> Folk Music > Songs > Erin’s Lovely Home
Erin’s Lovely Home
[
Roud 1427
; Laws M6
; G/D 6:1098
; Henry H46
; Ballad Index LM06
; MusTrad MT226
; Mudcat 121853
; trad.]
Paul and Liz Davenport: Down Yorkshire Lanes Alan Helsdon: Vaughan Williams in Norfolk Volume 1 Gale Huntington, Lani Herrmann, John Moulden: Sam Henry’s Songs of the People Maud Karpeles: Cecil Sharp’s Collection of English Folk Songs Ewan MacColl, Peggy Seeger: Travellers’ Songs From England and Scotland Colm O Lochlainn: Irish Street Ballads John Ord: Bothy Songs and Ballads Frank Purslow: The Foggy Dew Steve Roud, Julia Bishop: The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs Cecil J. Sharp: One Hundred English Folksongs Mike Yates: Traveller’s Joy
Sarah Makem sang Erin’s Lovely Home to Peter Kennedy and Sean O’Boyle in 1952. This recording was included in 2011 on her Musical Traditions anthology As I Roved Out. Rod Stradling noted:
Sarah sang only the first two verses of this song, so I have completed it, in italics, with those from the version sung by Michael ‘Straighty’ Flanagan, on Around the Hills of Clare.
Circulated widely as a ballad sheet, some versions of this bear the indelible stamp of the printer’s influence with a first verse which opens, “All ye that are at liberty, I pray you lend an ear”. Colm O’Lochlainn first got it from a friend in Belfast who had learned it in Irish.
It was to be heard extensively in England, sung, as one writer put it, “by singers as English as the land they tilled”. It was also found in Scotland by Aberdeenshire collector Gavin Greig, who was told that “… it was the most popular of songs, and that everyone who could sing at all, sang it”. Curiously, whilst the song obviously recounts an Irish story, of Roud’s 102 instances, only 6 are from Ireland. Roly Brown discusses the ballad in detail in his Musical Traditions Internet Magazine article Erin’s Lovely Home: MT226.
Mary Ann Haines sang Erin’s Lovely Home to Mike Yates in her home in Brighton, Sussex on 16 December 1972. This track was included in 1975 on the Topic album of gypsies, travellers and country singers recorded by Yates, Songs of the Open Road, in 1998 on the Topic anthology og songs of exile and emigration Farewell, My Own Dear Native Land (The Voice of the People Volume 4), and in 2003 on the Musical Traditions anthology of Gypsy songs and music from South-East England, Here’s Luck to a Man …. Mike Yates noted on the first album:
Erin’s Lovely Home has been noted by many folksong collectors, no doubt on account of its tune. Mary Ann Haynes had the song from her maternal grandmother, of Irish extraction. It appeared on numerous 19th century broadsides and is still met with fairly frequently today.
Michael ‘Straighty‘ Flanagan sang Erin’s Lovely Home to Jim Carroll and Pat Mackenzie in his home in Inagh, Co Clare in September 1977. This recording was included in 2004 on the Musical Traditions / An Goílín anthology of songs from the Jim Carroll and Pat Mackenzie Collection, Around the Hills of Clare. The collectors noted:
Circulated widely as a ballad sheet, some versions of this bear the indelible stamp of the printer’s influence with a first verse which opens, “All ye that are at liberty, I pray you lend an ear”. Colm O’Lochlainn first got it from a friend in Belfast who had learned it in Irish.
It was to be heard extensively in England, sung, as one writer put it, “by singers as English as the land they tilled”. It was also found in Scotland by Aberdeenshire collector Gavin Greig, who was told that “… it was the most popular of songs, and that everyone who could sing at all, sang it”.
Celeste Bernardo sang Erin’s Lovely Home in 2001 at the 22nd Annual Sea Music Festival at Mystic Seaport.
Viv Legg sang Erin’s Lovelie Home to John Adams at Bodmin, Conwall. This recording was released in 2006 on her Veteran album Romany Roots. Mike Yates noted:
Better known as Erin’s Lovely Home, although some English and Scottish singers managed to mispronounce the title as either Aran’s, or else Aaron’s, Lovely Home. The song was printed on 19th century broadsides in Dublin, Glasgow and London, and was especially popular with provincial printers, including Pratt of Birmingham, Stewart of Carlisle, Ross of Newcastle, Harkness of Preston and Dalton of York. This probably explains why most of the Edwardian collectors in England and Scotland found full versions of the song all over the place (there are 10 versions in Cecil Sharp’s collection and 14 versions in the Greig/Duncan collection, for example) and Irish collectors have, understandably, also found versions of the song throughout Ireland. Sets collected recently in England have usually come from Gypsy singers, such as Nelson Ridley and Mary Ann Haynes.
