Bold Thady Quill lyrics
The Clancy Brothers & Tommy MakemYe maids of Duhallow who’re anxious for courtin’
A word of advice I will give unto ye
Proceed to Banteer, to the athletic sportin’
And hand in ye’r names to the club committee
And never commence any sketch on your programme
‘Till a carriage you see flyin’ over the hill
Right down thro’ the valleys and lands of Kilcorney
With their own darlin' sportsman the bold Thady Quill.
Chorus:
For ramblin’ for rovin’ for football or courtin’
For drinkin black porter as fast as you’d fill
In all your days rovin’ you’d find none so jovial
As the Muskery sportsman the bold Thady Quill.
At the great hurlin’ match between Cork and Tipperary
‘Twas played in the park on the banks of the Lee
Our own darlin’ lads were afraid of being beaten
So they sent for bold Thady to Ballinagree.
He hurled that ball left and right in their faces
And show’d the Tipperary men action and skill
If they touched on his lines he would certainly brain them
And the papers were full of the praise of Thade Quill.
[Chorus]
At the Cork Exhibition there was a fair lady
Whose fortune exceeded a million or more
But a bad constitution had ruined her completely
And medical treatment had failed o’er and o’er.
Her mother said she "Sir I know what will ease me
And cure this disease which will certainly kill
Give over your doctors and medical treatment
I'd rather one squeeze out of bold Thady Quill."
[Chorus]
Song Details
& Tommy Makem
Composer: Johnny Tom Gleeson c.1895 - first put to paper in 1905. He was a farmer who lived near Rylane, County Cork. He liked to think of himself as a poet and balladeer, writing many a satire, ridiculing many of his friends and neighbours.
Brief: The following is an excerpt from Wikipedia relating to Thady Quill:
Timothy "Thady" Quill (c.1860-1932) was a poor labourer and occasional cattle jobber, who, owning no land nor house, did odd-jobs for the local farmers. Thady, although a burly man, was no athlete, apparently teetotal, while sleeping in barns did not endear him to the ladies - he died a bachelor. Johnny Tom Gleeson engaged Thady as a labourer. However, instead of paying him, he "immortalized" Thady with this ballad, which pleased Thady to no end.
Category: Folk Song
Covers by Celtic Artists: Annmarie O'Riordan, A Drunker Shade of Green, Tommy Makem, Tom Donovan, Chris Hennessy, Seamus Kennedy.
Album: Come Fill Your Glass With Us (April 14, 1959).
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