An important figure on the Dublin folk-song revival in the 1960s, Moloney moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1973. He gained early fame as a member of Irish group The Johnstons and The Emmet Spiceland but has since performed and recorded with a variety of groups and individuals, including Eugene O'Donnell and Séamus Egan; he also worked closely with The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem. In all, he produced and performed on over forty albums. He also founded The Green Fields of America, an organization that promotes traditional Irish-American music.
In 1992, Moloney received a Ph.D. in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania. For his work in public folklore, he received a National Heritage Fellowship from the NEA, the highest honor a traditional artist can receive from the United States. In 1999, he was named "best tenor-banjo player" by Frets magazine. He has taught at several institutions in the United States and is currently a Global Distinguished Professor of Music and the Irish Studies at New York University, where his field of expertise was Celtic music in the United States.
Daisy Bell
Mick Moloney Lyrics
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I've a wife and seven children and they all sing Daisy Bell
My wife begins the chorus and the others follow suite
And the oldest in the corner sits and plays it on the flute
Daisy, Daisy give me your answer do
Thats the tune that drives me mad the whole day though
And every Organ grinder and the other bands as well
And the boys and girls across the hills are whistling Daisy Bell
When I come home at dinner time instead of having stew
I'm to suffer a rehearsal of "A Bicycle For Two"
The kids around the table all assemble in a ring
And in forty different languages they all begin to sing
Marie tunes up the fiddle and John begins to dance
And Jimmie round the table starts to hum and shout and prance
While (manuel) in the parlor the harmonica starts to play
And for miles around the hills resound all through the night and day.
The song "Daisy Bell" by Mick Moloney is a tongue-in-cheek commentary on the ubiquity of the song and how it has become an earworm for people everywhere. The singer confesses that he has a large family who all sing the song together, and even play it on various instruments. The chorus of "Daisy, Daisy give me your answer do" is driven into the singer's head and he cannot get it out, no matter how hard he tries. Even organ grinders and other bands play the song, and people across the hills are whistling it too.
The second verse continues the humor with the singer complaining that instead of a nice meal when he comes home from work, he has to endure a rehearsal of the song. The children all gather around and even sing it in different languages. Then the family members proceed to play various instruments including the fiddle, harmonica, and flute while dancing and humming along. The hills around them reverberate with the music all through the night and day.
Line by Line Meaning
I Suppose I shouldn't tell you But perhaps I might as well
Even though it's not appropriate to tell you, I will do so anyway
I've a wife and seven children and they all sing Daisy Bell
My large family all enjoy singing Daisy Bell
My wife begins the chorus and the others follow suite
My wife sings the chorus and the rest of the family joins in
And the oldest in the corner sits and plays it on the flute
The eldest family member plays the tune on a flute
Daisy, Daisy give me your answer do
The lyrics of the song Daisy Bell are repeated
Thats the tune that drives me mad the whole day though
The song is very catchy and stays in my head all day
And every Organ grinder and the other bands as well
Daisy Bell is a popular song and is played by organ grinders and other bands
And the boys and girls across the hills are whistling Daisy Bell
The song is so well-known that even kids in the hills are whistling it
When I come home at dinner time instead of having stew
When I come home for dinner, I am not served stew
I'm to suffer a rehearsal of "A Bicycle For Two"
Instead, my family rehearses the song 'A Bicycle For Two'
The kids around the table all assemble in a ring
My children gather around the table in a circle
And in forty different languages they all begin to sing
My children sing the song in several different languages
Marie tunes up the fiddle and John begins to dance
One of my family members plays the fiddle while another dances
And Jimmie round the table starts to hum and shout and prance
Another family member hums and shouts and dances around the table
While (manuel) in the parlor the harmonica starts to play
Someone plays the harmonica in the parlor
And for miles around the hills resound all through the night and day.
The music can be heard for miles around, both day and night
Contributed by Lincoln V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.