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.
I Can't Stop Loving You
The Chieftains Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So I made up my mind
To live in memories
Of a lonesome time
I can't stop wanting you
It's useless to say
So I just live my life
Those happy hours
That we once knew
So long ago
Still make me blue
They say the time
Heals a broken heart
But time has stood still
Since we've been apart
I can't stop wanting you
It's useless to say
So I'll just live my life
In dreams of yesterday
I can't stop loving you
So I've made up my mind
To live in memory, baby
Of a lonesome time
I can't stop wanting you
It's useless to say
So I just live my life
In dreams of yesterday
The Chieftains' "I Can't Stop Loving You" is a hauntingly beautiful song that speaks of the overwhelming feeling of not being able to let go of a past love. The lyrics express the singer's struggle living in the present because their mind is constantly going back to memories of a former lover.
The opening line "I can't stop loving you" sets the tone for the entire song, revealing the intensity of the singer's feelings. They have accepted that they are unable to let go of this person and have made the decision to live in the memories they've shared. The line "So I made up my mind to live in memories of a lonesome time" shows that they are clinging onto the past because it's better than living without this person in the present.
The chorus repeats "I can't stop wanting you, it's useless to say" emphasizing a sense of helplessness and hopelessness. And again, the singer reflects on the happy times they once shared with this person and how they continue to feel "blue" despite the passing of time. The line "But time has stood still since we've been apart" highlights the depth of the singer's pain; their life has seemingly ceased to move forward since the breakup, and they are stuck dwelling on the past.
In summary, this song portrays the powerful grip that love can have on us, even long after it has ended. It shows that sometimes the memories of a past love can be too much to bear, but even so, we can't help but want them back.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't stop loving you
I am unable to cease my feelings for you
So I made up my mind
Therefore, I have resolved
To live in memories
To exist in recollections
Of a lonesome time
Of a period of loneliness
I can't stop wanting you
I am unable to stop desiring you
It's useless to say
Saying otherwise would be futile
So I just live my life
Therefore, I simply continue to exist
In dreams of yesterday
In my memories of the past
Those happy hours
The joyful moments
That we once knew
That we used to experience
So long ago
Such a long time in the past
Still make me blue
Still cause me sadness
They say the time
People say that with time
Heals a broken heart
A broken heart will mend
But time has stood still
However, time seems to be at a standstill
Since we've been apart
Since our separation
I can't stop wanting you
I am unable to stop desiring you
It's useless to say
Saying otherwise would be futile
So I'll just live my life
Therefore, I will simply continue to exist
In dreams of yesterday
In my memories of the past
I can't stop loving you
I am unable to cease my feelings for you
So I've made up my mind
Therefore, I have resolved
To live in memory, baby
To exist in memories, my dear
Of a lonesome time
Of a period of loneliness
I can't stop wanting you
I am unable to stop desiring you
It's useless to say
Saying otherwise would be futile
So I just live my life
Therefore, I simply continue to exist
In dreams of yesterday
In my memories of the past
Contributed by Riley R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@andreiapaiva438
AWSOME SONG--chieftains the best of Eire..long live the irish
@genecross
One of the all time great songs written by Don Gibson and performed beautifully by Don Williams and The Chieftains. Sounded really great.
@glasbenikanal2917
Wonderful song, text and melody. Little sadly story but briliant, with one words Food for soul.
@GPCster
I like this version best of all.
@Tearlach1208
Cool.
@Tearlach1208
For Lindsay