"When New York Was Irish" by Shilelagh Law, NYC St. Patrick's Day '09

Local New York band "Shilelagh Law" performing their rendition of Terence Wynch's "When New York Was Irish." Connolly's Pub on 45th Street, Times Square, after the parade.

LYRICS

I'll sing you a song of days long ago,
When people from Galway and the County Mayo,
And all over Ireland came over to stay,
And take up a new life in Amerikay,

(Chorus)
They were ever so happy,
They were ever so sad,
Grow old in a new world,
Through good times and bad,
The parties and weddings,
The céilís and wakes,
When New York was Irish,
Full of joys and heartbreaks,

We worked on the subways,
We ran the saloons,
We built all the bridges,
We played all the tunes,
We put out the fires and controlled City Hall,
We started with nothin' and wound up with it all,

(Chorus)

You could travel from Kingsbridge,
To Queens or Midtown,
From High Ridge to Bainbridge (or Bay Ridge),
From uptown to down,
From the East side to the seaside,
Sweet summer scenes,
We made New York City our island of dreams,

(Chorus)

I look at the photos now brittle with time,
Of the people I cherished,
When the city was mine,
Oh how I loved all those radiant smiles,
How I long for the days when we danced in the aisles

(Chorus)

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Shilelagh
• Law
• When
• New
• York
• Was
• Irish
• St.
• Patrick's
• Day
• 2009
• NYC
• Bronx
• NY
• music
• tradition
• city
• history
• pub
• session
• party

[fuckthehuns1]

Hello to the NY Irish.... from the Glasgow Irish

[WhenNYWasIrish]

@fuckthehuns1

HAIL, HAIL!

[eimsol]

Am lovin caitlyn's singalong hee hee! i still have to learn the words ha ha ha

[WhenNYWasIrish]

lol. Lyrics in the side bar, click "more info." Enjoy!!

[loudublin]

omg have never heard that its brilliant makes us irish even prouder... to be irish with so many american cousins!!!nice one

[thenameisgracey]

going to see them here this year<3

[MIXEDUPTHROWNTOGETHR]

The Irish are the only group strong enough to build NYC, destroy it, and build it up again

[pattymike]

This song makes me feel so great. From a Syracuse, NY Irishman. My sis lives in Manhatten, gotta try and plan a weekend down there when these guys play a bar

[OurFadedGarden]

I an homesick. You can't go home again. 

[dushelle]

im irish! :D

[tayllea7]

very cute but my other side of me must say I can remember when new york was only us the indians

[11dosentmatter]

such a wicked song \oo/