In this series, I'll take a closer look at songs that have become well-known and loved within Celtic cultures, like "Raglan Road" from Ireland, "The Skye Boat Song" from Scotland, and "All Through the Night" from Wales.
I have decided to publish this growing collection to a single page. The latest addition is at the top. Scroll down for many more classics.
I'll talk about the origins of each piece, its social and historical context, currency in today's music, and its various interpretations in recordings through the years.
I welcome your suggestions. If you have a piece you would like to hear explored, send an email to celtic@wgbh.org or call 617-300-2395, and leave a message. Your voice might end up on air! (Note: For Spotify listening below, a basic account is needed. Its free.)
"Loch Lomond"
Is there a better known melody in all of Celtic Music! Its first notes are enough to bring tears to the eyes of Scotissh emmigrants the world over. But its singable chorus has a sad reference embedded that is connected to a turbulant time in Scottish History; The Jacobite Rebellion of 1745/46. In the "high road/low road" reference is embedded a very sad story indeed. It is explained in this segment.
"The Bold Fenian Men"
The Fenian's were an Irish Republican (Nationalist) organization founded in the United States in the mid 19th century. The song we explore here is typical of a group of songs known as "rebel songs" in Ireland, often deliberately written to glorify a particular political organization or movement determined to free Ireland from the yoke of the occupying British. We examine the Fenian's deep Boston connections through one of their members, John Boyle O'Reilly. We also hear writer Peter Stephen's account of an extraordinary and improbable rescue of Fenian prisoners from an Australian prison in 1876.
Some interesting links for further reading:
Peter Stephens, and the Voyage of the Catalpa
The John Boyle O'Reilly Club of Springfield.
The Fenian Memorial Committe of America.
"My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose"
Robert Burns is Scotland's National Poet. This is one of his two most famous songs, the other being Auld Lang Syne. Burns would have sung this song to a different melody than the one we are now familiar with which was applied some 25 years after the poet's death. As with many of Burns songs, the words were inspired by an older song that would have already been in the tradtion at the time of his writing. There are versions of this known in the North of Ireland too.
"The Foggy Dew"
"The Foggy Dew" was written in 1919 by Charles O'Neill, a young priest from Portlegnone in Co. Antrim. He had been inspired by attendance at the first Dáil (Parliament) assembled in Dublin in January of that year. But the song is about the Easter Rebellion of 1916. As it became known, this rising was essentially the provenance of the struggle that became known as the War of Independence, ending in 1921. The result was Ireland's freedom—albeit attenuated by a complex treaty—from England for the first time in 500 years. Exploring the song requires some historical context, including explaining why events around World War I are referenced. Where O'Neil got the melody for his now-famous rebel song is also explored.
"Down by the Salley Gardens"
In this edition, we look at perhaps one of the best-known Irish love songs of all. It is easy to sing, has a pretty melody, and is just two verses long. This makes it the choice for many as their party piece to be sung at a session or family gathering. The words are by William Butler Yeats, but he based it on an older song from the North of Ireland, "Ye Rambling Boys of Pleasure." Like all of the songs we are designating classics, many musicians have recorded it from different genres worldwide. Down by the Salley (sometimes spelled Sally) Gardens.
"Barbara Allen"
One of the best-known folk songs globally, Barbara Allen, most likely came from Scotland originally. It is so old that it is referenced by the diarist Samuel Pepys in 1666 in such a casual manner, suggesting it was already well known at that time. Coming to the US, likely with early Scots-Irish emigrants, it soon developed its own American accent. It has been a stalwart of the American folk-song repertoire now for centuries. We explore many versions here, including recordings by Joan Baez, The Everly Brothers, Mary McPartlan, Dolly Parton, Shirley Collins, and Tony Barrand. Full versions of the songs used are included in the below playlist.
"The Lakes of Ponchartrain"
Like many songs in this series, "The Lakes of Ponchartrain" has some unlikely origins and themes. It has a "Creole Girl" as a central character, for example, and is based not in Limerick or County Laois but Louisiana's post-American Civil War era. Its entry into the canon of Celtic Classics can largely be attributed to Paul Brady's recordings over 40 years ago. His unique guitar style and approach, and singular voice, have rendered this one (and some others by Brady) the most beloved in Irish folk tradition. We trace the song's provenance, its journey to Ireland through the singing of English folk singer Mike Waterson through Christy Moore and on to Brady. We also hear versions by Aoife O'Donovan and Bob Dylan, and finish with an extraordinary intro and performance by Brady at GBH's Fraser Performance Studio back in 2011. Worth checking out to the end. (Note: For Spotify listening, you need to have at least a basic membership. It's free.)
