Clancy Brothers - The Bantry Girls Lament lyrics

1 * * 57

Who will plow the field now, and who will sow the corn

1 * * 57

Who will wash the sheep now, and keep them neatly shorn

4 1 * 57

The stack that's in the haggard, un-touched it may re-main

1 * 4 57 1

Since Johnny went a-thrashing all in the wars of Spain

CHORUS:

4 * 1 *

Johnny, lovely Johnny, he's sailing o'er the main

1 * 4 57 1

A-long with other patriots, to fight the King of Spain

And the girls from the bawn-oag in sorrow may re-tire

The piper and his bellows, (may) go home and blow the fire

At fairs and hurling matches, your likes we seldom see

Till you come home a-gain to us, a-storeen oag mo cree

And a cruel fate will not permit our Johnny to re-turn

His heavy loss, we Bantry girls will never cease to mourn

We re-sign ourselves to our sad lot, and die in grief and pain

Johnny died for freedom's sake in the foreign lands of Spain

NOTES:

- Gaelic phrases are spelled phonetically

- Haggard: a threshing yard

- Ba/no/g: a green patch of ground (Ireland?)

- Mi/an fhomhair: harvest month

- Asto/iri/n o/g mo chroi: little young treasure of my heart