Formed while the members were working in America, the initial impetus was to record an album of Irish rebel songs (released as "The Rising of the Moon") as one of the first releases in 1956 of new folk label, Tradition Records. Paddy Clancy's harmonica provided the only musical accompaniment for this debut album.
Little thought was given at that point to continuing as a singing group. The four were all were busy establishing careers (in the theatre) for themselves, in addition to their work at Tradition Records. With the album being a local success, requests were often demanded for the brothers and Makem to sing some of their songs at parties and informal pub settings. Slowly, the singing gigs began to outweigh the acting gigs and by 1959, serious thought was given to a new album. Liam had developed some guitar skills, Tommy's hand, which hasd been injured, had healed enough that he was again able to play tin whistle and Uilleann pipes, and the times spent singing together had improved their style. No longer were they the rough, mostly unaccompanied group of actors singing for an album to jump-start a record label; they were becoming a professional singing group.
The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk music singing group. Most popular in the 1960s, they were famed for their woolly Aran jumpers and are widely credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. The brothers were Patrick "Paddy" Clancy, Tom Clancy, Bobby Clancy and Liam Clancy. Paddy, Tom, Bob, and Liam are best known for their work with Tommy Makem, recording dozens of albums together as The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. They were a primary influence on a young Bob Dylan and on many other emerging artists.
The release of their second album, this one of Irish drinking songs called "Come Fill Your Glass with Us", solidified their new careers as singers. The album was a success, and they made many appearances on the pub circuit in New York, Chicago, and Boston. It was at their first official gig after "Come Fill Your Glass With Us" that the group finally found a name for themselves. The nightclub owner asked for a name to put on the marquee, but they had not decided on one yet. Unable to agree on a name (which included suggestions like "The Beggermen", "The Tinkers", and even "The Chieftains") the owner decided for them, simply billing them as "The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem". The name stuck. They decided to try singing full-time for six months. If their singing was successful, they would continue with it; if not, then they would return to acting. The Clancy brothers and Tommy Makem proved successful as a singing group and in early 1961, they attracted the attention of scouts from The Ed Sullivan Show.
The Clancy Brothers' mother read news of the terrible ice and snow storms in New York City so she sent Aran sweaters for her sons and Tommy Makem to keep them warm. Paddy and Liam Clancy stated they wore the sweaters for the first time in the Blue Angel club. When Marty Erlichman, their manager, saw the sweaters, he was beside himself! "That's it!" he exclaimed. I've been looking for a special costume for the group. It was also the night that Barbra Streisand sang in the Blue Angel for the first time. The sweaters became the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem's trademark. When back in their hometown, the band purchased their Aran jumpers from Babington, on the main street. Babington had a local woman by the name of Betty McGillivray née Duggan knit the jumpers and supply the shop on regular occasions.
On 12 March 1961, the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem performed for 16 minutes in front of a televised audience of 80 million people on The Ed Sullivan Show. As Pearl Bailey did not show that night, the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem were given her time. The televised performance instantly attracted the attention of John Hammond of Columbia Records. The group was offered a five-year contract with an advance of $100,000, a huge sum in 1961. For their first album with Columbia, they enlisted Pete Seeger as backup banjo player for the live album A Spontaneous Performance Recording It included songs that would soon become classics, such as "Brennan on the Moor," "Jug of Punch," "Reilly's Daughter," "Finnegan's Wake," "Haul Away Joe," "Roddy McCorley," "Portlairge" and "Moonshiner." The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1961.
By the end of 1961, they had released two more albums, one final one with Tradition Records, and another with Columbia, Hearty and Hellish: A Live Nightclub Performance, and they were playing Carnegie Hall. Additionally, they were making appearances on major radio and television talk-shows in America.
1962 proved to be an even better year. Ciarán MacMathuna, a popular radio personality in Ireland, was visiting America when he heard of the group. He collected the few albums they had out at the time, brought them back home to Ireland and played them on his radio show. The broadcasts skyrocketed the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem to fame in Ireland, where they were still unknown. In Ireland, songs like "Roddy McCorley," "Kevin Barry" and "Brennan on the Moor" were slow, depressing songs full of melancholy, but the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem had transformed those songs (the disgruntled purists in Ireland said "commercialized") and made them lively. For generations the songs had been a reminder of the troubles in Ireland and therefore they weren't anything anybody sang proudly. The Clancy Brothers changed all that, and the transformed songs reinvigorated Ireland's pride in her music. The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem were brought over for a sold-out tour of Ireland in late 1962. Popularity in England and other parts of Europe soon followed, as well as Australia and Canada. By 1963, appearing on major talk-shows in America, Canada, England, Australia and Ireland, as well as their own TV specials, the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem were "the most famous four Irishmen in the world" as said by Ireland's Late Late Show host, Gay Byrne, in a retrospective interview in 1984. In 1964, one third of all the albums sold in Ireland were Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem records.
The 1960s continued to be a successful decade with the release of approximately two albums per year, all of which sold millions of copies. They continued to peak with television appearances in front of President John F. Kennedy in 1963.
Their popularity is the result of several factors. There was already an American folk revival beginning in the United States, and men such as Ewan MacColl popularizing old songs on the other side of the Atlantic. But it was the Clancys' boisterous performances that set them apart, taking placid classics and giving them a boost of energy and spirit (not that they took this approach with all their songs; they would still sing the true mournful ballads with due reverence).
But by the late 1960s, rock music had taken full swing, and the ballad and folk boom was waning. To keep the band at the top, Teo Macero began producing their records for Columbia. Macero introduced new instrumentation to their music, including Louis Killen coming in to play concertina on backup, particularly on their 1968 album of sea songs, Sing of the Sea. But their last three albums for Columbia Record in 1969 and 1970 are considered by many to be overproduced, with a multitude of string instruments and synthesizers added to the simpler traditional Clancy mix of guitar, banjo, tin whistle and harmonica.
