I remember being blown away when I first heard Robbie sing Kilkelly in about 1986 or 87. It's a great song, but it was overdone on the Irish scene to the point that, yes, many people prefer the parodies like "Islip, Long Island." Still, if you can put yourself in Lizzie's place and remember the first time you heard it, I'm sure you can relate.

The song was written by Peter Jones, based on letters he found in his own family, from his great-great grandfather to his great-grandfather. There's an interesting page
here, about Pat McNamara, the schoolmaster who helped write the letters.