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The Good Ship Kelly Jean
the days were long and dreadful the landlords were unkind
no home, no food no future, no joy, no peace of mind
they said there was a new world, the likes of us could live
so we headed to the docklands, to see what they could give
Captain Conal was a Quaker he was good and strong and fair
he welcomed us aboard and promised he would get us there
he said ‘you’ll have to pull your weight but you will do just fine
I’ve never lost one passenger on any watch of mine’
haul away boys haul away
there’s nothing left here for us anyway
the voyage won’t be easy and there’s nothing in between,
so we settled in the belly of the good ship Kelly Jean
Captain Conal ran a tight ship, they were a loyal crew
before they would set sail again, he’d tell them what to do
‘treat passengers with deep respect and simple dignity,
any sailor who ignores this will be answerable to me’
soon the cruel ocean was beating on the bow
Conal smiled and shouted out ‘no going back there now!
I’ve seen the place your headed and it is rich and green
and I swear you’ll get there safely on the good ship Kelly Jean’
it was six weeks on the open sea before we saw the shore
it slowly dawned that we would see our homeland nevermore
but Conal shared a meal with us and looked us in the eye
‘work hard now for your children and your people will not die’
Sammy Horner vocals, bass, acoustic guitar
Dennis Holt drums
Phil Madeira accordion
Tim Cotterell fiddle, mandolin
[During a visit to the famine ship in New Ross Wexford, we learned that the voyage to the new world itself could be lethal. Many died on board, but you had a better chance of survival if you were on a Quaker ship. The Quakers’ religious views emphasized human dignity and so, fresh air, water, food and sanitation were available to all passengers giving them a better chance at survival. Kelly Jean is a fictitious ship named after a dear friend who still flies the flag for human dignity and kindness.]
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Linger Here Beside You
these days are strange that’s come
and you are still so young
but even so I see your worried glances
it all seems so unsure
what lies behind our door
they say that no one should be taking chances
come lay here in my arms and look into my eyes
and you will see the love that nothing can disguise
no matter what this day requires us all to do
your mammy will just linger here beside you
sure life can make us smile
and also make us cry
it has been that way far back as we remember
at times you'll think you’re king
and others just a slave
when hope seems nothing but a dying ember
Tess Wiley vocals, guitar
Kylie Horner & Tess Wiley bgv
Jim Devlin lead guitar
[Community and family remain at the very heart of survival. I got to thinking of parents and children in times of famine or hardship (or indeed Covid19, the time these songs were written) and how comfort and encouragement are always essential.]
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3. |
Sammy Horner - N.I.N.A.
02:42
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N.I.N.A
now listen here me mates I’ve a story to relate
and you might find it hard to believe
there’s a rumour going round
saying jobs there can be found
If you travel far across the mighty sea
but I’ve heard that it's true
for the likes of me and you
honest labour's hard to find there if you try
it's been whispered here to me
the first sign that you will see
says the irish need not apply
apparently the French are allowed to use a wrench
the Germans building houses by the score
and no one’s bothered much, if you’re Danish or you’re Dutch
and Englishmen get offers even more
to find work in a bar is limited by far
if you came from Donegal you'll wonder why
doesn't matter what the season and it makes no sense or reason
the sign says if you’re Irish don't apply
I’m sure you think I’m rakin' or making stories up
but my sources are reliable be sure
and I wouldn’t tell a lie, cross my heart and hope to die
there’s some work for you there if you endure
you must think a little broader, for you'll be cannon fodder
or laying rails in deserts hot and dry
well all that work is thriving if you don't mind not surviving
and for these jobs the Irish may apply
Sammy Horner vocals, bass, acoustic guitar
Rhys Duursma drums
Sean McMains whistle
Tim Cotterell banjo, fiddle
Nick Stiverson mandolin
David Lyon accordion
[Once again thanks to the Famine Ship Exhibition, New Ross for highlighting the plight of the Irish as they went to the USA and faced further hardship due to lack of work.]
