Carrickfergus (song)
Irish folk song named after a County Antrim town.
"Carrickfergus" is an Irish folk song named after the town of Carrickfergus in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The Clancy Brothers included the title on their 1964 album "The First Hurrah!". A differing version, "The Kerry Boatman", was released by Dominic Behan on the 1965 LP "The Irish Rover".
Quick Facts
- Modern version published
- 1965
- Publisher
- Dominic Behan
- Earliest known album appearance
- 1964
- Album title
- The First Hurrah!
- Performer on that album
- The Clancy Brothers
- Alternative title
- The Kerry Boatman
Facts from the source article.
Origins
Dominic Behan published the modern version of the song in 1965. Behan stated that he learned the song from actor Peter O'Toole. In his 1965 book "Ireland Sings", Behan printed three verses, noting that the first and third came from O'Toole while he wrote the middle verse himself. The melody has been traced to an Irish-language song, "Do Bhí Bean Uasal" ("There Was a Noblewoman"), attributed to the poet Cathal Buí Mac Giolla Ghunna, who died in 1756 in County Clare. Music collector George Petrie obtained two settings of this melody from fellow collector Patrick Joyce, who came from Ballyorgan in the Ballyhoura Mountains on the borders of counties Limerick and Cork. Petrie believed "Do Bhí Bean Uasal" originated in either County Clare or County Limerick and was a Munster song. An early macaronic version appeared on a ballad sheet in Cork City in the mid-nineteenth century, with Irish lyrics about a man being cuckolded—a bawdy, humorous ditty—while the English lyrics are nostalgic with a slightly humorous twist. Robert Gogan has suggested that Carrickfergus may have evolved from at least two separate songs, explaining its inconsistent narrative. Gogan also noted a recording of "Sweet Maggie Gordon" published by Mrs. Pauline Lieder in New York in 1880, which contains verses similar to Carrickfergus but a chorus closer to "Peggy Gordon".
Kilkenny
The song's story seems to surround Kilkenny, and the "Ballygran" in the lyrics may refer to the local Ballingarry coal mines, making the "marble...black as ink" a reference to coal. Irish-American journalist Niall O'Dowd compared the song to the Scottish "Over the Water", suggesting it may have originally referred to Kilmeny on the Scottish island of Islay, where the Ballygrant quarry produced a dark-grey to black marble. O'Dowd argued that centuries of travel between Ulster and Scotland create a stronger connection between Carrickfergus and Islay than with Kilkenny, though Kilkenny does produce a black marble "as black as ink".
Performances
The song has been recorded by many well-known performers and is a popular request at folk festivals and concerts. It was played at the 1999 funeral of John F. Kennedy Jr. and performed by Loudon Wainwright III over the closing credits of an episode of HBO's "Boardwalk Empire". Russian singer-songwriter Aleksandr Karpov ("Aleksandr O'Karpov") translated the lyrics into Russian and recorded a version titled "За синим морем, за океаном". Other recordings have been made by Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger, The Seekers, Roger McGuinn, Chris Hillman, Bryan Ferry (on his 1978 album "The Bride Stripped Bare"), and The McKrells (on their 2000 album "Hit The Ground Running"). Dexys Midnight Runners released their version on an album of Irish and Country songs and closed their 2023 concerts each night with it during the encore. The song is referenced in Ed Sheeran's "Galway Girl" from his 2017 album "Divide". "The Water is Wide" has a similar tune and very similar lyrics in some lines. Additional performers include Dermot Kennedy, Joe Dassin (as "Mon village du bout du monde" on his 1969 album), The Dubliners (on "Now" in 1975 and "40 Years" in 2002), Paddy Reilly (on "The Town I Loved So Well" in 1975), Five Hand Reel (on "For A' That" in 1977), Loreena McKennitt with Cedric Smith (on "Elemental" in 1985), Van Morrison and The Chieftains (on "Irish Heartbeat" in 1988), Joan Baez (on "Speaking of Dreams" in 1989), Van Morrison (on "Van Morrison: The Concert" in 1990), Danny O'Flaherty (on "Remember" in 1997), Anne Buckley and Ronan Hardiman (on "Feet of Flames" in 1999), Neck (in the film "With or Without You" in 1999), Darren Holden (on "Golden Irish Favourites" in 1999), Harry O'Donoghue (on "Live and Well" in 2000), Órla Fallon (on "The Water Is Wide" in 2000), Charlotte Church (on "Enchantment" in 2001), Declan Galbraith (on "Declan" in 2002), and Lisa Kelly (on "Lisa" in 2003).
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