See also the emigration ballad Erin’s Lovely Home [Roud 5175].
Lyrics
Sarah Makem sings Erin’s Lovely Home
Ah, when I was young and in my prime, my age was twenty-one
Sure I became a servant unto a gentleman.
I served him true with honesty, but very well it’s known
That his cruelty did banish me from Erin’s lovely home.
Ah, the reason why he banished me I mean to let you know
It’s true I loved his daughter and she loved me also
She was advertised an heiress great, for riches I had none
That’s the reason why he banished me from Erin’s lovely home.
Mary Ann Haynes sings Erin’s Lovely Home
When I was young and in my prime, my age was twenty-one,
When I become a servant, unto a gentleman.
Oh, I served him true and honestly, and very well he did know,
But cruelly he did banish me from my Erin’s lovely home.
Now the reason why he banished me sure I mean to let you know,
I owned I loved his daughter, and she loved me also.
She had a heavy fortune, and riches I had none;
But cruelly he did banish me from Erin’s lovely home
It was in her father’s garden, it was in the month of May,
A-viewing all those pretty flowers, all in their rightful bloom.
Oh, she said, “My dearest William, if along with me we’ll go,
And adieu to all my friends, and my Erin’s lovely home.”
Oh, the very same night she give consent all along with me to go,
And a-parting from her dwelling home it grieved my overthrow.
Ten thousand pounds she did lay down, saying, “This shall be your own;
And we’ll never mourn for those we’ve left in our Erin’s lovely home.”
Oh, when I got to Belfast town, it was in the break of day.
My true love she’d got ready the words to me did say.
“Oh John (?) my dear, bear up your heart, for you I’ll never disown,
Until I see your face again in my Erin’s lovely home.”
Oh just a few hours after, her father did appear,
And he marched me back to Comangel in the
ounty of Traleer, She said, “My dearest William, for you I’ll never
disown, Until I see your face again in my Erin’s lovely home.”
Michael ‘Straighty‘ Flanagan sings Erin’s Lovely Home
When I was young and in my prime, my age just twenty-one,
I acted as a servant unto a gentleman.
I served him true and honest, and very well it’s known;
But in cruelty, he banished me, from Erin’s lovely home.
And where want he did banish me I mean to let you hear;
I own I loved his daughter, and she loved me as dear.
She had a large fortune, but riches, I had none;
And that’s the reason I must go from Erin’s lovely home.
‘Twas in her father’s garden all in the month of June;
We were viewing all the flowers, all in their youthful bloom.
She says, “My dearest William, if along with me you’ll roam,
We will bid adieu to all our friends in Erin’s lovely home.”
Sure, I gave consent that very night, along with her to roam
From her father’s dwelling; it proved our overthrow.
The night was bright, by the moonlight, we both set out alone,
Thinking we’d get safe away from Erin’s lovely home.
When we landed in Belfast, just by the break of day,
My love, she then got ready, our passage for to pay.
One thousand pounds she counted down, saying, “This shall be your own,
But do not mourn for those we’ve left in Erin’s lovely home.”
Tis of our sad misfortune I mean to let you hear.
‘Twas in a few hours after, her father did appear.
He marched me back to Omagh Jail in the county of Tyrone,
And there I was transported from Erin’s lovely home.
Now when I heard my sentence passed, sure, it grieved my heart full sore;
But parting from my true love, sure, it grieved me ten times more.
I had seven links upon my chain, for every link a year,
Before I can return again to the arms of my dear.
While I lay under sentence, before I sailed away,
My love, she came into the jail and this to me did say:
“Cheer up your heart, don’t be dismayed, for I will ne’er you disown,
Until you do return again to Erin’s lovely home.”
Viv Legg sings Erin’s Lovelie Home
When I was young and in my prime and my age was twenty one,
I became a servant to a gentleman.
He treated me true and honestly, the truth to you I’ll own,
The reason that he banished me from Erin’s lovelie home:
He had one handsome daughter who loved me so well.
And oft times in her garden her tales of love we’d tell.
She said to me, “Young Willie dear, away with me to roam,
We’ll bid adieu to all our friends and Erin’s lovelie home.”
It was in her garden in the merry month of June,
Gathering those flowers gay, all in their youthful bloom.
She said to me, “Young Willie dear, it’s time for us to roam.
We’ll bid farewell to all our friends and Erin’s lovelie home.”
It was a sunny morning and the sun shone bright and clear,
We hadn’t gone but very far before her father he was there.
He brought me back and into jail, in the county of Tyrone,
And from there I was transported from Erin’s lovelie home.
There are seven links in my chain and every link’s one year.
There are seven links in my chain and every link’s one year.
Before I can return again to Erin’s lovelie home.