I also reference and draw from a program on Irish broadcaster RTE about this song in the piece. It's from Ruth Smith and worth checking out here.
"The Streets of London"
Ralph McTell's timeless urban anthem to homelessness, loneliness, and mental health issues plague our cities worldwide. It was written in the late 1960s but became an instant classic when it was released as a single in 1973. Though McTell is decidedly English — a Londoner — the song blended easily into the Irish ballad world and has been recorded by Liam Clancy, Sinead O'Connor, The Pogues, Phil Coulter, and more than 200 others around the world. In this segment, we also get some intriguing insights into the song's chordal structure and narrative form from Mark Simos himself, an accomplished musician and songwriter, and now a professor at Berklee College of Music. And we end with a re-recording of the song from 2017 when Annie Lennox created a choir of the homeless to poignantly accompany its re-release as a benefit project.
"Molly Malone"
Around the world, this is perhaps the most famous of all Dublin songs. Its ultimately singable chorus "Alive, Alive Oh" is heard regularly at gatherings, pubs, festivals, and even in stadiums where the Irish national team might compete. We paint a slightly different picture of the song: one based on its provenance in the British Music Hall as likely an ethnic insult to the Irish. And we listen to various interpretations by The Dubliners, Sinead O'Connor, Danny Kaye, Bryn Terfyl, and Imelda May with Dervish. And we talk about the statue in Dublin unveiled at the Millenium to mark Molly's importance to the city, and the colorful name Dubliners have coined for it.
"Whiskey in the Jar"
A song about a highwayman from 17th century Ireland based on a real historical figure. In addition to various ballad groups from around the world, the song has been recorded by U2, Bryan Adams, Elvis, and Metallica, to name just a few. The version recorded by Irish rockers, Thin Lizzy in 1972, has become almost definitive. There are versions here in the US. The repeating chorus, complete with a specific handclapping sequence, has made it one of the most popular Irish songs worldwide.
"The Ballad Of Joe Hill"
This song is a special selection for Labor Day. "The Ballad of Joe Hill" is a song about one of America's great icons of the labor movement, Joe Hill, who was shot by firing squad in Utah in 1915. The song is as well known and is as frequently sung in Ireland as it is in the U.S. In this segment, I explore a few different versions from Paul Robeson to Luke Kelly and the Dubliners, Joan Baez, Utah Phillips, and Ani DiFranco. I also trace the organizer's fascinating story from his upbringing in Sweden through his immigration to America. His activism on behalf of the Industrial Workers of the World, and his controversial murder conviction and execution, made him a hero and martyr for labor workers throughout the world. This song has become an anthem of their movement.
"She Moved Through The Fair"
It is one of Ireland's most famous traditional songs and has been covered by musicians from Paul Robeson to Van Morrison to U2. The lyrics have been attributed to the poet Padraic Colum, but its tragic theme is likely from an old folk song Colum heard in Donegal in the first years of the 20th century. The melody, however, is even more fascinating and probably dates back to Medieval times or earlier. It is in what's called "Mixolydian" mode, a scale used in many Celtic tunes and songs we know today. We discuss and illustrate that mode more extensively in this segment.
Below is a playlist of the songs used in the segment and other interesting versions I have chosen for you.
"The Skye Boat Song"
Long revered by Scots the world over, this air traces its origins to the melody of a Gaelic work song first heard by its composer on the Island of Skye in the early 1870s. The words added later recount a heroic deliverance out of danger, for Prince Charles, who became known of course, to history as Bonnie Prince Charlie. This story dates from one of the most turbulent times in Scottish History: The Jacobite Rebellions of the mid-1700s.
"Raglan Road"
The words are a love poem written by Patrick Kavanagh. While it was first written relatively recently—in the 1940s—it has become a standard Irish heartbreak song known the world over. Kavanagh was an unhappy poet in Dublin in his early 40s when he fell in love with a 22-year-old medical student from Co. Kerry. It didn't end happily, and such is the power of the piece. We explore versions by Cathal McConnell, Ye Vagabonds, The Chieftains, and perhaps the definitive version by Dubliner, Luke Kelly.
"Ar Hyd Y Nos (All Through The Night)"
One of the best-known melodies from Wales often sung like a lullaby and crossed over into classical style playing with the triple harp, an iconic instrument, and a Welsh culture symbol. Versions by YoYo Ma and Goat Rodeo and the great Welsh singer Bryn Terfyl with Welsh choral accompaniment, are featured in the segment.
