In 1968, the predecessor of the Juno’s named The Irish Rovers Canada’s, “Folk Group of the Year”, and the following year, they received a Grammy nomination for “Folk Performance of the Year”.
As hosts of three national television series in Canada and Ireland, through the 1970's and 80s, The Irish Rovers increased the popularity of Irish music by way of the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation).
Canada's Prime Minister, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, personally asked the band if they could “please become Canadian” so that they could officially represent Canada throughout the world. Since then, they have represented Canada at no less than five world Expos, and in recognition for a quarter century of contributions to the International music world, The Irish Rovers won the Performing Rights Organization's (PROCAN) 'Harold Moon Award'.
Although all members of the band hail from Ireland, a number of their biggest hits were often "non-Irish". Their own rousing, traditional Irish compositions, however, do comprise the bulk of their music.
By the 90’s, their songwriting was even more prolific than their early years, and production of albums wasn’t about to slow down. Since they desired the freedom that as a younger band, they could not afford, in ’93 The Irish Rovers established their own record company, Rover Records. Their songs tell the story of the Irish, whether it’s a lost love, a sailor on leave, or the simple good taste of a Guinness. Rover Records has put out their last eleven albums, including Celtic Collection, Come Fill Up Your Glasses, Down by the Lagan Side, Another Round, Still Rovin', a Christmas album, and their greatest hits, 40 Years A-Rovin'.
Founding member George Millar is from Ballymena, original member Wilcil McDowell is from Larne, John Reynolds from Belfast, Sean O'Driscoll from Cork, Ian Millar from Ballymena, and percussionist Fred Graham is also from Belfast.
Former members include founding member Jimmy Ferguson who passed away in 1997 and Joe Millar.
The Rake
The Irish Rovers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In the town of Strabane shur I'm very well known,
For down to the alehouse I'm frequently goin',
With Kitty and Ginny and Mary.
My father rebuked me for being such a rake,
And for spending me money on whiskey and cakes,
But the lassies are sweet and it's all for their sakes,
Chorus:
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
If I chance for to wander on down to the fair,
All the lassies all around me do flock on the square,
I'll pull out me fiddle and play an auld air,
And soon we're all off on the spree.
There's Peggy and Jane from the banks of Loch Nee,
There's Kitty and Molly down Dungannon Way,
And there's another one from Cookstown who makes me head sway,
Such a fuss they all make over me.
Chorus:
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
To quarrel for riches I ne'er was inclined,
For the greatest of misers must leave them behind,
So me money I spend with no thought in me mind,
But to kick up our heels and carrouse.
For the rich never spend any gold of their own,
Sure they hold it away like a dog and it's bone,
But they end on their back among nettles and stones,
And I hear there're no pockets in shrouds.
Chorus:
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
(Instrumental)
Now some say I'm foolish and some say I'm wise,
For loving the women and the whiskey like wives,
But the son of King David had ten hundred wives,
And his wisdom was highly regarded!
So I'll call for the lassies and ask them to wed,
And we'll all be content in the one marriage bed,
While the rich count their gold we'll count children instead,
And we'll raise them up true and stout-hearted.
Chorus:
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
Repeat: Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se!
The song "The Rake" by The Irish Rovers is a lively tune about a young man from County Tyrone who enjoys spending his time and money on alehouses and courting women, much to the chagrin of his father. The singer justifies his behavior by claiming that he does it all for the sake of the lassies and to stay lighthearted and merry. The chorus emphasizes his carefree attitude, stating that he'll eat and drink as he pleases, court as many women as he can, and never conform until he dies. The singer also critiques the wealthy for their tendency to hoard their riches and not enjoy them, claiming that he'd rather spend his money on having a good time with his friends and lovers. In the end, he champions the idea of settling down with one woman and having a family, rather than just accumulating wealth.
There's a sense of rebellion and defiance in the lyrics of "The Rake," as the singer goes against societal norms and expectations in pursuit of pleasure and enjoyment. The song highlights the tension between traditional values and desires for freedom and fun, particularly in terms of relationships and money. By pointing out the flaws in both extreme mindsets - hoarding wealth or ignoring responsibility altogether - the singer suggests that a balance can be struck through enjoying life while still maintaining some level of responsibility and love.
Line by Line Meaning
I am a young fellow from the County Tyrone,
I am a young man from County Tyrone.
In the town of Strabane shur I'm very well known,
I am quite famous in Strabane.
For down to the alehouse I'm frequently goin',
I frequently go to the alehouse.
With Kitty and Ginny and Mary.
I go with girls named Kitty, Ginny, and Mary.
My father rebuked me for being such a rake,
My father scolded me for being a womanizer.
And for spending me money on whiskey and cakes,
He also rebuked me for spending my money on whiskey and sweets.
But the lassies are sweet and it's all for their sakes,
I do it all for the girls because they are lovely.
And it keeps me lighthearted and merry.
It keeps me happy and carefree.
Chorus:
Chorus.
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will eat and drink as I wish.
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
I will try to charm all the young women.
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
I will never change my ways.
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
Let us sit here as we are.
If I chance for to wander on down to the fair,
If I happen to go to the fair,
All the lassies all around me do flock on the square,
All the girls gather around me.
I'll pull out me fiddle and play an auld air,
I will play an old tune on my fiddle.
And soon we're all off on the spree.
And then we will all have fun together.
There's Peggy and Jane from the banks of Loch Nee,
There are girls named Peggy and Jane from Loch Nee.
There's Kitty and Molly down Dungannon Way,
There are also girls named Kitty and Molly from Dungannon.
And there's another one from Cookstown who makes me head sway,
And there's one girl from Cookstown who makes my head spin.
Such a fuss they all make over me.
They all make a big deal about me.
To quarrel for riches I ne'er was inclined,
I am not interested in fighting for wealth.
For the greatest of misers must leave them behind,
The biggest hoarders of wealth will eventually leave it all behind.
So me money I spend with no thought in me mind,
I spend my money without a second thought.
But to kick up our heels and carrouse.
But to enjoy ourselves and have a good time.
For the rich never spend any gold of their own,
The wealthy usually do not spend their own money.
Sure they hold it away like a dog and it's bone,
They hoard it tightly like a dog with a bone.
But they end on their back among nettles and stones,
But they end up alone and poor.
And I hear there're no pockets in shrouds.
And I heard that there are no pockets in burial shrouds.
Chorus:
Chorus.
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will eat and drink as I wish.
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
I will try to charm all the young women.
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
I will never change my ways.
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
Let us sit here as we are.
(Instrumental)
The music plays.
Now some say I'm foolish and some say I'm wise,
Some people think I am foolish, while others think I am wise.
For loving the women and the whiskey like wives,
For loving women and whiskey like they are my spouses.
But the son of King David had ten hundred wives,
But King David's son had 1,000 wives.
And his wisdom was highly regarded!
And he was highly respected for his wisdom.
So I'll call for the lassies and ask them to wed,
So I will ask the girls to marry me.
And we'll all be content in the one marriage bed,
And we will be happy in our shared marriage bed.
While the rich count their gold we'll count children instead,
While the wealthy count their money, we will count our children.
And we'll raise them up true and stout-hearted.
And we will raise our children to be strong and virtuous.
Chorus:
Chorus.
I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I'm dry,
I will eat and drink as I wish.
I will court all the lassies or at least I will try,
I will try to charm all the young women.
And I'll never conform 'til the day that I die,
I will never change my ways.
Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se
Let us sit here as we are.
Repeat: Agus fagaimid suid mar ata se!
Let us sit here as we are!
Contributed by Violet J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ian Burt
on Bluenose
You have missed out a verse.