Bard of Armagh, The

DESCRIPTION: "O, list to the tale of a poor Irish harper... Remember those fingers could once move much sharper To waken the echoes of his dear native land." The bard recalls the days of his youth and vigor, then makes requests for his death and burial
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1847 (The National Songster; a Collection of Scotch, English, and Irish Standard and Popular Songs)
KEYWORDS: harp music age death burial
FOUND IN: Ireland US(MA)
REFERENCES (9 citations):
Silber/Silber-FolksingersWordbook, p. 320, "The Bard of Armagh" (1 text)
O'Conor-OldTimeSongsAndBalladOfIreland, p. 50, "The Bard of Armagh" (1 text)
Hayward-UlsterSongsAndBalladsOfTheTownAndCountry, pp. 65-66, "The Bard of Armagh" (1 text)
Kane-SongsAndSayingsOfAnUlsterChildhood, p. 163, "(The Bard of Armagh)" (1 text)
Shoemaker-MountainMinstrelsyOfPennsylvania,pp. 243-244, "The Bard of Armagh" (1 text)
Hylands-Mammoth-Hibernian-Songster, p. 97, The Bard of Armagh" (1 text)
DT, BARDARMA*
ADDITIONAL: Richard Hayward, Ireland Calling (Glasgow,n.d.), p. 10, "The Bard of Armagh" (text and music)
Kathleen Hoagland, editor, One Thousand Years of Irish Poetry (New York, 1947), p. 248, "Bold Phelim Brady, the Bard of Armagh" (1 text)
Roud #2654
RECORDINGS:
Margaret Barry, "The Bard of Armagh" (on IRMBarry-Fairs)
The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, "The Bard of Armagh" (on IRClancyMakem02)
BROADSIDES:
Bodleian, Firth b.25(11), "The Bard of Armagh", P. Brereton (Dublin), c.1867; also Harding B 26(35), "The Bard of Armagh"
LOCSheet, sm1873 14657, "The Bard of Armagh", E. H. Harding (New York), 1873 (tune)
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Unfortunate Rake" (tune, subject) and references there
cf. "The Streets of Laredo" [Laws B1] (tune, subject) and references there
ALTERNATE TITLES:
Brady's Lament
NOTES [54 words]: Thanks to Jim Dixon for informing me of the Nation Songster text.
Although generally considered Irish, this was well enough known in late nineteenth century America that Ned Harrigan quoted it in his Irish-American works. See Edward Harrigan, The Mulligans, G. W. Dillingham, 1901, p. 385, which quotes the first verse. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.5
File: FSWB320B

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