Irish rover - chorus?

Subject: RE: Irish rover - chorus?
From: DonMeixner
Date: 10 Mar 10 - 10:49 AM

The Irish Descendents sing Fair thee well my pretty little girl.

Don

Subject: RE: Irish rover - chorus?
From: Tradsinger
Date: 10 Mar 10 - 07:30 AM

Isn't Mudcat wonderful. I have just found in MC archives that a similar chorus was published in James N. Healy's Second Book of Irish Ballads, (published by Mercier Press in 1962),

Fare thee well, my own true one, I'm going far from you
And I will swear by the stars above, forever I'll be true
But as I part it will break my heart, and when the trip,is over
I'll roam again in true Irish style aboard the Irish Rover.

But a little different from the chorus I know. This suggests to me that the chorus I learnt was not written by the Portsmouth group. The group did include an Irishman who may have brought the song with him and taught it to the others.

Any more responses?

Tradsinger

Subject: RE: Irish rover - chorus?
From: Mr Happy
Date: 10 Mar 10 - 07:24 AM

The Spinners [Liverpool] added their own chorus:

Fare the well my pretty little gell
For I must sail away
Fare the well my pretty little gell
For I must sail away

Subject: Irish rover - chorus?
From: Tradsinger
Date: 10 Mar 10 - 06:54 AM

In my formative folk days (still continuing!) I learnt the song 'Irish Rover' in the 60s from a folk group in a Portsmouth folk club. Apart from the usual Clancy Brothers verses, this group sang a chorus, viz:

So fare thee well, my own true love
And when the storm is over
I will return in true Irish style
I'm the last of the Irish Rover.

What I would like to know is whether this chorus is 'traditional' (whatever that means, but don't let's start) or was perhaps composed by the group in question. Does anyone else (apart from my mate Bob who learnt it in the same club) know of this chorus?

Answers on a postcard

Tradsinger