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.
Red is the Rose
The Chieftains Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come over the hills to your darling
You choose the road, love, and I'll make the vow
And I'll be your true love forever
Red is the rose that in yonder garden grows
Fair is the lily of the valley
Clear is the water that flows from the Boyne
But my love is fairer than any
'Twas down by Killarney's green woods that we strayed
When the moon and the stars they were shining
The moon shone its rays on his locks of golden hair
And he swore he'd be my love forever
It's not for the parting that my sister pains
It's not for the grief of my mother
'Tis all for the loss of my handsome Irish lad
Now my heart is broken forever.
Red is the rose that in yonder garden grows
Fair is the lily of the valley
Clear is the water that flows from the Boyne
But my love is fairer than any
The lyrics of The Chieftains' song "Red is the Rose" is a classic Irish folk ballad that embodies the sentiments of true love and heartbreak. The song's opening lines entail an invitation to a lover to come, the singer is inviting her lover to cross over the hills to meet her as she makes a vow of true and eternal love to him. The second verse, however, uses the imagery of the beauty of the natural world, with the rose, the lily, and the flowing water of the Boyne, to illustrate the depth of the singer's love for her beau. She declares that her love is fairer than any of the natural wonders around them.
The middle two verses introduce the element of memory into the narrative. They recall a night in Killarney's green woods when the moon and the stars were shining, and the singer and her beau were there together. The moon reflected the gold in his hair, and he promised eternal love. In contrast, the final verse is one of heartbreak as the singer laments the loss of her Irish lad, and her heart is forever broken. The lyrics reveal the depth of her emotion and how her love is the most special thing to her, leaving her shattered by the loss of the one she loves.
The song has a simple melody and a sparse accompaniment, allowing for the listener to focus on the lyrics, which convey the emotional content of lost love. The song has been covered by numerous artists, including the likes of Sinead O'Connor and Tommy Makem.
Line by Line Meaning
Come over the hills, my handsome Irish lad
I invite you to cross the hills, my charming Irish lover
Come over the hills to your darling
Join me on this journey towards your darling
You choose the road, love, and I'll make the vow
You decide the route, my love, and I promise to love you forever
And I'll be your true love forever
I will love you truly and eternally
Red is the rose that in yonder garden grows
The rose in that distant garden is red in color
Fair is the lily of the valley
The lily of the valley is exquisitely lovely
Clear is the water that flows from the Boyne
The water running from the Boyne is perfectly transparent
But my love is fairer than any
But my love is more beautiful than anything else
'Twas down by Killarney's green woods that we strayed
We wandered through the verdant woods of Killarney
When the moon and the stars they were shining
During a night illuminated by the moon and stars
The moon shone its rays on his locks of golden hair
The moon illuminated his hair of gold with its rays
And he swore he'd be my love forever
He pledged he would love me eternally
It's not for the parting that my sister pains
My sister's anguish is not caused by our separation
It's not for the grief of my mother
My mother's sadness is not the reason
'Tis all for the loss of my handsome Irish lad
Her pain is solely due to the loss of my charming Irish lover
Now my heart is broken forever.
As a result, my heart remains shattered forever.
Contributed by Colton I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
tom canterbury
on North Amerikay
the great accapella version by kevin on tribute to their harpist