Her family encouraged her to sing in the house, in a church choir and at school. At Waterford Regional Technical College she studied piano then took music at University College Dublin in 1987. Having learned to copy Ella Fitzgerald's scat singing, she performed in a Dublin bistro several nights per week while still a student. At the Royal Irish Academy of Music she studied classical music and sang in a jazz band, then a folk-ballad band, then another jazz band. She also fell under the influence of Dublin folk singer Frank Harte. During this time she also formed her own band, called Dorothy.
In 1993 Karan moved to New York City. There she studied jazz at Long Island University. When she encountered Irish traditional music sessions in New York she started singing Irish traditional music again. During this time she mostly sang in bars and locals. For most of 1994 she sang with a group called Atlantic Bridge. At the end of the year she joined Seamus Egan and others in Solas. She sang five songs on their first album in 1996. In the same year she sang in Tramps club in Manhattan, accompanied only by a percussionist. They mixed jazz and folk. In 1997 she recorded a solo album, Songlines, inspired by the novel of the same name by Bruce Chatwin. It was produced by Seamus Egan and included several members of Solas. There were a few traditional songs and some contemporary folk songs.
In 2000 Karan collaborated with several other singers on "Seal Maiden - A Celtic Musical". It was a musical version of the film "The Secret of Roan Inish", designed for children. It concerns the mythical creature called the selkie - a seal-woman. Since then Karan has recorded three further solo albums released in 2001, 2003 and 2005. In a salute to her Celtic roots, several tracks were recorded in her native Irish tongue. She also features on the DVD "Solas Live".
Her 2005 album Chasing the Sun includes a number of songs Casey wrote herself. Her records are released by Shanachie Records in the United States and Vertical Records in Europe.
Karan is now living in County Cork, and is married to Niall Vallely, a composer and player of traditional Irish music.
Solo albums
* Songlines (1997)
* Seal Maiden (2000)
* The Winds Begin To Sing (2001)
* Distant Shore (2003)
* Chasing The Sun (2005)
Recordings with Solas
* Solas (1996)
* Sunny Spells and Scattered Showers (1997)
* The Words That Remain (1998)
* Reunion: A Decade of Solas (2006, CD and DVD)
As session musician
* Dancing at Lughnasa (film) (1998)
* Waking Ned Devine (film) (1999)
* "Celtic Solstice" by Paul Winter
The King's Shilling
Karan Casey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And that's the last of him I ever saw
He's joined the army and marched to war
He took the shilling
He took the shilling and he’s off to war
(Chorus:)
Come laddies come, hear the cannons roar
Well did he look as he marched along
With his kilt and sporran and his musket gun
And the ladies tipped him as he marched along
He sailed out by
He sailed out by the Broomielaw
The pipes did play as he marched along
And the soldiers sang out a battle song
"March on, march on," cried the Captain gay
And for King and country
For King and country we will fight today
(Chorus)
The battle rattled to the sound of guns
And the bayonets flashed in the morning sun
The drums did beat and the cannons roared
And the shilling didn't seem
The shilling didn't seem much worth the war
(Chorus)
Well the men they fought and the men did fall
Cut down by bayonets and musket ball
And many of these brave young men
Would never fight for
Would never fight for the King again
(Chorus)
Come laddies come, hear the cannons roar
Take the King's shilling and you’ll die in war
The song The King's Shilling by Karan Casey is based on the traditional Scottish ballad that talks about a man who takes the King's shilling to join the army and fight in the war, leaving his family and loved ones behind. The singer of the song tells the story of her love who left her with their two children to fight for his country. She describes how he looked when he marched away with his kilt and musket gun, and how the ladies tipped him goodbye as he sailed out by the Broomielaw.
The chorus of the song invites young lads to take the King's shilling and join the army to fight in the war, but as the battle begins, the tone of the song changes. The singer describes the horrors of war with the rattling of guns and flashing of bayonets. She notes the brave young men who fought and fell on the battlefield and how many of them would never fight for the King again. The shilling, once an enticement to join the army, lost its value, and the ultimate price was death.