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The Children Of White Rock
we left White Rock behind us
on a tall ship under sail
took the broad Atlantic with the dolphin and the whale
we're bound for New York City, and opportunity
it's all that’s left for a no chance soul like me
two thousand miles behind us, two thousand till we're there
too far out to turn back
too far gone to care
I curse the cur who sold me my ticket at the dock
and tore me from the children of White Rock
they tell me that there's plenty
and the streets are paved with gold,
but all I feel’s the biting steel of hunger and the cold
so pass around the bottle, I need it's company
It’s all that's left for a no chance soul like me
so fair thee well my homeland
and my lazy no-good friends
fair thee well my darling
I'll love you to the end
and I won't forget your cheating heart
as flimsy as your frock
I will always miss you, the children of White Rock
Sammy Horner vocals, acoustic guitar, dulcimer guitar
Kylie Horner accordion
[In our world of easy travel, it is hard to imagine a voyage that would take us from our homeland forever. This was the case for so many who left Ireland in the past.]
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Annie Glover
come all you young Irish lads, lassies as well
I’ll spin you a yarn that one day you’ll tell
don’t make it a whisper make sure that you yell
the ballad of poor Annie Glover
now Annie was raised on her family’s farm
they worked on the land, they did no one harm
like many a girl, fell for a man’s charm
his wife she became Annie Glover
a daughter she bore him then sadly he died
now young mother Annie had nothing beside
for a husband and father sweet Annie now cried
the heartbroken poor Annie Glover
as darkness descended for reasons unknown
the roundhead came into dear Annie’s home
and shipped her and daughter across briny foam
she never knew why Annie Glover
then both made to work, John Goodwin their lord
no wages were given except food and board
the Irish were free so they all could afford
the likes of sweet old Annie Glover
but all Goodwin’s daughters fell sick at one time
The doctors were helpless to make them feel fine
'It’s witch craft' they said, ‘a hex is the crime’
and blamed it on old Annie Glover
now Annie praised Jesus in her mother tongue
and also in Latin to her faith she clung
but she couldn’t in English and so she was hung
As a witch she died poor Annie Glover
Maria Forde vocals
Sammy Horner 12 string guitar, bass, mandolin, dulcimer guitar, bodhran
Kylie Horner whistles, accordion
[Annie Glover was sent to the USA to work as an indentured servant. After her master’s children became sick, she was accused of witchcraft. She would have been pardoned if she could have said the Lord’s Prayer in English. Annie, a devout Catholic, could recite the prayer but only in Irish and Latin. She was the last woman to be hung in the Salem witch trials.]
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California
we are heading to a new land,
like nothing we have seen
one part is a desert
the other emerald green
it's hard now to imagine it
but one day we might say
there's less of us in Ireland than in California
to Connecticut , New Jersey
New York and Ohio,
Illinois & Massachusetts
to Iowa we'll go
we'll bring our music with us
and we will dance and say
there's less of us in Ireland than in California
this new land will have Murphys, O’Donnels, McEvoys
there'll be Connors and Fitzgeralds,
and them McCarthy Boys
the Ryans and the Foleys pick their fiddles up and play
there's less of us in Ireland than in California
there'll be Kellys in Kentucky
the Byrnes in Baltimore
the San Francisco Sullivans
O'Briens by the score
Saint Patrick's Christian Brothers
who also when they pray
say there’s less of us in Ireland than in California
Sammy Horner vocals, mandolin, guitar, bass, tambourine
Rhys Duursma drums
Tim Cotterell fiddle
Gang vocals- Kylie Horner, Jon Hirst, Eric Hauck, Mark Hootman, Josh Fitzgerald, Tim Yordy, Samantha White, Mike Weaver, Max Berueffy, Freya Webster , Lewis Webster, Stephanie Cass Holiman, Aidan Mitchell, Thore, Jaron & Timmi Steffan
[Currently more than 66 million Americans claim Irish heritage. I took some poetic license here (about 2.5 million Californians say they are Irish, you get the picture) but the USA has a lot to thank the Irish for to this day.]
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7. |
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Skibbereen
it was in West Cork I breathed my first
it was there that I grew tall
my father a strong cottier
my mother quaint and small,
we worked the land, it paid the rent
put food upon our plate
we never starved till ‘46
t’was when we felt it’s weight.
for she used to be delightful,
the finest place you’d seen
she used to be magnificent
in her forty shades of green
you’d never want to leave her
not if ever you’d ever been
to our town before the hunger came
and it starved poor Skibbereen.
it started with a rumour
that the praties had turned bad
the land was giving nothing back
the worst crops that we’d had.
but we’d been thru hard times before
community was strong
but we’d never seen the likes before
we couldn’t be more wrong
we heard the Murphys’ son had died
their daughter close behind
the sadness, oh the sadness
tlmost made us lose our minds.
they told us we were lucky
how thankful we should be
as they sealed us in a coffin boat
and pushed us out to sea
Sharon Clancy vocals
Sammy Horner guitar, mandolin, bass, bodhran
Timmy Cotterell fiddle
Howard Rogers/Kylie Horner whistles
Kylie Horner accordion
Mick Egan overdubs
[The town of Skibbereen in west Cork was one of the worst affected areas during the Great Hunger. The town has become synonymous with the great famine that killed more that one million people and sent another 1million to other shores.]
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8. |
Sammy Horner - Hush
04:24
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Hush
just close your eyes my gentle wee boy
today has been a long with nought to enjoy
I know that you're belly is empty and sore
hush go to sleep my wee darling
hush now go to sleep
wake in that place were you'll no longer weep
your mammy is there, soon I will come
hush go to sleep my wee darling
your days have been sort
upon this green land
why it's so hard you can’t understand
so close your dear eyes your Da has your hand
hush go to sleep my wee darling
I'll tell you a tale, best as I can
they say that the good Lord has promised a land
there’s food on each table as much as you want
so hush go to sleep my wee darling
Sammy Horner vocals, guitars
Kylie Horner whistles
Tony Silcock drones
[I tried to imagine the horror of watching your family die of hunger and disease and how you might try to comfort them. This song almost didn’t make it on the album but I allowed some other artists to hear it and they felt it was an important one.]
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The Song Isn't Singing
I’m just a poor farmer, an Irishman proud
we sang songs to the hearts of our women
and we danced in the fields like we owned the whole land
when the land of the song was still singing
but the blight it has come and ruined our crops
and the songs from our throats have been driven
to the grave like our mothers and fathers before
when the land of the song was still singing
they said we'd have hope if we worked hard and prayed
but they lied in the tidings they're bringing
my wife died to hunger my child of disease
in the land were the song wasn't singing
those English fat asses just sat on their hands
and the church lied beyond my forgiving
for what’s there to say as they send me away
from a land where the song isn't singing
oh the tunes of my country the reels and the jigs
everyday in my head are still ringing
will I hear them one day, on a shore far away
from the land where the song isn't singing
Sammy Horner vocals, guitar, bass, mandolin, bodhran
Kylie Horner whistle, accordion
Tim Cotterell fiddle
[I read this quote from a book that I can no longer find. One of the marks that changed how Ireland looked to strangers during the famine was that the music had stopped. A people known for their love of music had stopped singing. A chilling insight of how hunger damaged so much more than just their stomachs. ]
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11. |
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No Man Is An island
come sit round me table
and share in a meal
let’s tell all our stories together
for it's in community each of us thrive
its how we survive wind and weather
no man is an island
no woman can live
without kindly neighbours
and others who give
a hand when we're helpless
so come let us live and
give thanks for our our friends and relations
there's not much to eat
but there’s plenty to share
the poems and songs you're recalling
will help feed our spirits
until there's a time
when things will not be so appalling
Sammy Horner vocals, 12 string guitar, bodhran,
Kylie Horner vocals, whistle
[Kylie and I returned to the theme of the need for strong community to get through hardship. We need each other. Made so very clear in 2020.]
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These Days Will Pass
It seems too long since life was fine
pain goes by in slower time
we shared the little that we had
where things had never been that bad
keep your head high, this time will soon be done
just believe that, the best is yet to come
for even hard times will wither like the grass
these days will pass, these days will pass
sure trouble makes or breaks a man
some give in while others stand
and somewhere in the midst the fear
they know these days will disappear
we'll make our journey , find our place
some day soon in God's good grace
and we'll be glad for what we've done
for our daughters for our sons
Sammy Horner vocals, mandolin, 12 string guitar, bass
Kylie Horner vocals, bgv, whistle
Rhys Duursma drums, percussion
Jim Devlin lead guitar
David Lyon accordion
[We wanted a hopeful song for finishing this. Hard times seem to last forever, but history shows us that they do eventually pass. Hope springs eternal indeed.]
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