Just Irish Music

Mrs. McGrath & Her Son Ted – A Traditional Irish Ballad of War and Loss “Mrs. McGrath” is one of the most moving and enduring Irish ballads from the 19th century, often sung with both sorrow and pride. Set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars, the song tells the tragic story of a young man named Ted who leaves Ireland to become a soldier and returns without his legs — casualties of a cannonball. His mother, Mrs. McGrath, confronts both him and the cruel absurdity of war with characteristic Irish wit and raw emotion. The origins of the ballad stretch far into Irish oral tradition. It appeared on Dublin broadsides as early as 1815, and scholars believe it references the Peninsular Campaign (1808–1814), part of the larger Napoleonic conflict. Over time, it became deeply associated with Irish nationalism and was sung widely during the Easter Rising of 1916 and the War of Independence. Mrs. McGrath is not just a mother grieving her son’s injury; she symbolizes Ireland itself —...

“Youghal Harbour” is more than just another Irish ballad — it’s a haunting story wrapped in melody, passed down through generations like salt on the Atlantic wind. What begins as a simple tale of lost love soon stretches across counties, hearts, and oceans. The result is a song that feels deeply personal, yet universally Irish. At the heart of the ballad is Jamie, a young man once full of hope and love, whose world begins to unravel not through betrayal, but through the slow grind of other people’s decisions. He falls in love with Nancy, a girl from Youghal whose family believes she’s too good for him. Her parents, cold and proud, banish her — not to punish her, but to punish him. They tear the young couple apart before it even begins, sending Jamie walking with nothing but heartbreak and the road ahead. As he wanders through the sweet green valleys of Ireland, Jamie arrives in County Cavan, where fate introduces him to another woman. She’s gentle, fair, and kind — but already tied i...

Boulavogue – The Song That Carries the Spirit of 1798 “Boulavogue” is more than a traditional Irish ballad — it is an echo of a moment in history when ordinary people rose with extraordinary courage. Written to honour the heroes of the 1798 Wexford Rebellion , the song has become one of Ireland’s most powerful musical memorials, capturing the bravery, tragedy, and hope of a community pushed to the edge. Though centuries have passed, the fire in this song has never dimmed. The story begins in the quiet Wexford village of Boulavogue, where Father John Murphy served as the local parish priest. Murphy was not a political agitator by nature; he was, in every sense, a reluctant rebel. For years he urged his parishioners to avoid uprising and keep peace. But when Crown forces began burning homes, harassing families, and dragging innocent people from their beds, Murphy saw that neutrality was no longer an option. The people were defenceless — and he knew they needed someone to guide them. W...

The Irish State Wears Borrowed Shame is a fierce modern protest song that tears the mask from the face of a nation that has forgotten its own rebellion. It speaks from the soil upward, from the people who still toil and pay while the powerful trade away Ireland’s soul for comfort and position. The verses echo the cadence of old rebel ballads yet strike with the anger of the present age. In its first verse, the song paints the image of ordinary men and women working the same fields their ancestors fought for, but under a new kind of bondage — not the red hand of empire but the polished bureaucracy of Brussels and the greed of homegrown elites. It condemns the false promises of parties that once claimed to fight for freedom but now live on deception and foreign favour. The second verse turns the blade inward, calling out Sinn Féin, once the banner of resistance, now accused of wearing the tricolour while serving the same masters they once swore to overthrow. The third verse widens the sc...

The Song of the Volunteers of 1782 celebrates a moment when the Irish people stood together in unity and strength, not as rebels against their own soil, but as free men demanding the rights of a nation long denied. It was the year when Ireland, weary of foreign control and unfair laws, found its courage through the ranks of citizen-soldiers known as the Irish Volunteers. These men were not professional troops nor rebels in hiding; they were farmers, merchants, tradesmen, and patriots who took up arms to defend their country while England’s army was distracted by war in America. The Volunteers began as a force to protect Irish shores from invasion, but their spirit quickly turned toward freedom. They saw that a people willing to defend their land should also govern it. Across Ulster, Leinster, Munster, and Connacht, the green and gold banners of the Volunteers rose over towns and fields, and Ireland for a brief and shining moment stood tall in the pride of self-respect. The song itself ...

