Song of the Dawn

Subject: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 02 Oct 02 - 11:25 AM

I have a recording of an Irish song "Song of the Dawn" by Art Kearney in which the last line in each verse and chorus is in Irish. The line begins "Sean Erin...", which is easy enough. Can anyone supply the rest of the line and a translation? (presumably "Old Ireland..."?)

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Jimmy C
Date: 02 Oct 02 - 05:56 PM

weerover,

I believe the words are " Sean Erin an gael go doe" (pronounced Go Jo) I am sure I have the spelling not exactly correct.   I imagine it means "Old Ieland for the Gael forever" or " Old Ireland will be gaelic forever".

Hope this helps.

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: GUEST
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 08:01 AM

Many thanks, Jimmy C

weerover

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Brían
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 08:49 AM

Possibly Sean Éireann an Gael go deo(Shawn AY-run un gale guh JO), probably "The old gaelic Ireland forever", if I may be redundant!

Brían

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 10:01 AM

This looks good, more thanks

weerover

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Brían
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 10:16 AM

gahhh! There's no fada over the "a" in sean. That should be pronounced shan.

Brían

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 10:42 AM

Thanks, Brian - "sean" (with whatever the accents are) is one of the few Irish words that I do recognise. "Song of the Dawn" also includes reference to "Roisin Dubh", which is another of the few expressions I'm familiar with. While I was in Galway recently I found that the locals, when referring to one of the music venue pubs called Roisin Dubh, pronounced it to rhyme with "love". I never got round to asking whether this was some sort of ironic thing - does this happen anywhere else?

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Brían
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 01:25 PM

I have heard it pronounced both Doo and Duv. It may be a regional thing. I'll ask about it.

Brían

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Jimmy C
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 06:15 PM

I Ulster it is Roisin Dubh pronounceed Rosheen Doo, it soome other parts of the country, especially around Dublin thay pronounce it Rosheen Dove.

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 04 Oct 02 - 07:27 AM

As a newcomer to this forum, I'm immensely impressed by how comprehensively queries are answered - often minor things, but which might otherwise bug me for years. Thanks, guys.

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 03:47 AM

When I come to check this song out, I find I still don't quite have it all: there's a place name I can't quite get. The line is "From (...) to the winding Lee..." and it sounds like it might be "Tobhair na Righ" (well of the king???). Anybody got this?

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Joe Offer
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 10:30 AM

I don't think we have these lyrics. Weerover, can you post what you have?
Thanks.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 10:50 AM

Will post when I get the chance to transcribe

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Brían
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 11:09 AM

My Irish language teacher says that dubh is pronounced like dove with an Irish accent in Galway.

Yeah, I second that request.

Brían

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 02:40 PM

Only recently renewed interest in this song when I found that the Mudcat forum could solve many queries. I now find there's yet another word in the 3rd verse that I don't have, but here's the lyrics I can make out. Not a proficient musician, but I think I could manage an ABC version of the tune if anyone's interested. Thing is, I don't know how to insert it in a message of this type...don't know how to do line breaks either - take upper case letter as beginning a line.

(According to album sleeve notes, written by Brian O'Higgins who was involved in some sort of skirmish in 1916)

The song I sing is a song of home, a song of roisin dubh
Of glade and glen, of ford and fen, of lake and of mountain blue
Of the signs that stand over all the land to tell of the long ago
Let your voices ring in the song I sing, Sean Eireann an Gael go deo

(Chorus) Hurrah, the night is ended, we see the dawn's red glow
Oh, shout it high, 'tis a free men's cry, Sean Eireann an Gael go deo

I sing of every wood and stream, of tower and vale and town
Where brave men died, where brave men tried to tear the red rag down
From Kerry brave to the widest wave where Lagan's waters flow
From [Tobair na Righ?] to the winding Lee, Sean Eireann an Gael go deo

I'll raise a [ran? rand?] for the ones who tread the path to the dawning day
Who will pause no more till their native shore is free from the Saxon sway
Till from every hill and from every rill the freedom cry shall go
From old and young in the Gaelic tongue, Sean Eireann an Gael go deo


I did have a though that the missing word in the last verse might be "wren" as pronounced in some areas, in some way connected with the traditional hunting of same. Any takers?

wee rover

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Big Mick
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 03:12 PM

weerover, I have been doing some digging with search engines on this to try and help you out. Could you post the pertinent data off the recording. Author, Artist, name of album/cd, label, copyright date, etc.

Thanks,

Mick

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: GUEST,weerover
Date: 07 Oct 02 - 04:01 PM

Big Mick,

I have it on a Topic sampler album. The original album number was 12T153 (Topic 1966) by Art Kearney (no title available) and the sampler album TPS 168, "From Erin's Green Shore".

I collect songs of all descriptions and occasionally get to sing a few, but am particularly interested in Irish songs, of which my current collection runs to 2480 titles (with sheet music to about70%) but every new one I can add is welcome.

weerover (actually 6 foot and a grandfather but it's an old nickname)

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: Anglo
Date: 08 Oct 02 - 01:48 AM

Verse 3 - our Gaelic dictionary, Lisa tells me, has "rann" as "a verse or quatrain." So that must be it.

Subject: RE: Song of the Dawn
From: weerover
Date: 08 Oct 02 - 04:31 AM

Anglo, this looks right - many thanks

weerover