The song has a strong anti-war message that reminds us of the sacrifices made by soldiers and their families during times of conflict. It sheds light on the fact that the decision to go to war has lasting consequences and that the cost of a shilling cannot measure up to the price of the lives lost.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh my love has left me with bairnes twa
My love has left me with two children
And that's the last of him I ever saw
And I have never seen him again
He's joined the army and marched to war
He has joined the army and gone to war
He took the shilling
He accepted the payment for enlistment
He took the shilling and he’s off to war
He accepted payment and left for the war
Come laddies come, hear the cannons roar
Come, young men, hear the sound of cannons
Take the King's shilling and you’re off to war
Accept payment and join the army to go to war
Well did he look as he marched along
He looked impressive as he marched
With his kilt and sporran and his musket gun
Wearing his Scottish kilt, carrying his musket and sporran
And the ladies tipped him as he marched along
And the ladies gave him gratuities as he marched
He sailed out by
He left by sea
He sailed out by the Broomielaw
He left through the Broomielaw Harbor (in Glasgow)
The pipes did play as he marched along
The bagpipes played while he marched
And the soldiers sang out a battle song
And the soldiers sang a fighting song
"March on, march on," cried the Captain gay
"Continue marching, continue marching," shouted the Captain happily
And for King and country
We are fighting for our King and country
For King and country we will fight today
Today we are fighting for our King and country
The battle rattled to the sound of guns
The battle was noisy with gunshots
And the bayonets flashed in the morning sun
Bayonets shone in the morning sun
The drums did beat and the cannons roared
Drums beat and cannons fired
And the shilling didn't seem
The payment did not seem
The shilling didn't seem much worth the war
The payment wasn't worth the war
Well the men they fought and the men did fall
The men fought and many died
Cut down by bayonets and musket ball
Killed by bayonets and bullets
And many of these brave young men
Many of these young and brave men
Would never fight for
Would never again fight for
Would never fight for the King again
Would never again fight for the King
Come laddies come, hear the cannons roar
Come, young men, hear the sound of cannons
Take the King's shilling and you’ll die in war
Accept payment and you will likely die in the war
Contributed by Jason W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
josiahsdays
Lyrics:
Oh my love has left me with bairnes twa
And that's the last of him I ever saw
He joined the army and marched to war
He took the shilling, he took the shilling and he's off to war
Chorus:
Come, laddies, come, hear the cannon roar!
Take the king's shilling and you're off to war
Well, did he look as he marched along
With his kilt and sporran and his musket gun?
The ladies tipped him as he marched along
He sailed out by, he sailed out by the Broomielaw
Pipes did play as he marched along
And the soldiers sang out a battle song
"March on, march on," cried the captain gay
For king and country, for king and country we will fight today
Chorus:
Come, laddies, come, hear the cannon roar!
Take the king's shilling and you're off to war
Well, the battle rattled to the sound of guns
And the bayonets flashed in the morning sun
The drums did beat and the cannon roared
And the shilling didn't seem, oh the shilling didn't seem much worth the war
Chorus:
Come, laddies, come, hear the cannon roar!
Take the king's shilling and you're off to war
Well, the men they fought and the men did fall
Cut down by bayonet and musket ball
Many of these brave young men
Would never fight for, would never fight for the king again!
Chorus:
Come, laddies, come, hear the cannon roar!
Take the king's shilling and you're off to war
Come, laddies, come, hear the cannon roar!
Take the king's shilling and you'll die in war...
Cyndi A
I love these two together you can tell they are really enjoying singing together and this is different for James. They sound lovely.
Young Shook
Karan’s voice, no matter the tone of the song, upbeat or melancholy, always has me holding back tears. It’s indescribably beautiful.
cheerydavie
Karan & James who would've thought these two voices would come together absolutely great harmonies and wonderful musicians
peter maclean
A great song written by Ian Sinclair from Caithness, Scotland in the 1970s when he was part of the folk trio Mirk. Song often confused as traditional orgin - definitely captures the sentiment well. Superb performance!
Adrienne Kraft
So enjoyable, had to hear it again! Glad to discover James Taylor singing traditional Celtic music. Karan has a beautiful voice. The more I hear Celtic music, the more I love it !!
Robert Noblitt
A gorgeous performance by hugely talented folks. Thanks for sharing this!
Pierre Lafrenière
Que j'aime cette chanson, ces deux magnifiques voix et cet ensemble de musiciens talentueux. Je ne me lasse pas de l'écouter. Peut-être ai-je du sang irlandais qui coule dans mes veines?
robert reavley
Have listened to this tune a hundred times or more, It still has the power to move me. absolute class!
wombwell
Absolutely brilliant. Beautiful harmonies and superb backing. Masters of their craft...
Bernie KilBride
World class singers and arrangement. To be fair global phenomenon Taylor has to work a bit at this one but nevertheless demonstrating his pure tone unique vocal which totally makes the track more than just another folkie song. That's not to decry folike songs - I love the genre - but to hear Taylor in the midst for me raises it to another level. Beautiful was expected of this crew - fabulous this one:-)