The Rath of Mullaghmast stands as one of the darkest and most haunting places in Irish history, remembered for a massacre that symbolised the total betrayal of Ireland’s ancient clans. In the late sixteenth century, as English rule tightened its grip across Leinster, the Gaelic chieftains were invited to a grand assembly at Mullaghmast in County Kildare. The summons came under the seal of friendship, a promise of peace and protection from the Lord Deputy of Ireland, who claimed that reconciliation would end the turmoil between the Irish lords and the English Crown. Trusting in his word, the chiefs of Leinster came unarmed, accompanied by their families and followers, dressed in the rich garments of their rank and carrying the pride of generations that had ruled long before foreign power came to their shores. What awaited them was treachery. Hidden among the English soldiers and servants who welcomed them with smiles were the very men chosen to destroy them. At a prearranged signal, the...

A Chuisle Mo Croí — An Irish Ballad of Love, Loss, and Eternal Devotion “A Chuisle Mo Croí” — meaning  “ Pulse of My Heart ”  in Irish — is more than a love song. It’s a soul-deep ballad that bridges time, language, and emotion, telling the timeless story of a love so strong it lingers beyond goodbye. Sung in both English and Irish, this haunting melody speaks directly to the heart, offering comfort, connection, and a sense of something eternal. From the opening line,  “Since the day we met, love, you’ve been my guide,”  the listener is drawn into a relationship built on unwavering support through life’s storms. The chorus —  “A Chuisle Mo Croí, the pulse of my heart…”  — acts as a heartbeat itself, anchoring the song in love’s quiet strength. Laced with poetic Irish phrasing like  “Feicim thú i mo bhrionglóidí”  ( “I see you in my dreams” ), this ballad honours the traditions of Irish storytelling while weaving a modern emotional truth. Whether...

Tinte na Tíre – Fires of the Land: A Cinematic Tribute to Ireland’s Ancient Pulse Step into the ancient heartbeat of Ireland with “Tinte na Tíre” — Fires of the Land — a stirring visual and musical journey that blazes through rhythm, ritual, and the resilience of Irish spirit. This short film isn’t just a performance; it’s a cinematic ritual that reawakens the primal soul of the Gael. As the bodhrán strikes with steady defiance and embers spiral into the twilight air, you are drawn into a world where past and present burn side by side. Set against windswept hills and stone-walled fields, the fire becomes more than flame — it is the eternal hearth of memory, community, and ancestral calling. Dancers move with instinct, not choreography, echoing footsteps taken a thousand years ago, around fires that once lit the high places of Éire. Every beat in Tinte na Tíre evokes a forgotten tale — the whispered chants of druids, the stomp of rebel boots, the roar of tribal joy. Music is not e...

The Perfect Holocaust — A Ballad of Ireland’s Great Hunger (An Gorta Mór) This is not a famine song. This is a cry from the soil. “The Perfect Holocaust” is a modern Irish protest ballad rooted in the Great Hunger of 1845–1852 — a catastrophe that reshaped the Irish identity forever. The common schoolbook line calls it “the potato famine.” The real history is harsher. Ireland during those years was exporting grain, beef, butter, and provisions at industrial scale, while entire parishes starved. This ballad points directly to that contradiction — that the land was productive, yet the people were dying. In this piece, the music is built around uilleann pipes, low whistle, fiddle laments, and the relentless pulse of the bodhrán. The sound is intentionally stark — not romanticised, not softened — because the story demands uncomfortable honesty. The ballad names the policy makers and the ideology behind them. Trevelyan’s famous belief that starvation was “a moral lesson” echoes through t...

The Wraggle Taggle Gypsies O — From Silk Gowns to Leather Hose “ The Wraggle Taggle Gypsies O ” is one of those folk songs that refuses to die. It has moved through centuries, accents, and counties, yet its story is instantly recognisable even today: a noblewoman, smothered by wealth, hears the wild song of wandering men at her door — and leaves everything behind to follow them. In a world obsessed with safety, status, and comfort, this little ballad quietly raises a deeper question: who is truly free? In the song, we see her dressed in silk gowns, surrounded by feather beds and privilege. That is the world she is supposed to love. But she throws the entire social structure into chaos by simply changing clothes — stripping off the silk, and choosing leather hose like the gypsies themselves. One garment symbolised property and class. The other symbolised independence, risk, and the open road. People often interpret the song as a romantic fantasy, but it is something sharper: she doe...

