The band has recorded many albums of instrumental Irish folk music, as well as multiple collaborations with popular musicians of many genres, including Country music, Galician traditional music, Cape Breton and Newfoundland music, and rock and roll. They have performed with Van Morrison, The Rolling Stones, Sting, Roger Daltrey, Elvis Costello, Tom Jones, Sinéad O'Connor, James Galway, Jackson Browne, Nancy Griffith and numerous Country-western artists. In 1975, the group won praise for their playing of "Women of Ireland" for Stanley Kubrick's movie Barry Lyndon.
They have won six Grammy Awards and have been nominated eighteen times. In 2002 they were given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the UK's BBC Radio 2. The front covers of the first four albums were designed by Edward Delaney.
Paddy Moloney is the band's leader, and composes or arranges most of the band's music. While the band's members changed numerous times in the band's early history, the membership solidified in 1979 when Matt Molloy replaced Michael Tubridy.
From then until 2002, members included:
Paddy Moloney (uilleann pipes, tin whistle, button accordion, bodhrán)
Matt Molloy (flute, tin whistle)
Kevin Conneff (bodhrán, vocals)
Seán Keane (fiddle, tin whistle)
Martin Fay (fiddle, bones) (born 1938; died 14 November 2012)
Derek Bell (Irish harp, keyboard instruments, oboe) (born 21 October 1935; died 17 October 2002)
In 2002, Fay retired from active membership. In the same year, Bell died due to complications following a minor operation. Fay died on 14 November 2012.
Country Blues
The Chieftains Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
While I've got money to spend
Tomorrow might be Monday
And I'll neither have a dollar nor a friend
When I've got plenty of money, good people
My friends are all standing around
Just as soon as my pocketbook is empty
Not a friend on this earth can be found
The last time I seen that dear woman, good people
She had a wine glass in her hand
She's a-drinking down her troubles
With a lowdown, sorry, no good man
My daddy told me a plenty good people
And my momma she told me more
Said son if you don't quit your rowdy ways
You'll have trouble at your door
All around this old jailhouse this evening, good people
Forty dollars will pay my fine
Corn whiskey has surrounded my body, poor boy
Pretty women look trump in my mind
If I'd a-listened to my momma, good people
I would not be here today
But a-drinking and a-shooting and a-gambling
At home I cannot stay
Go dig a hole in the meadow, good people
Make it deep in that cold, cold ground
Come gather around all you kind friends
And see this poor rounder go down
The Chieftains' "Country Blues" is a lamentation about a life of wild abandonment and recklessness. The song is particularly sad because the singer is fully aware of his own shortcomings and the devastating consequences it has led him to. The singer is addressing good and kind people and inviting them to spend time with him while he still has money to spend. He is pointing out his fear that tomorrow he might have no money or friends, as he usually manages to spend all his resources and push people away. When he has plenty of money, his friends are all around him but as soon his pocketbook is empty, he finds nobody around to turn to.
The second stanza talks about the dear woman he once knew who was drinking with a lowdown, sorry, no-good man. The singer explains how his parents warned him against such reckless behavior and that if he did not quit it, he would have trouble at his door. The third stanza tells of his incarceration in jail, and how he needs forty dollars to pay his fine. He describes how the effect of corn whiskey has surrounded his body and how reeling from its impacts, he imagines pretty women in his mind. He laments that it all could have been different if he had listened to his mom.
In the final stanza, the singer seems to be surrendering his life to the grave as he asks kind people to gather around him and see this poor rounder go down. This song speaks of a man who knows that his actions have brought him down and that now, he has no apparent way out. It demonstrates how one's ignorance and disregard for sound counsel can lead to a life of regrets and despair.
Line by Line Meaning
Come all you good, kind people
Addressing everyone around and inviting them to listen to his story.
While I've got money to spend
He wants to tell his story before he goes broke.
Tomorrow might be Monday
He knows that he might run out of money soon, which will make it difficult for him to do anything on a weekday.
And I'll neither have a dollar nor a friend
If he runs out of money, he won't have anyone to turn to, which puts him in a very tough situation.
When I've got plenty of money, good people
When he has money, his friends are around him constantly.
My friends are all standing around
He has plenty of people to spend time with when he has money.
Just as soon as my pocketbook is empty
As soon as he runs out of money, his friends disappear.
Not a friend on this earth can be found
When he's broke, he's completely alone.
The last time I seen that dear woman, good people
He's talking about a woman he loves.
She had a wine glass in her hand
She was drinking when he last saw her.
She's a-drinking down her troubles
She's dealing with some problems, and she's trying to forget them by drinking.
With a lowdown, sorry, no good man
She's with someone who is not good for her.
My daddy told me a plenty good people
His father gave him some advice.
And my momma she told me more
His mother also gave him some guidance.
Said son if you don't quit your rowdy ways
His parents warned him about his behavior.
You'll have trouble at your door
His behavior will eventually catch up with him, and he'll be in trouble.
All around this old jailhouse this evening, good people
He's in jail right now, and he's addressing those in his cell block.
Forty dollars will pay my fine
He's in jail because he owes money, and he needs $40 to get out.
Corn whiskey has surrounded my body, poor boy
He's been drinking corn whiskey, and it's affecting him.
Pretty women look trump in my mind
He's thinking a lot about pretty women, even though he's in jail.
If I'd a-listened to my momma, good people
He's thinking about how he got into trouble, and acknowledging that he should have listened to his parents.
I would not be here today
Had he listened to his parents, he wouldn't be in jail right now.
But a-drinking and a-shooting and a-gambling
He's listing the bad habits that got him into trouble.
At home I cannot stay
He's acknowledging that he can't stop his bad habits and stay at home.
Go dig a hole in the meadow, good people
He's inviting everyone around him to watch him die.
Make it deep in that cold, cold ground
He's accepting his fate and giving instructions for his burial.
Come gather around all you kind friends
He's once again addressing everyone around him.
And see this poor rounder go down
He's describing himself as a poor rounder, and he's accepting his punishment.
Contributed by Emily W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
tom canterbury
on North Amerikay
the great accapella version by kevin on tribute to their harpist