Memories of Inishmaan led me east of Galway to the little market town of Athenry. It appears on the very edge of the map I put at the head of my last post.
Athenry is a sleepy place that may have remained unremarkable in its obscurity were it not for a song written in the nineteen seventies by a man called Peter Mooney whose stage name was Pete St John. That song, "The Fields of Athenry" reflects on past injustices and perhaps how the potato famine and forced transportation affected ordinary lives.
It is a very simple song but the chorus has lifted so many hearts, creating a supernatural sense of togetherness and identity - mostly in those who have Ireland in their blood. It is sung in stadiums by Liverpool supporters, Celtic supporters and The Irish national rugby team to name but three:-
Low lie the fields of Athenry
Where once we watched the small free birds fly
Our love was on the wing we had dreams and songs to sing
It's so lonely 'round the fields of Athenry
Peter Mooney died in 2022 at the age of 90 but I suspect that his famous song will last forever - well almost forever.
It has been recorded by several individuals and bands but I think that the definitive version is by the Dubliner - Paddy Reilly. With his mellow, tuneful singing voice he took the song where it needed to be - finding its rightful place in Ireland's rich cultural heritage. Here's Paddy Reilly in 2010 in Cork Opera House:-
At Pete St John's wake in a Dublin bar in 2022, we see and hear Paddy Reilly as an old man singing the song that made his name too. He was with Glen Hansard who also sang at the funeral of Shane McGowan. I must admit that I began to weep half way through this unplanned version:-
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