We all know The Boys of Bárr na Sráide, City of Chicago and the Christmas thumper Fairytale of New York but what about those gems of Irish emigration songs that are overlooked or sometimes forgotten?
From the top shelf here are five worth turning up the volume for.
1. Nothing But the Same Old Story – Paul Brady with Donal Lunny
"I was just about nineteen when I landed on their shore, with my eyes as big as headlights like the thousands and thousands who came before."
2. Irish Blood, English Heart – Morrissey
"Irish blood, English heart, this I'm made of. There is no one I'm on earth I'm afraid of."
3. Slán le Máigh-Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh
"A hundred farewells from this place I'm in, beside Maguire of the berries, the branches, the stacks..."
4. Van Diemans Land – U2 (amazing rare footage of The Edge singing solo)
"Hold me now, oh hold me now. Till this hour has gone around. And I gone, on the rising tide. For to face Van Diemen's land."
5. Na Connerys – Liam O Maonlai
"When mass you're reading, be you pleading that our courage won't fail the Connerys to come safe in honor, home from New South Wales."
*This post was first published by Eoin Hahessy on his blog, Flight of the Cubs, which explores the past and present of Irish emigration from the perspective of an Irishman living in Australia. Hahessy, a Kilkenny guy, moved to Melbourne nearly two years ago from Berlin. In Melbourne he works for the University of Melbourne while gobbling history and mulling over all things Irish.
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