Experience the Soul of Belfast – A Ballad of Pride, Pain, and Resilience Belfast is not just a city – it is a feeling. A heartbeat. A memory of generations who worked, struggled, laughed, fought, and kept going through some of the greatest challenges any European people have ever endured. This new ballad celebrates more than buildings or tourist landmarks – it honours the spirit of the people who shaped Belfast into what it is today. From the shipyards where the Titanic was built, to the proud working-class streets of the Shankill and the Falls, Belfast has always produced voices that refuse to bend. The cranes of Harland & Wolff still stand like mighty sentinels over the Lagan, reminding us that this city once powered the seas of the world. Cave Hill watches from above, just as it did during the Victorian era, and long before that when ancient Irish clans and warriors roamed beneath it. This ballad captures that mixture of history and heart. Yes, Belfast has known hardship. Yes...

The Night Before Larry Was Stretched — A Gallows Ballad of Wit, Grit, and Irish Black Humour “The Night Before Larry Was Stretched” is one of Ireland’s most unique and compelling traditional ballads. A product of early 19th-century Dublin street balladry, this song stands apart from the usual sorrowful laments of Irish rebel tradition. Instead of weeping over a doomed hero, it gives us Larry — a condemned rogue, full of wit and mischief, facing his final hours with a mix of gallows humour, bravado, and undeniable charm. The ballad is set in a prison cell on the eve of Larry’s execution. His friends have come to visit, to drink, smoke, and say farewell. What follows is a vivid, humorous, and strangely human portrait of a man who knows the rope is ready for him at dawn — yet refuses to let despair take hold. He jokes, he drinks, he reminisces. Larry isn’t just a prisoner; he’s a symbol of the Irish spirit — defiant even in the face of death. This version remains true to the tone of t...

The Lakes of Pontchartrain – A Timeless Story in Song “The Lakes of Pontchartrain” is one of the most haunting pieces in the old folk tradition, travelling across time, oceans, and cultures. Most people today associate the ballad with Ireland, because countless singers in the Irish folk revival brought it to new audiences. However, the scene in this song is firmly set in Louisiana. The lonely traveller is far from home, broke, and facing a future with no certainty. He is taken in by a Creole girl who shows him kindness when everyone else looks the other way. That mix of hospitality, heartbreak, and quiet gratitude is what gives the song its lasting emotional weight. The song seems to have appeared sometime in the early 1800s. It likely grew out of the chaotic period after the War of 1812, when soldiers, sailors, traders, and drifters moved restlessly through the American South. New Orleans was a port full of goodbyes. The wilderness around the lakes could be beautiful one moment and ...

The Croppy Boy is one of the most haunting and sorrow-filled rebel ballads to survive from the 1798 Rebellion. It tells the personal story of a young Irish volunteer — a “croppy,” named for the cropped hair worn by the United Irishmen — who stands proud for Ireland, only to be betrayed, condemned, and executed. Unlike the big broad histories of empires and armies, this ballad is intimate. It speaks through the voice of one doomed man — and through him, it speaks for thousands. The imagery in the lyrics is devastatingly direct. The song begins in the bright freshness of spring — birds singing, Ireland seemingly alive with hope — but the mood shifts instantly as the Yeoman cavalry seize him and drag him before Lord Cornwall. From there, the betrayal tightens like a noose: not only soldiers, not only magistrates, but his own kin turn against him. A cousin sells his life for a single guinea. A father denies him on the gallows. His mother tears her hair in grief. The tragedy is...

The Fenian Boy — The True Story of Billy Byrne of Ballymanus The Fenian Boy is a ballad rooted not in legend or romantic invention, but in hard Irish history. Billy Byrne of Ballymanus was a living man — a Wicklow farmer, born into ordinary soil, who made an extraordinary choice during the Rising of 1798. When the Crown demanded loyalty, when neighbours took the oath to save their own lives and livelihoods, Billy refused. He would not kneel. He would not sign. He would not surrender his country for safety or coin. The story of Billy Byrne has survived not because he led armies — but because he embodied the quiet, stubborn integrity that terrified empires more than muskets ever could. While his own brother swore the redcoat oath, Billy would rather face the scaffold than confess submission. For that defiance he was betrayed — not by an English rifle, but by whiskey-loosened tongues and fearful men in dark corners. He was dragged to Wicklow Gaol, tried in haste, and hanged in 1799. H...

