Lyr Req/Add: This Story I Tell You Is True (Reidy)

Subject: Lyr Req: This Story I tell you is true
From: GUEST,Anne
Date: 09 Jan 09 - 06:58 AM

Please please can someone help me obtain the lyrics for This story I tell you is true? Annemarie O Riordan sings it and I belive TR Dallas does as well - many thanks

Subject: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 12 Jan 09 - 11:55 AM

Here's my attempt at a transcription from Noreen O'Connor's singing on YouTube. I hope others will fill in the gaps. (By the way, that video, although it's hard to understand, does a nice job of capturing the atmosphere of a celebration at an Irish pub in North London.)

The tune is nearly the same as "Rosin the Beau."


THIS STORY I TELL YOU IS TRUE

1. Come stroll for a while through my mem'ry,
And I'll tell you of time long ago,
When we walked to school summer and winter,
Barefoot through the fields we would go.
I remember our little thatched cottage,
And the half-door led into the hall,
The crane(?) o'er the fire in the kitchen,
And the grandfather clock on the wall.

CHORUS: The stout(?) it was cured with a poker,
And poteen they said cured the flu.
The bacon it hung from the ceiling.
Sure, the story I tell you is true.

2. We went in the trap(?)... last Sunday
And granddad he'd wear his best hat
When the priest he would reserve(?) from the altar
And the women in diff'rent seats sat.
Matchmakin' was part of tradition,
And the ... house filled up at night
When the tailor would tell the ghost stories,
Oh, the children would shiver with fright.

3. I remember the sound of the anthem(?)
And the burning hearth smoke(?) we would smell
When we passed ... in the evenin'
With water we fetched from the well.
We ... the cows before milkin'
Tied the ... to the ...
... color ... and rhymes
And the harvest ....

4. ... fair at ...
With ... with delight.
When the wheelin' and dealin' was over,
Ev'ryone waited round for the fight.
Now I hope that in telling this story,
I haven't detained you too long;
But there is so much more I can tell you
Someday in some other song. CHORUS

[Also sung by Annemarie O Riordan on "Melody in Harmony"; T R Dallas on "This Story I Tell You Is True"; and P J Murrihy on "I Won't Up The Ante".]

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I tell you is true
From: Fergie
Date: 12 Jan 09 - 09:14 PM

I've listened to the eTube link and filled in what I could make out.

"crane" refers to the ingle hook used to suspended cooking pots in the open fire.

"Curing" the stout was the common custom of heating the stout until it was almost tepid by sticking a red hot poker into the jug, this practice was fairly common in Ireland into the 1950s and early 1960s.

A "trap" was an open carriage or "inside car" usually drawn by a pony. This was a common mode of transport in rural part of Ireland until the early 1960s.

"serve" in this contest means that communion was distributed to the communicants by a priest up at the altar rails rather that by lay people from the aisles as is now common.

Up until the late 1960s women and men were segregated at services in R.C. churches. Men to the priests right hand, women and children on his left. I think "Vatican II" may have been the catalyst that changed this practice.

A "rambling" house was a dwelling where neighbours and wandering musicians were welcome to gather and party.

"spancilled" had two distinct meanings;
a) to tie together the front legs of an animal to stop it wandering, I think this is its meaning in this song
b) it was a small token of money given to children by women (my maternal grandmother was the last person I know to observe this custom she died in 1966) it was distributed on some specific date in the year (I forget which date but it may have been on Little Christmas 6th of January). I must chech this out further.

Fergie
      
THIS STORY I TELL YOU IS TRUE

1. Come stroll for a while through my mem'ry,
And I'll tell you of time long ago,
When we walked to school summer and winter,
Barefoot through the fields we would go.
I remember our little thatched cottage,
And the half-door led into the hall,
The crane o'er the fire in the kitchen,
And the grandfather clock on the wall.

CHORUS: Oh, the stout it was cured with a poker,
And poteen they said cured the flu.
The bacon it hung from the ceiling.
Sure, the story I tell you is true.

2. We went in the trap to mass Sundays
And granddad he'd wear his best hat
When the priest he would serve from the altar
And the women in diff'rent seats sat.
Matchmakin' was part of tradition,
And the rambling house filled up at night
When the tailor would tell the ghost stories,
Oh, the children would shiver with fright.

3. I remember the sound of the anvil.
And the burning horse hooves we would smell
When we passed the forge door in the evenin'
With water we fetched from the well.
We spancilled the cows before milkin'
Tied the horse to the ...
These colour ..blinkers and reins
And the harness we kept

4. ... fair at ...
With ... with delight.
When the wheelin' and dealin' was over,
Ev'ryone waited round for the fight.
Now I hope that in telling this story,
I haven't detained you too long;
But there is so much more I can tell you
Someday in some other song. CHORUS

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I tell you is true
From: Fergie
Date: 12 Jan 09 - 09:50 PM

Hi all,
I was having a bit of a "senior moment" in my last post. I said that there ware two meaning to the work spancil (or spancel as it is more commonly spelled). This is incorrect, the word spancel means "to tie together the front legs of an animal to stop it wandering".

