Fishing Songs from Ireland

Subject: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Annraoi
Date: 27 Jun 99 - 09:16 PM

Considering Ireland is completely surrounded by some of the richest fishing grounds in the world, there appears to be a dearth of songs about fishing / seafaring. Only one song springs to mind "Bádaí na Scadán" from Donegal. Does anyone know of any others ? Ewen Mc Coll's "Shoals of Herring" need not apply. Annraoi

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Frank McGrath
Date: 27 Jun 99 - 09:27 PM

How about - The Queen of Connemara and The Flying Cloud?

Sorry I haven't been in touch but my webbing days are limited.

Frank

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Liam's Brother
Date: 27 Jun 99 - 11:55 PM

Hi Annraoi!

There are Irish traditional songs related to fishing (or fishermen) in one way or another. Many of them, I suspect, are about local disasters and have not achieved widespread circulation... a significant number of those would be in Gaelic.

If you have Colm O Lochlainn's More Irish Street Ballads, for example, you can take a look at "Reilly The Fisherman." "The Portrush Fishing Disaster" and "The Jolly Fisherman" are in Sam Henry's Songs of the People. See also Fr. Ranson's Songs of the Wexford Coast, if available. Healy's Irish Ballads & Songs of the Sea is still in print, I believe. At least Liam's Sister-in-Law was able to get a couple of copies when we were in Dublin at Easter.

When you travel around Britain, you find many fishing ports, big and small. When you travel around Ireland, you find a lot fewer... mostly smaller.

Happy hunting.

All the best,
Dan

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Big Mick
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 05:32 AM

Hello Annraoi.

Healy's Irish Song's of the Sea is, in fact, in print and available through Elderly Instruments. Their web site is www.elderly.com. I picked up a copy there within the last month.

All the best,

Mick

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: John Moulden
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 09:48 AM

Dan Milner has already mentioned Fr Ranson (and James Healy's rehash of it) and songs in Sam Henry.

Paddy Berry's 2 volumes of Wexford Ballads augment Ranson and give more songs of fishing. There are songs of South Down fishing in some of the booklets by WJ Fitzpatrick published by the Mourne Observer. Estyn Evans quotes several texts of songs about a disater off Newcastle Co Down (in "Mourne Country)

There are several songs in collections of ballad sheets - including The Portrush FIshing Disaster and another which I have concerning the loss of a boat called the Seagull off Newcastle in the 1870s.

It's a pity you reject "Shoals of Herring" - Kilkeel Fishermen sang a parody of it during the sixties when the Wexford fishermen refused to accept their right to fish off the south-east coast of Ireland. I quote it in my review for "Musical Traditions" of the radio ballad "Singing the Fishing."

Henry, you should know about songs in Irish about fishing - especially from the western islands. How about a bit of brain cudgelling?

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Liam's Brother
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 02:00 PM

Hi John!

I was not aware of Paddy Berry's books that you mention above. Can you tell us a little bit about them please? Are they still in print and can they be gotten through Ulstersongs?

Thanks.

All the best,
Dan

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: John Moulden
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 04:18 PM

Sorry - both are op. I'll keep an eye out for them.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: skarpi
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 04:35 PM

I know one it is called THE BOYS OF KILLIBEGS.

I think it starts like this,

There are wild and rocky hills on the coast Donegal

Dan where is best way to get near to your cd? Are you coming to fish in Iceland this year? If you are let me know.

Annraoi can you tell me where in Ireland is best to get cd,is there a poststore ?

let me know skarpi Iceland.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Annraoi
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 05:51 PM

Thanks John et al, The disaster songs which most of you refer to are not exactly what I want. I'm more surprised at the lack of songs in praise of the seafaring life, or fishing as a noble pursuit. Or maybe there's just a black hole in my memory a propos this particular aspect of song. It wouldn't all surprise me. Annraoi

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Susanne (skw)
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 06:21 PM

The Spinners (Liverpool!) once claimed 'The Irish Rover' was the only Irish sea shanty in existence. I'm sure they didn't expect to be believed ... :-)

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Barry Finn
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 07:35 PM

Donegal Danny's not been here as has not been the Faythe Fishing Fleet (very long) & the Arranmore Boat Song, the last 2 from Healy's. Barry

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Liam's Brother
Date: 28 Jun 99 - 09:02 PM

Hi Annraoi!

For the hell of it, I just took out Bill Doerflinger's Songs of the Sailor and Lumberman. I know it's not an Irish book but - interestingly, I think - it has a chapter called Ballads of the Fishing Banks.

There are 6 songs in that chapter. Two are about wrecks, 1 about a drunken captain who nearly causes his ship to sink, 1 about a ghostly appearance (of presumably shipwrecked dead sailors), 1 is descriptive of fishing and its dangers and the last speaks of a frustrating trip that finally ended with a good catch. No jolly songs here.

