Imagine working over one of those huge vats of acid, inhaling the fumes for a few years. That's what happened to the immmigrant in the ballad, and then his friends "got a raffle up" to raise the money for him to go home to die. The former Congressman from whom we collected the song lived in Waterbury, Connecticut. Incidentally, he happens to be John McCutcheon's father-in-law! Jeremy Brecher, who organized the Waterbury collecting project, learned that Monagan knew the song, and when Jeremy and I went to his home, I got to push the "record" button on the tape recorder while Monagan played the piano and sang the ballad. So, collector's credit goes to Jeremy, but, by doggies, I helped! It's a powerful song, wonderfully sung by "Liam's Brother."

Now why, you say, is "Billy the Kid" on this record? Well, it seems Billy's real name was Henry McCarty, and he was an Irish lad from New York, the son of Irish immigrants. Dan's notes for this CD are very informative!

Sandy