yes, if you can add any details/background beyond what Declan has posted, please do.

I may be prejudiced, but I like this song best when Mick Lane is singing it. It fits his voice perfectly. Mick has posted the lyrics from the Pete St. John songbook above. For comparison, here are the lyrics from Pete's Website, http://www.petestjohn.com/.

-The Rare Ould Times
(Pete St. John)

-1-
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 childrens rhymes
That once was Dublin City
In the rare ould times.

Chorus
Ring a ring a rosey
As the light declines
I remember Dublin City
In the rare ould times.

-2-
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’s a memory.
And I courted Peggy Dignan,
As pretty as you please,
A rogue and 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.

Chorus

-3-
The years have made me bitter,
The gargle's dimmed me brain,
'Cause Dublin keeps on changing,
And nothing seems the same.
The Pillar and the Met. have gone,
The Royal long since pulled down,
As the grey unyielding concrete,
Makes a city of my town.

Chorus

-4-
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 ould times.

© 2003 Pete St. John. All rights reserved.

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The Digital Tradition has a few errors. I guess I'll submit this as a correction. The Website shows a 2003 copyright. When was the song originally published?

Is the tune in the DT OK?
-Joe Offer-