Hi, Paddy (1)

Thanks for the Gresham, but you've destroyed one of my cherished illusions. *sigh* After more than thirty years there'll be no more Graisha Matta Balls - I shall miss them.

Sometimes the misheard lines are more poetic than the original. After hearing "Lonely Banna Strand" (the previous track on the Grehan Sisters album) I spent ages poring over maps of Ireland looking for Erinna Bay, and was most disappointed to find out years later that the German ships were waiting beyond "there in the bay".

If you want a song where you really have difficulty making out the lyrics, try the next track "Tommy McDonagh" - in over thirty years I've got just over half of it!

The sleeve notes of the LP say of "My Uncle's in the Dail" merely: The Grehans heard this song sung at various concerts throughout the country but could never find out the name of the composer. They eventually got the words from a friend in Sligo.

The tune is the well-known MacNamara's Band, music by Shamus O'Connor, Copyright 1917 by Edward Ashdown Ltd, London

Wassail!

Snuffy.