Irish Wake, The [Laws Q18]

DESCRIPTION: Pat Malone, being "pressed for ready cash," decides to fake death to collect his life insurance. All goes well until the wake and funeral; he thinks they cost too much. At last, shortly before he is buried, realizing the consequences, he gives up the sham
AUTHOR: probably, per Levy song sheet, Words: Harry C. Clide / Music: Jas. J. Sweeney
EARLIEST DATE: 1893 (Levy song sheet is from 1895)
KEYWORDS: death funeral trick
FOUND IN: US(MA,MW,Ro,So) Canada(Newf)
REFERENCES (9 citations):
Laws Q18, "The Irish Wake"
Bennett/Downey-JeromeJustOneMoreSong 6, pp. 79-82, "Pat Malone Forgot That He Was Dead" (1 text)
Randolph 473, "The Irish Wake" (1 text plus an excerpt, 1 tune)
Randolph/Cohen-OzarkFolksongs-Abridged, pp. 366-368, "The Irish Wake" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 473A)
Cazden/Haufrecht/Studer-FolkSongsOfTheCatskills 121, "Pat Malone" (1 text, 1 tune)
Peters-FolkSongsOutOfWisconsin, pp. 300-302, "Pat Malone Forgot That He Was Dead" (1 text, 1 tune)
Hubbard-BalladsAndSongsFromUtah, #169, "When Pat Malone Forgot that He Was Dead" (1 text)
Darling-NewAmericanSongster, pp. 148-149, "Pat Malone" (1 text)
DT 529, PATFORGT*
Roud #1008
RECORDINGS:
Jerome Downey, "Pat Malone Forgot That He Was Dead" (on NFJDowney01)
Lawrence Older, "Pat Malone" (on LOlder01)
Dan W. Quinn, "Pat Malone Forgot That He Was Dead" (CYL: Columbia Concert 5048, n.d.)
BROADSIDES:
Levy, "Pat Malone Forgot That He Was Dead," Petrie Music Company (New York), 1895, (1 text, 1 tune), accessed February 15, 2015, Courtesy of the Lester S. Levy Collection of Sheet Music, The Sheridan Libraries, The Johns Hopkins University at http://levysheetmusic.mse.jhu.edu/
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Finnegan's Wake" [Laws Q17]
cf. "The Fine Ould Irish Gentleman" (theme of a man who seems dead until the wake)
cf. "The Humble Beggar" (theme of a dead man leaving his coffin)
NOTES [80 words]: Laws lists this among the ballads of British origin, but cites no references. Cohen speculates that it is actually an American stage song. Given that it's been collected only on this side of the water (as best I can tell, and the Roud list supports this), I strongly suspect Cohen is right. - RBW
Bennett/Downey-JeromeJustOneMoreSong has the Levy song sheet [a reduced reproduction on p. 82 - RBW] and notes that Downey's version is subtly different but clearly the same song. - BS
Last updated in version 5.2
File: LQ18

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography