Wild Irish Boy, The

DESCRIPTION: The singer reports on his arrival in the new world. Despite his poor clothes, history of gambling, and criminal record, the girls like him for his looks. But now he is punished for his crime with poverty, prison, and loneliness
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1875 (Barney & Rickey's Songster)
KEYWORDS: transportation gambling exile separation loneliness prison punishment emigration homesickness clothes father mother
FOUND IN: US(MA,MW)
REFERENCES (3 citations):
Cazden/Haufrecht/Studer-FolkSongsOfTheCatskills 112, "The Wild Irish Boy" (2 texts, 1 tune)
O'Conor-OldTimeSongsAndBalladOfIreland, p. 26, "The Wild Irish Boy" (1 text)
Wolf-AmericanSongSheets, #2643, p. 179, "The Wild Irish Boy" (1 reference)
ST FSC112 (Partial)
Roud #38409
RECORDINGS:
Warde Ford, "The Wild Irish boy" [fragment] (AFS A 4210 B1, 1939; in AMMEM/Cowell)
BROADSIDES:
Bodleian, Harding B 18(490), "Wild Irish Boy", H. De Marsan (New York), 1864-1878
NOTES [77 words]: The handful of traditional collections of this song have, at first glance, little resemblance to most of the broadsides. But Cazden et al managed to assemble enough versions that they are convinced of the identity of the pieces, and I think they're right.
Broadside Bodleian Harding B 18(490): H. De Marsan dating per Studying Nineteenth-Century Popular Song by Paul Charosh in American Music, Winter 1997, Vol 15.4, Table 1, available at FindArticles site. - BS
Last updated in version 6.5
File: FSC112

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