In the second explanation I suggested that it also meant a small token of money given to children on a specific date of the year. This is incorrect, I had myself confused with the word "handsel". Handsel Monday is the first monday of January and in parts of Ireland and Scotland it was tradition for women to "handsel" children with a small gift of money or clothing. It was an interesting tradition with some strange customs, if you are interested in more information look it up in Wikipedia.

Sorry for the confusion
Fergus

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I tell you is true
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Jan 09 - 07:58 AM

Thank you so so much for your quick response and for all the effort!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,balachbui
Date: 17 Jan 09 - 06:24 PM

3 tied the horse to the wall through the shoe
his collar and hames his winkers and reins
the harness we kept it like new

4 For miles to the fair in the darkness
with our animals we walked with delight

3 in days gone by old horse shoes used to be cemented into gaps in stone walls to tie animals to hence {tied the horse to the wall through the shoe)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,Balachbui
Date: 18 Jan 09 - 08:22 AM

If you havent heard Annmarie O Riordan singing this song
along with 15 other classics with crystal clear lyrics
HAVE YOU GOT A TREAT IN STORE
CD can be bought on the internet

Subject: ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: Fergie
Date: 18 Jan 09 - 01:56 PM

Hi

Below are the completed song lyrics with gaps filled in by myself and 'Balachbui'

I have a few questions;
1) Does anybody know the name of the songwriter?

2) In the context of a horse harness what precisely is a 'hames'?

In parts of Ireland we say "He made a hames of it" or alternatively "he made a horse's collar of it" to describe when somebody makes a poor attempt at something. i.e. "He made a compete hames of painting the wall, he got whitewash every where" or "She made a horse's collar of the dinner, the spuds were hard and the joint was burned to a crisp"

3) Anybody know the origin of this turn of phrase?

4) Does GUEST,Balachbui come from around Spiddle, Rossaveal or the Aran Islands? and did he/she ever cure or eat a 'Balach Buí'?


THIS STORY I TELL YOU IS TRUE
(J. Reidy?)

1. Come stroll for a while through my mem'ry,
And I'll tell you of time long ago,
When we walked to school summer and winter,
Barefoot through the fields we would go.
I remember our little thatched cottage,
And the half-door led into the hall,
The crane o'er the fire in the kitchen,
And the grandfather clock on the wall.

CHORUS:
Oh, the stout it was cured with a poker,
And poteen they said cured the flu.
The bacon it hung from the ceiling,
Sure, the story I tell you is true.

2. We went in the trap to mass, Sundays
And granddad he'd wear his best hat
When the priest he would serve from the altar
And the women in diff'rent seats sat.
Matchmaking was part of tradition,
And the rambling house filled up at night
When the tailor would tell the ghost stories,
Oh, the children would shiver with fright.

3. I remember the sound of the anvil.
And the burning horse hooves we would smell
When we passed the forge door in the evening'
With water we fetched from the well.
We spanciled the cows before milking
Tied the horse to the wall through the shoe
His collar and hames his winkers and reins
And the harness we kept it like new

4. For miles to the fair in the darkness
With our animals we walked with delight
When the wheelin' and dealin' was over,
Everyone waited round for the fight.
Now I hope that in telling this story,
I haven't detained you too long;
But there is so much more I can tell you
Someday in some other song.

The tune is nearly the same as "Rosin the Beau."

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST
Date: 18 Jan 09 - 05:45 PM

Hames; Two curved bars with a connecting chain at the bottom
and protruding spikes at the top where the reins lay between
the hames were wrapped around the collar and fasened with a belt at the top
two hooks at the sides to where the traces were attached to

Traces; the chains attached to the cart for pulling it

All I have on the songwriter is J. Reidy

and yes I have eaten plenty Balachai Bui in Rosmuc

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: Fergie
Date: 18 Jan 09 - 07:10 PM

Hi Balachbui

Thanks for that information

I've had my share of balachai buí in Inis Meáin. They are an acquired taste . I've caught many balachi off the rocks using a frame and winkles for bait. Are you still living in the area?

Fergus

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,balachbui
Date: 18 Jan 09 - 07:33 PM

Yes, where do you live yourself?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: Fergie
Date: 18 Jan 09 - 08:42 PM

Live in Dublin but spend lots of time in Inis Meáin. Go walking and fishing during the day. Go to the pub and sing at night. Do you sing yourself?
Fergus

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,Mayo
Date: 03 Feb 09 - 11:12 AM

Ann Marie O riordan Sings dat song

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Feb 09 - 10:43 AM

LOOKING FOR THE LYRICS FOR MY MOTHER.