In 1969, the group recorded a song for a two-minute-long TV ad for Gulf Oil: "Bringin' Home the Oil". They adapted a traditional Scottish tune they had recorded, "The Gallant Forty Twa," with new words about large-capacity supertankers. The song and commercial featured the then-largest supertanker in the world, the Universe Ireland, which operated with sister ships Universe Kuwait, Universe Japan and Universe Portugal, all mentioned in the song and which operated from the seaport at Bantry Bay.
1969 marked the amicable departure of Tommy Makem from the group. Giving them a year's notice, Makem left in April 1969 to pursue a solo career armed with such recent compositions as "Four Green Fields", debuted on 1968's Clancy Brothers album, Home Boys Home.
The "other brother", Bobby Clancy, filled Tommy Makem's vacancy and the band became The Clancy Brothers.
All for My Grog
The Clancy Brothers And Tommy Makem Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's all for me beer and tobacco.
For I spent all me tin on the lassies drinking gin,
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
Where are me boots, me noggin', noggin' boots,
They're all gone for beer and tobacco.
For the heels they are worn out and the toes are kicked about
Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog,
It's all for me beer and tobacco.
For I spent all me tin on the lassies drinking gin,
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
Where is me shirt, me noggin', noggin' shirt,
It's all gone for beer and tobacco,
For the collar is all worn, and the sleeves they are all torn,
And the tail is looking out for better weather.
Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog,
It's all for me beer and tobacco.
For I spent all me tin on the lassies drinking gin,
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
I'm sick in the head and I haven't been to bed,
Since first I came ashore from me slumber,
For I spent all me dough on the lassies don't you know,
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog,
It's all for me beer and tobacco.
For I spent all me tin on the lassies drinking gin,
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
"All For Me Grog" is a traditional Irish drinking song that tells the story of a man who has spent all his money on women, alcohol, and tobacco. The chorus, "It's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog," suggests that the singer is unapologetic about his hedonistic lifestyle, and he is willing to continue on this way, even if it means he must wander far from home. The song describes how the man has lost his boots, his shirt, and even his mind due to his addiction to these vices.
The first verse reveals that the singer has spent all his money on women, alcohol, and tobacco, causing him to be forced to leave town, and wander across the western ocean. He sings this verse without regret, as if being forced to leave home is a small price to pay for the pleasure he has experienced. The second verse sees him searching for his boots and realizing they have been sold for beer and tobacco. The third verse concerns the loss of his shirt, and the last verse tells us that he is both physically and mentally run down, consumed by his pleasures.
Overall, "All For Me Grog" is a cautionary tale about the dangers of excess and addiction. It warns against the satisfaction of immediate pleasure at the cost of one's future prospects and wellbeing. The song is a tongue-in-cheek approach to a serious subject, and it has become a beloved classic in the Irish folk tradition.
Line by Line Meaning
Well it's all for me grog, me jolly jolly grog,
I'm doing everything for my drink, which makes me happy, merry and gay.
It's all for me beer and tobacco.
I'm spending everything I have on my beer and tobacco.
For I spent all me tin on the lassies drinking gin,
I've used all my money wooing women and buying drinks.
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
I have to travel across the sea in order to find new adventures and spend more money.
Where are me boots, me noggin', noggin' boots,
Where did my boots go, my precious boots?
They're all gone for beer and tobacco.
I exchanged my boots for beer and tobacco.
For the heels they are worn out and the toes are kicked about
My boots are ruined, my heels are worn out and the toes are kicked and battered.
And the soles are looking out for better weather.
The soles of my boots are worn out and in need of new ones.
Where is me shirt, me noggin', noggin' shirt,
Where has my beloved shirt gone?
It's all gone for beer and tobacco,
The shirt was exchanged for beer and tobacco.
For the collar is all worn, and the sleeves they are all torn,
The collar and sleeves of my shirt are completely worn out and torn beyond repair.
And the tail is looking out for better weather.
The back of the shirt is worn and in need of mending, in order to survive rough weather.
I'm sick in the head and I haven't been to bed,
I'm restless and haven't slept for a while now, since I've been busy partying.
Since first I came ashore from me slumber,
Since arriving after a voyage, I haven't had a chance to rest.
For I spent all me dough on the lassies don't you know,
I wasted all my money on women and their desires and wishes.
Far across the western ocean I must wander.
I have to travel far and wide in order to satisfy my thirst for adventure, fun, and frolics.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, CARLIN AMERICA INC
Written by: TRADITIONAL, BARNEY MCKENNA, CIARON BOURKE, JOHN EDMUND SHEEHAN, LUKE KELLY, RONALD JOSEPH DREW
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@xxangelfyrexx
Used to sing this at the renaissance faire! I worked there throughout my childhood, but never thought to look up the songs online! And here it is :)
@AnMadreMor
Remember this one well from my old Navy days....didn't get rich but had us a good time...;-]
@Sterlng
4chan brought me here. The person that suggested this track said "probably the most laidback song ever created." I like it :) I just downloaded this track :)
@sazzy6264
THAT'S what I'm talking about!!!!
@gorillavr12345
I STILL LOVE THE SONG! Make me smile!
@cheerydavie
Love it, cheers long time since i heard that First album without Tommy they toured with the Fureys & they also did back up on Flowers in the valley" AH!! ONLY ONE TOMMY MAKEM
@lanetemple
This is just WONDERFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@irisheyes775
lol hahahahahahahah! "sorry!" I am drunk and that struck me as funny.
@Planatoid
I love this song, thanks!
@Ireland617
Oh yeah! Ya gotta love it. Great song,