The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #5905   Message #3007554
Posted By: GUEST,Ray
15-Oct-10 - 04:11 AM
Thread Name: Songs about Molly Maguires
Subject: RE: Molly Maguires: Songs about?
The lyrics you've posted to the "Ghost (sic.) of Molly Maguire" are at some variance with the original "Sons of Molly" written by Chuck Rogers (with a bit of input by Bobby Rogers) of "Irish Balladeers" fame. It has become an international favorite. I've heard it on O'Connell Street in Dublin. It's been cited several times in this thread, usually incorrectly, so,

One More Time: "SONS OF MOLLY"

When the winds blow wild at night,
Past the breaker melancholy,
If you stand in the dark,
With your ear to the wind,
You can hear the sons of Molly.
Deep in the dark of the old mine shaft,
You can smell the smoke and the fire,
And the whispers low, In the mine below,
Is the ghost of Molly Maguire.

Now I'll tell you boys, Mickey Doyle is my name,
And I come from Carbon County.
And I shot the boss of the Lansford mine,
And my soul is up for bounty,
But I will die, with my head held high
For I fought for the men below,
The men who work and sweat and die,
Down in that black hell hole.

Now I'll tell ya boys Edward Kelly is my name,
And I'm hanging in the morning.
For I shot Jack Jones for skinning my bones,
And I curse the sound of mourning,
But I will die ...

Well, I'll tell you boys Alec Campbell is my name,
And no pistol did I fire.
But I will fall from the gallows wall,
Just for being a Molly Maguire
But I will die...

When the winds blow wild at night...

Hope this helps.