“ Whiskey in the Jar ” is one of the most beloved and widely performed traditional Irish folk songs, immortalized by generations of singers from the hills of Kerry to the pubs of Dublin — and far beyond. Known for its rollicking melody and defiant lyrics, the song tells the tale of a highwayman who robs a military officer and is later betrayed by his lover. Sometimes set around Kilgary Mountain (or Kilmagenny, depending on the version), the story follows the classic theme of rebellion, romance, and betrayal. The protagonist, often referred to as a bold Irish rover or a highwayman, steals gold from a British officer — typically “Captain Farrell” — only to be turned in by his sweetheart, Molly or Jenny. In many renditions, her betrayal leads to his capture or death, though some versions allow him to escape. What makes “Whiskey in the Jar” endure is its infectious chorus and the blend of humour, tragedy, and pride. The title line — “Musha ring dum a doo dum a da” — is instantly recogni...

The Maid of Mourne Shore — An Irish Ballad of Love, Loss & Departure The Maid of Mourne Shore is one of Ireland’s most tender and bittersweet traditional ballads — a song of unreturned love and exile set along the beautiful, windswept coast of County Down. Its verses combine the quiet poetry of the countryside with the ache of separation that echoes through so many Irish songs. The story follows a young man who wanders the hills and dales by Mourne’s fair shore , remembering days of youth spent fishing and courting. When he visits his beloved to ask her heart, she gently turns him away — her promise already given to a sailor boy across the sea. Though the rejected lover warns that the sea may take her sailor, she stands firm in loyalty: “If the sea proves false to me, no other lad I’ll enjoy.” The song then shifts from affection to farewell. The young man bids goodbye to Lord Edmund’s leafy groves and the linen greens of the Mourne countryside — scenes of peace and industr...

Who is Ireland's Enemy..Not Russia, France nor Austria — Ireland’s Cry of Wrath and Memory Not Russia, France nor Austria is one of the fiercest patriotic poems ever composed in the Irish tradition — a thunderous indictment of England’s centuries of conquest and cruelty in Ireland. Written in the voice of the dispossessed and the dead, it spares no detail and softens no truth. The poem begins with a striking declaration: Ireland’s suffering did not come from distant empires. “ Not Russia, France nor Austria — they forged for her no chains. ” Her destroyer was closer to home. Across each verse, the poet calls out the long litany of wrongs: the murder of Shane O’Neill , the poisoning of Owen Roe , the slaughter of priests, children, and innocents, and the burning of villages from Clare to Donegal . It’s a roll call of grief stretching over “twice four hundred years,” until, as the poet writes, “every blade of Irish grass was wet with blood and tears.” Yet behind the rage lie...

The Vow of Tipperary — A Defiant Ballad of Ireland’s Rebel Heart The Vow of Tipperary is one of the great rebel anthems of 19th-century Ireland — a proud declaration of independence born from betrayal and courage. Its verses call out from Carrick streets to the Shannon shore , summoning the sons of Tipperary to stand as one and cast off the yoke of empire. The song opens as a rallying cry that sweeps across the Irish landscape — from Slievenamon to Galtymore , from Longford Pass to Ballindeary — every mountain and field answering the call. It unites a people long divided by poverty and politics beneath one simple, sacred promise: “Never to list in British ranks.” In just a few verses, the ballad captures centuries of struggle. Ireland’s young men had fought in Britain’s wars — on European battlefields and distant colonies — shedding their blood for a crown that rewarded them only with tyrant laws and eviction from their own homes. When they returned to Tipperary, they found h...

Gráinne Mhaol’s Lament — A Satirical Visual Chronicle of Ireland’s Occupation Gráinne Mhaol’s Lament re-imagines the life and legend of Gráinne Ní Mháille (Grace O’Malley) — Ireland’s fearless “Pirate Queen” of the 16th century — through the lens of satire and sorrow. Rather than the usual heroic ballad, this modern lament becomes a visual and musical chronicle of Ireland’s long occupation: proud, defiant, and bitterly aware of the cost of resistance. Born into the chieftain family of Umhaill in County Mayo, Gráinne commanded ships and men at a time when women were expected to obey rather than lead. She traded, raided, and fought to preserve Irish autonomy along the western coast while Elizabethan forces tightened their grip on the land. In legend she became the embodiment of Irish defiance — a woman who would parley with a queen yet never bow to one. In Gráinne Mhaol’s Lament , that defiance is refracted through art and irony. The song and imagery weave together scenes of bu...