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,Dan
Date: 25 Feb 09 - 05:29 AM

Its a very good song and is getting a lot of airplay, at the moment.
When was it first released?


Dan

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: MartinRyan
Date: 25 Feb 09 - 06:10 AM

Fergie

Dolan's Dictionary of Hiberno-English speculates that the "made a hames of it" phrase comes from the fact that it's all too easy to set up a hames arse-over-tit!

Regards

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,Dan
Date: 25 Feb 09 - 09:44 AM

Good man!

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,orla
Date: 21 Mar 09 - 02:22 PM

where da hel can u get da words!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!help help help !!!i like luv this songxxxxxxxxx

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: MartinRyan
Date: 23 Mar 09 - 06:59 PM

GUESTOrla

Read the top section of the thread...

Regards

Subject: Lyr Add: THIS STORY I TELL YOU IS TRUE (J.J. Reidy
From: GUEST,Annmarie O'Riordan.
Date: 08 Apr 09 - 06:48 PM

Hi! This is Annmarie O'Riordan.

I recorded "This Story I Tell you is True" on my second album "Melody in Harmony" in 2006 as the mother of the author J.J Reidy asked me to record it as her son had died of a massive heart attack and his songs weren't given the recognition they deserved. I recorded the beautiful song and I did my very best to promote this emotive song but as I was only in secondary school at the time it proved difficult. I am in University in University College Cork at the moment and since I recorded "This Story I Tell you is True", there have been other recordings made which is great as I know this song has the power the evoke very fond memories of bygone days.

THIS STORY I TELL YOU IS TRUE
(J.J. Reidy)

Come stroll for a while through my memory and I'll tell you of times long ago
When we walked to school Summer and Winter, barefoot through the fields we would go
I remember our little thatched cottage and the half-door led into the hall
The crane o'er the fire in the kitchen and the grandfather clock on the wall

Refrain:
Oh the stout it was cured with a poker and poitin they said cured the flu
The bacon it hung from the ceiling, sure this story I tell you is true.

We went in the trap to mass Sundays and Grandad would wear his best hat
The priest would recite from the altar and the women in different seats sat
Matchmaking was part of tradition and the rambling house filled up at night
When the tailor would tell the ghost stories, oh the children would shiver with fright.

Refrain:

I remember the sound of the anvil and the burning horse-hoof we would smell
As we passed the forge door in the evening with water we fetched from the well
We spancelled the cows before milking, tied the horse to the wall through the shoe
His collar and hames, his winkers and reins, the harness we kept it like new

Refrain:

For miles to the fair in the darkness with our animals we walked with delight
When the wheeling and dealing was over, every one waited on for the fight
Now I hope that in telling this story I haven't detained you too long
For there is so much more I must tell you, some day in some other song.

Refrain:

Repeat last line!




I hope you all enjoy the song.

Le gach dea ghui,
Annmarie.
Email: [e-mail]
Youtube link

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,Lisa
Date: 20 Jun 09 - 06:22 AM

Thanks for the lyrics.. have been looking for them everywhere. Great song and great singer... good luck with everything!

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST,Annmarie O'Riordan!
Date: 11 Jul 09 - 06:49 PM

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Sep 09 - 06:29 AM

Great song, powerful lyrics, sang by a girl with a golden voice!

Has anyone got the guitar chords?

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True (J.J. Reidy
From: GUEST,Ferocious O Flaherty
Date: 19 Oct 09 - 01:13 PM

Thanks Ann Marie. you have a long career ahead of you.
Beir bua agus Beannacht

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True (J.J. Reidy
From: GUEST,munsterlass
Date: 25 Dec 09 - 11:47 AM

lovely song i heard it for the first time last week.a friend of mine sang it....a clare man....

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True (J.J. Reidy
From: GUEST,Asa Strong
Date: 10 Apr 10 - 05:50 PM

Ann Marie sings the song in the key of C (C-F-G7)

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True (J.J. Reidy
From: GUEST,F.H.
Date: 09 Jun 10 - 05:20 PM

Looking for fiddle notes of the above mentioned song "The story I'll tell is true"

Subject: RE: req/ADD: This Story I Tell You Is True (J.J. Reidy
From: GUEST,Mike
Date: 24 Jan 11 - 03:43 PM

Spancelled the cows before milking means tying their back legs together with a rope. It was only done with cows that were prone to kicking while being milked. It was still done in the early 70's thats how I remember it. I met JJ Reidy a few times while he was playing in pubs in Mallow Co Cork.

Subject: accordinotes This Story I Tell You Is True (Reidy)
From: GUEST
Date: 29 May 12 - 11:18 AM

accordion notes for the story i tell you is true

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: This Story I Tell You Is True (Reidy)
From: GUEST
Date: 19 Mar 13 - 01:55 PM

GO to martin dardis web site for this song with chords