I first heard this great song in Scannell's Pub in Baile Mhuirne (Ballyvourney) County Cork in August 1972. I think that it was composed in the 18th century in support of the Jacobite cause which died at Culloden. I am told that the the tune is actually from Scotland. Iarla O Lionaird is from the Ballyvourney district. Hauntingly beautiful anywhere but this version stands out - magnificent - thar foir ar fad.
I'm not Irish but I felt like crying when I first heard this version of the song. It is moving, as European and human being, to hear Celtic language after all that Celtic culture has gone through! See the look the singers have in their eyes when they sing this song... touching! Long live Gaelic language and Celtic cultures in Wales, in Scotland, in Cornwall and Britain.
@@barriemcdermott7805 It's Irish in origin though. Although it's a Jacobite song written about Bonnie Prince Charlie in Irish Gaelic (sister tongue of Scottish Gaelic) so it's definitely very much intertwined with Scotland's history too.
I see these peoples faces in the people I grew up and live around. Truck drivers and shy girls who sat in the back of class, and friends mothers. I am proud to be descended from such a rich culture.
Kathleen Gillis In the Irish language 'een' is used as a term of endearment. Kathleen would be 'my little Kathy' Maureen would be 'my little Mary' and Doreen would be 'my little Dora'.
"I see these peoples faces in the people I grew up and live around. Truck drivers and shy girls who sat in the back of class, and friends mothers." Poetic.
It's about Bonnie Prince Charlie Prince of Scotland and Irleand. It's unusual because he managed to rise Scotland and Irleand to his casue even after bitter reformations and Saxon incursions which split the Gealic septs/clans asunder. But today we are moving past religion (in fact we are past it) and the Gaels of Scotland and Ireland are finding their common ground in ancestral history and language. Seeking to run Gaelic affairs not from London but in Gaelic lands. The english are determined to block this and do all they can to divide and divide more the Gael. This song is a symbol of our resistance and pain of oppression.
Mary Ann Kennedy the sweetest of sweet voices- ach bail o dhia oraibh uilig! Scoth na h-Alban is fiorscoth na h-Eireann. What a marvellous minstrelsy...Is sibhse laochra Gael na linne seo.
I have watched this many times just attempting to learn to pronounce the words in the chorus. These singers have the best diction if you have to learn it phonetically, and their singing is first class. I have searched each of the singers individually and come up with some wonderful music. Thank you so much for posting this.
Wow! What a cool night I am having right now. Listening to Celtic music sung in the original Gaelic language, drinking a Guinness with a big greenwing macaw on my shoulder... I so feel like a pirate right now lol! All I need is an eye patch :-)
One cannot ask for a better group of singers, well known folk singers on their own. The beauty of the song is brought out by their separate contributions and group singing.
Rachel, it's part of a very long poem written by a Munster Irish poet, Seán Clárach McDomhnaill in the 18th century. Yes, it's about Charles Stuart, comparing him to ancient mythical Celtic heroes, such as Conall Cearnach, Lughaigh MacCéin and Aonghus Óg. It is very powerful, especially when sung by Cór Cúil Aodha from the West Cork Gaeltacht!
Wow! This is stunning. Almost sounds like Gaelic gospel! Thanks for posting all of these great highland and Irish tunes, Tom. Keep them coming if you can!
I found this video about 6 months or longer ago while looking for Karen Matheson videos. I watched and listened to the Highland Sessions recordings here so often (and I liked them more every time) that I ordered the DVD from a Scotland-based shop, and this song is the one that forwarded my decision most. These Sessions are definitely among the best productions the BBC has ever come forth with.
The sweetest version of "Mo Ghile Mear" I've heard since I heard it one summer's night in a pub in Ventry, Co. Kerry, when we all sang the rafters down. Many thanks!
I love this song. I first heard it sung by Sean O'Sea's group in the 70s. I heard it again the other night in Miltown Malbae, sung by Peadar O'Sea and the group from Co Cork. It has lost none of its magic for me
Karen Matheson sings Crúcan na bPáiste and I cry every single time i hear it. The emotion she puts into it is just like the poor woman who looked at her little child i gCrúachán na bPáiste brings you back to an event that should never have happened. My god it's heartbreaking
Great Gaelic culture a mix of these Irish-Scottish traditional sessions.What a lament for Bonnie Prince Charlie the song was worthy though he never returned.'Speed Bonnie Boat ov'r the sea to Skye' is a more Scots lament.
Wonderful, wonderful. Everyone does a great job here. But I have to say that Karen Mathieson is - as ever - simply marvellous. Although this song articulates the Irish view of Bonnie Prince Charlie, any song which addresses the '45 (especially one in Gaelic) has a particular power for people from Scotland. Culloden marked the beginning of the systematic dismantling of Gaelic civilisation in Scotland.
