I first came across The Boys of Bar na Sraide in 1981 or 1982 when I was looking for songs for the Oak book, Songs of England, Ireland & Scotland: A Bonnie Bunch of Roses. I could not include it when I discovered it was not traditional song. My mother is from Co. Kerry and she tells me that her earliest childhood memory was of being lined up with her family by Black & Tans in the middle of the night outside her home. Her brothers were "Boys of bar na sraide" in every regard.

Years ago, Mick Moloney pointed out to me that in addition to the obvious reference to this mumming tradition on St. Stephen's Day (26 Dec) in which the dead wren is paraded from door to door, the song is also very much about the breakup of rural Irish community life through emigration. There are many references to this within the song.

Because this is a composed (as opposed to traditional) song, at the end of the day, there can be no debate about the correctness of the lyric. Having said that, I don't have a copy of the poem but I believe what's below may be closer to the original...

Oh, the road that lines the mountains and looks down o'er the sea,
In my waking hours or dreaming, it's there I long to be.
To meet again those friends I knew when first I came a man
With the boys of bar na sraide who hunted for the wren.

Oh, with cudgels stout we roamed about for to hunt the grey drolin.
We searched 'neath every hawthorn bush from Litir to Duneen.
We jumped for joy beneath the sky, life held no print or plan,
Oh, we boys of bar na sraide who hunted for the wren.

And when the hills of Kerry were bleeding and the rifles were ablaze
To the rebel homes of Kerry the Saxon stranger came
But the boys who dared the Auxies and who fought the Black & Tans
Were once boys of bar na sraide who hunted for the wren.

And they are far across the sea where they have gone to stay
Deep in the heart of London town or over on Broadway
And I am left to sing their deeds and to praise them while I can,
Those boys of bar na sraide who hunted for the wren.

Oh, here's a health to them tonight, those boys that fought with me
From the groves 'round Callan River to the slopes of Mi na Ti
Con Dalton and Bat Andy and the Sheehans Con and Dan,
The boys of bar na sraide who hunted for the wren.

And when the wheel of life runs down and death comes over me,
Just lay me down in those green fields between the hill and sea.
Just lay me down in those green fields where first I came a man
With the boys of bar na sraide who hunted for the wren.

The boys of bar na sraide = boys from the top of the street, i.e. the neighborhood boys.
Litir, Duneen = Co. Kerry place names.
Auxies, Black & Tans = auxilliary British soldiers.
Callan River, Mi na Ti = geographical features.

All the best,
Dan Milner

HTML line breaks added. --JoeClone, 15-Mar-02.