If you're looking for "The Shoals of Herring," remember that Ewan MacColl was not a sailor. I'm not saying there aren't any jolly songs just that it was the sensational that really caused men to take up the pen.

All the best,
Dan

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: alison
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 04:53 AM

Hi,

any chance of the one about "Portrush"?

Christy Moore does 'The Two Conneelys", about fishermen who died.

slainte

alison

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Philippa
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 08:34 AM

John Moulden's mention of the Kilkeel reworking of Shoals of Herring prompts me to mention the song about fishing rights on Lough Neagh which goes to the tune of the Star of the County Down.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Liam's Brother
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 08:49 AM

Hi skarpi!

The friend in Iceland I fish with is working on a new summer house. We nearly froze to death in the one we stayed in last September! I have invited him here to fish with me but I don't know whether he can come. If I get to Reykjavik, I will go down to the Dubliner and maybe I'll find you where I did last time... over on the right of the bar reading the English newspapers.

You asked about the cd. If you want, take a look at http://www.folklegacy.com/cd/cd124.htm. You can do it over the net. Camsco helps support Mudcat but I don't think they carry it.

Bless!
Dan

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: alison
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 09:25 AM

Hi,

The Clancy's have one in their song book (which I can't find at the moment).

I am a fisher, I follow the eel along the lough Neagh shore.....

slainte

alison

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: John Moulden
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 03:52 PM

I've scanned most of the books mentioned - especially by me - and have spotted no songs in English in praise of fishing or fishing boats and can think of nothing but the Queen of Connemara which is a sentimental invention of someone with as much (i.e. as little) real knowledge of the sea as I have. England though has several interesting songs of the sort Henry seems to want - "Up jumped the herring" and "Sailing over the Dogger bank", "The candlelight fisherman" - I'm reminded of a dubious Irish one called "Herring is king" - but otherwise gloom and despondency abound.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Den
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 06:19 PM

John really interesting you should mention W J Fitzpatrick or, "the poet" as he was affectionately known around the Mourne area. What a character. He used to drive an old Morris Minor at about three miles an hour and the joke used to go that when he stopped to give people a ride they would thank him but say they were in a hurry. True story. One time he came to our door collecting for some charity or other and my younger brother. He yelled to my Mum that someone was at the door. She yelled back asking who it was and my kid brother says its the pope (poet). I have a few other fishing songs but alas they're not much in the way of being cheery. The sinking of the Go Ahead and the Alder and the Pine.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Captain Swing
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 07:14 PM

I know a song about a bloke who was rescued from drowning by a talking sea serpent - no fishing involved though. This sea serpent then went on to give him some advice about his love life. I can't imagine a fish doing that. Fish are fairly unsupporive in times of crisis.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Annraoi
Date: 29 Jun 99 - 09:07 PM

slightly off subject:- a Philippa, D'inis tú bréag. Bhí tú le bheith as líne go cionn tamaill seal do chuarta i nDoire. Sonas ort as na billeoga a chur chugam. Sorr, folks, just a slight rebuke to Philippa.

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: alison
Date: 30 Jun 99 - 12:40 AM

Captain.... any chance of the words?

slainte

alison

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Wolfgang
Date: 30 Jun 99 - 09:37 AM

for a fishing song without desaster: Wexford fishing song

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Barry Finn
Date: 01 Jul 99 - 01:37 AM

Just heard another nice one tonight from the Donegal area, "Sheepshaven Bay" about one boat that didn't make it back with the rest of the fishing fleet. Barry

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Noel P
Date: 01 Jul 99 - 08:53 AM

You could try The Voyage, St Brendans Voyage, Fiddlers Green, Leave Her Johnny Leave Her, Baidin Fheilime (sp?. You should find them at these links. http://english.glendale.cc.ca.us/gaelic.song.html

http://www.christymoore.net/lyrics/lyrics.html

http://ameba.lpt.fi/~zaphod/lyrics/fiddlers_green I'm sure there are more and sorry about no blue clickety thing!

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Captain Swing
Date: 01 Jul 99 - 02:42 PM

Sorry Noel, but 'Fiddlers Green' is actually an English song, written by John Conolly of Grimsby, Lincolnshire around 1968. It has no references to Ireland but to local folklore about the fishermens' heaven. I only point this out because Grimsby is not widely known for its literary heritage so we Grimbarians must protect what little we have. ( I bet some Smart Alec meggie writes in to say that John Conolly actually lives in Cleethorpes.)

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Captain Swing
Date: 01 Jul 99 - 02:44 PM

Alison, I will send those words soon - honest!

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From:
Date: 08 Aug 00 - 08:13 PM

Soon, eh, Captain?

Subject: RE: Fishing Songs from Ireland
From: Anglo
Date: 09 Aug 00 - 02:17 AM

I was once on an arts council review board and vetoed some otherwise harmless singer of folksongs who introduced Fiddlers Green as traditional Irish. Which is a propos of nothing in particular, I can't think of any Irish fisherman songs either. Lots of good Scottish ones.