Help: Who wrote 'Sean South' (Sean Costelloe)

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South' (Sean Costelloe)
From: GUEST,J.Kelly
Date: 28 Feb 24 - 04:48 PM

I always remember my mum telling me the song was written by the local post man

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: GUEST,Phil
Date: 30 Nov 22 - 01:24 PM

in 2020 Martin Ryan wrote "There is another song about the incident by a well-known Mayoman" whose name he couldn't recall. What is this other song.

nice to see you here, Ger Costelloe. You'll see that MOST of the previous messages do attribute the lyrics correctly.

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: GUEST,Ger Costelloe
Date: 30 Nov 22 - 11:33 AM

Sean South of Garryowen was written by my father Sean Costelloe from Janesboro Limerick city. I'm a songwriter and musician myself and have Silk albums as well as an album with Limerick band The O'Malleys. I've also done some film scores. It's very annoying for my family and I having to see claims on the internet by others suggesting someone from around Galway wrote the song. He didn't. He may have written some song about South. But it certainly isn't the famous song my father wrote. I'm fact I've have the original lyrics written by my Dad.

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: GUEST,Martin Ryan
Date: 01 Aug 20 - 06:54 AM

Hi Jim
Yes - I knew he had died, alright. A lovely man. I recall meeting him once when he was researching a book.

Regards

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: Jim McLean
Date: 01 Aug 20 - 05:01 AM

Martin Ryan, Big Tim's post was from 2001 as he passed away quite a while ago. His daughter wrote me then and said he passed away in his sleep. A sad loss for us all.

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: cnd
Date: 31 Jul 20 - 12:17 PM

According to a memoir by Malachy McCourt, Sean Castalloe was a neighbor of his, as Martin says, from Limerick. Interestingly, the copyright to the song appears to have been held by Sean's wife, Marry Costelloe [this link confirms Mary was his wife].

I also found the following: "SEÁN SABHAT of Garryowen is a rousing ballad that stirs the blood in the Irish, every time it gets an airing. It was written by Limerick man Sean Costelloe, from Janesboro, to the air of Roddy Mac Corley another republican song." (source)

So we know he was from Janesboro, in Limerick. More specifically, he lived along O’Donoghue Avenue, and was alive as of 2003 and in his mid 40s, but had "serious health problems" as of then and died "a good few years ago" in 2011 (according to ymmek's comment of Oct 22, 2011). He had 3 children: Jack, Maria, and Gerard.

That's about all I can find.

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: GUEST,Martin Ryan
Date: 31 Jul 20 - 05:12 AM

There seems to be general agreement online that the song was written by Limerick man Sean Costelloe - of whom I know nothing. I'll check.

Strange to see the late Big Tim reappearing ...

Regards

p.s. There is another song about the incident by a well-known Mayoman whose name I SHOULD remember!

Subject: RE: Help: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: GUEST
Date: 31 Jul 20 - 04:14 AM

I was always led to believe that the song was written by Cavan man Gerry Brady

Subject: Who wrote 'Sean South'
From: Big Tim
Date: 20 May 01 - 03:10 PM

In fact I know this song about IRA man Sean South, killed in 1956, was written by someone called Sean Costelloe and first appeared in the "Irish Catholic" of 10th January 1957, ten days after South's death. Can anyone supply any information on Costelloe, composer, rather lyricist, as the melody is "Roddy mcCorley", of one of the greatest of Irish rebel songs.