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.
He Moved Through the Fair
The Chieftains Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
"My mother won't mind.
And my daughters won't slight you
For your lack of kind".
He went away from me
And this he did say
"It will not be long, Love,
Till our wedding day"
He went away from me
And he moved through the fair
And slowly I watched him
Move here and move there
He went his way homeward
With one star awake
As this swan in the evening
Moves over the lake
I dreamed last night
That my own love came in
He came in so sweetly
His feet made no din
He came close beside me
And this he did say
"It will not be long Love
Till our wedding day"
It will not be long love
Long love
Long love
Love
He Moved Through The Fair is a traditional Irish folk song that has been around for over a century. The Chieftains and Sinéad O'Connor's adaptation of this beautiful ballad speaks of love and loss, and the heart-wrenching separation between two lovers that seems to have a supernatural aura surrounding it. The male speaker assures his beloved that his mother and daughters will not disapprove of her due to her low social status. He promises to be back soon to wed her, but he moves away through the fair.
The fair symbolizes the marketplace, where people of different professions and social backgrounds come together to sell their wares. It is a place where love and friendship blossoms, and this is where the male speaker presumably met his beloved. However, as he moves away from her through the fair, she watches him go, and slowly he disappears from her sight, never to return. The imagery of a swan moving over the lake is used here, as it represents the hopelessness of the situation. The swan is often considered a mystical creature in Irish folklore, and it symbolizes the divinity of love and the journey of the soul.
The last stanza has a dreamlike quality, where the female speaker dreams that her lover comes back to her and promises again that they will get married soon. The repetition of "It will not be long love" again and again adds to the haunting quality of the song, as it hints that the couple will never be together, and their love story will always be incomplete.
Line by Line Meaning
My own love said to me
My significant other reassured me that our love is strong enough to overcome any objections from their family.
"My mother won't mind.
Their mother approves of our relationship and will welcome me as part of the family.
And my daughters won't slight you
Their children will not discriminate against me for not belonging to their kind or social class.
For your lack of kind".
They are assuring me that their family will embrace me for who I am without any prejudice.
He went away from me
My lover left me temporarily.
And this he did say
Before leaving, he promised that we will be married soon.
"It will not be long, Love,
He assured me that the separation will not last long and we will be reunited soon.
Till our wedding day".
We will be married very soon and we will be happy together forever.
And he moved through the fair
My lover walked through the marketplace, possibly shopping for our wedding supplies.
And slowly I watched him
I followed him slowly with my eyes, unwilling to see him go.
Move here and move there
He walked around the market to look for what we need.
He went his way homeward
My lover left the marketplace and headed home.
With one star awake
It was already evening, and there was only one star shining in the sky.
As this swan in the evening
The way he moved that evening was as graceful and majestic as a swan gliding through the water.
Moves over the lake
Just like a swan swimming beautifully over the lake, my lover's movements were smooth and balanced.
I dreamed last night
I had a dream the previous night.
That my own love came in
In my dream, my lover came to me again.
He came in so sweetly
In my dream, my lover was very sweet and kind to me.
His feet made no din
As quiet as a mouse, my lover moved gently and soundlessly during our dream reunion.
"It will not be long Love
Just like how he promised before, he reassured me in my dream that we will be together soon.
Till our wedding day".
Our wedding day is imminent and our love will continue to grow stronger.
It will not be long love
This final line is a repetition of the reassurance of our love, and the fulfillment of our promise to each other.
Long love
Our love will last forever, and even though we are apart, we will always be together.
Long love
Our love will transcend all boundaries and last through time and beyond.
Love
Love conquers all and is the basis of our lifelong commitment to each other.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Traditional, Mike Batt, Padraic Colum
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
tom canterbury
on North Amerikay
the great accapella version by kevin on tribute to their harpist