MMy gentle Darling Chorus: He's my champion my Gallant Darling, he's my Caesar, a Gallant Darling, I've found neither rest nor fortune since my Gallant Darling went far away. Once i was gentle maiden, but now I'm a spent, worn-out widow, my consort strongly plowing the waves, over the hills and far away.
'Sé mo laoch mo ghile mear 'Sé mo Shéasar, gile mear Suan gan séan ní bhfuair mé féin Ó chuaigh i gcéin mo ghile mear" what a poetic lyric!! i listened to this ..i dont know 10 times yet ..and its still SO great I love this song so much! 10* !
Yes it was a vain hope in a coward who wasn't even at the level of a rogue-- But the song itself, stands on its own. It well expresses Gaelic grief at the English boot. Decades later, under the impact of the French Revolution more worthy fighters for Ireland would arise in the form of Wolfe Tone & the United Irishmen.
Thank you. When I first saw the video on my cell ranked so high replacing my favorite version of mo ghile mear in gaelic I was upset. However, to see you and hear you, all of you, sing this song makes me want to improve my gaelic all the more. Thank you all.
I'm Proud to say I am mostly Irish blood and Scottish will a little touch of usa (Boston Irish blood). My Scottish grandfather came from Meigle near the foot of the Grampian Mountains. Alba Abú - Éire Abú 32
@@MarkRobertCuthbert Èireann 's Alba gu bragh agus an cànan againn bho Alba/ Warm wishes and Ireland/Scotland forever ; I'm so proud of our common language, culture and one day Ireland will be united and Scotland independent and look forward to it very much :) Slàinte air-ais
My Mother would have loved listening to the Singing and the Music. My GrandFather was a Grant from Tomitoul. Who spoke the Gael. He didn't live long enough to pass the language to his Grand Children living in Australia. Nor to my Mother. Mores the Pity as its part of my family Heritage now lost
My family sang this rendition last year at my grandfather’s funeral. We went down in a line of singers. He was from Ireland, my grandmother is still alive, she’s from Skye. Proudly my mother and her siblings can sing in Irish and Scots Gaelic, I had to learn a lot. But it’s funny what music, lyrics, and grief can do.
Yes, knowing one's ancestry and the stories that were passed down are one of my most cherished prizes. I recently lost my 93yr. old mother who was the last link to my families past. I am so grateful that the history of my family was passed on by both of my parents. I can visit my past and the past of my ancestry anytime I choose to slow down and just recall the stories I hold in my memory.
our songs are so sad and hauntingly beautiful .... warrior ports ... and we do not forget ... "when God made the Scots he made them made, for their wars are merry and music sad .... Creston, North Carolina at the mither tip of Bennachie
The verse that was done by Karan Casey was added, so I'll mark where it was put in. ----------------------------------- Once I was gentle maiden, But now I'm a spent, worn-out widow, My consort strongly plowing the waves, Over the hills and far away. (CHORUS) He's my champion my Gallant Darling, He's my Caesar, a Gallant Darling, I've found neither rest nor fortune Since my Gallant Darling went far away. Every day I'm constantly enduring grief, Weeping bitterly and shedding tears, Because my lively lad has left me And no news is told of him - alas. (CHORUS) The cuckoo doesn't sing cheerfully after noon, And the sound of hounds isn't heard in the nut-tree woods, Nor a summer morning in a misty glen Since my my lively boy went away from me. (CHORUS) Gallant young horseman An appearance without worry or care A grip thats sure and quick in battle Leading the crowd and making us strong (CHORUS) -ADDED VERSE- (CHORUS) Play a tune on music harps Fill the quart measures on the table With high intention, straight and unclouded That life and health will be had by my lion (CHORUS)
DeltaPhi79 Thank you for this. I don't understand anything of what the song says, but I think the language and the music is beautiful. I think that, living far away from there, I have have a certain notion of Scotland or Ireland that maybe is not necessarily the real one, but I do think that Gaelic represents the very soul of this countries. It seems a very dificult language, but I would love to learn it.
There are plenty. BBC Alba do one and if you google you'll find others, including the Gaelic college in Skye which does online courses. Scots Gaelic isn't a particularly difficult language to speak passably or to understand most songs. To speak like a native...that's another matter!
@@MrRossWild Frankly, it does not really matter whether they are Irish or Scottish. The Irish and the Scottish gaelic language are very interchangeable. Despite the fissures brought about by Locke's Reformation the Irish and the Scottish have always been very close.
