A Dublin native and University College Dublin grad (politics/sociology), Roberts thought about pursuing journalism upon his late Reagan-era stateside arrival. He thought better of it after an internship at PBS, deciding he'd share his homeland history by making news, rather than reading it off a teleprompter. The quintet's still rolling after Roberts' vocal cord surgery, and touring behind last year's wry, sprightly tour de force, Real World. They are a true purveyor of Irish rock that's thrilling to hear, fun to watch, and certain to swing your shillelagh.
Deep History: There is more to the story than what is written above. The Young Dubliners began in 1988 (maybe even 1987) as a duo, Keith Roberts and Paul O'Toole. Both played acoustic guitars and sang. The format was mostly Irish folksongs and Irish pop. Keith and Paul made an interesting contrast. Paul, an electrician by trade, was a multi-instrumentalist and true Dubliner, from the north side. Keith was a college-educated product of the pairing of two well-known Irish entertainers. Not truly from Dublin, Keith was raised in the posh suburb of Dun Laoghaire (sounds like Dun Leary to an American ear). One of Keith's musical motivations may have been having known members of the band Hothouse Flowers during his days in college. Paul's musical motivations might have been more simple; he simply liked playing and singing a good tune in between sips of Guinness Stout.
Their homebase in the earliest of the early days was the Irish Rover on Santa Monica Boulevard in Santa Monica. They were an underground phenomenon back in those days, and they often played to a packed, but very small, house. 'The Rover', as it was called, would become a solid mass of humanity who were all smoking and drinking until the cigarette smoke burned your eyes and the heat and humidity of a hundred sweaty bodies turned the tiny pub into a sauna filled with undulating human flesh. They shared the Rover back then with another Irish band called "The Lads", one would play Friday night and the other would take Saturday night. Paddy's Day 1988 had The Lads go on first, followed by the Young Dubliners. This was powerful testimony to the popularity of the 'band' back then, that an acoustic act could out-muscle an electric band for headliner of an Irish bar on Paddy's Day.
Back in those days they had a soundman, Rob McCulley, who would record all the shows. There are dozens and dozens of these tapes in existence. They self-produced their first cassette, "Young Dubliners Live", based on those early recordings. The tape included their very first original song, "Keaton's Bar", written by Paul O'Toole. The act developed. They added instruments, and gave the yoke to ones they didn't care for (e.g. bongo player). "John" Brendan Holmes, another Dubliner, joined them on bass, a role that he has held ever since (while a myriad of other musicians came and went). "Dirty Old Town' developed into their closing number, and it was during this period that "Fisherman's Blues" and "Rocky Road to Dublin" became essential numbers. In answer to the mosh pit, the front of the stage would feature what would (much later) be called the 'jig pit', and the traditional instrumental "Coolies" was the song that would get it in full gear.
During this period they opened for Christy Moore (who insisted on meeting 'the boys' before going on) and The Furey Brothers (who counseled them to play more originals--fine advice from a band that had maybe one or two original songs to their name). They released another self-produced cassette, this time a studio release called "Home", featuring the eponymous (and their second) original song. They began to branch out of the Rover and play other gigs.
Follow Me Up To Carlow
The Young Dubliners Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're brooding o'er you're old disgrace
That black FitzWilliam stormed your place,
He sent you to the Fern.
Grey said victory was sure
Soon the firebrand he'd secure;
Until he met at Glenmalure
With Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Fallen is your star, low.
Up with halberd out with sword
On we'll go for by the lord
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Follow me up to Carlow.
From Tassagart to Clonmore,
There flows a stream of Saxon gore
Oh, great is Rory Oge O'More,
At sending loons to Hades.
White is sick and Grey is fled,
And now for black FitzWilliam's head
We'll send it over, dripping red,
To Liza and her ladies.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Fallen is your star, low.
Up with halberd out with sword
On we'll go for by the lord
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Follow me up to Carlow.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Fallen is your star, low.
Up with halberd out with sword
On we'll go for by the lord
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Follow me up to Carlow.
See the swords of Glen Imayle,
They flash all o'er the English pale,
See all the children of the Gael,
Beneath O'Byrne's banners
Rooster of the fighting stock,
Would you let a Saxon cock
Crow out upon an Irish rock?
Fly up and we'll teach him manners.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Fallen is your star, low.
Up with halberd out with sword
On we'll go for by the lord
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Follow me up to Carlow.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Fallen is your star, low.
Up with halberd out with sword
On we'll go for by the lord
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Follow me up to Carlow.
The song "Follow Me Up to Carlow" by the Irish band The Young Dubliners is a traditional Irish folk song about a battle between Irish rebels led by Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne and English forces led by Sir Henry Sidney, Governor of Ireland, in 1580. The lyrics are a call to arms for the Irish people to rise up against their English oppressors and fight for their freedom. The first verse references Lift MacCahir Og, a leader of the Irish rebels who was sent into exile after being defeated by English forces led by the Earl of Kildare. The chorus thrice repeats a call to action, with each repetition growing more fervent.
The second verse speaks of the stream of blood that flows from Tassagart to Clonmore, a reference to the bloodshed and violence that plagued Ireland during this period of English rule. The verse then turns to praise Rory Oge O'More, a prominent Irish rebel leader, for sending "loons," or foolish men, to their deaths. The chorus repeats again, calling for the English to be defeated and for the Irish to take control of their land.
The final verse references the swords of Glen Imayle, a location where another battle between Irish and English forces took place. It speaks of the children of the Gael, or the Irish people, rallying together under O'Byrne's banner. The final lines implore the Irish people to not let the English rule their land and to fight for their freedom.
Line by Line Meaning
Lift MacCahir Og your face
MacCahir Og, lift your face up.
You're brooding o'er you're old disgrace
You are thinking about your past failures.
That black FitzWilliam stormed your place,
FitzWilliam attacked your land.
He sent you to the Fern.
He forced you to flee.
Grey said victory was sure
Grey believed they would win.
Soon the firebrand he'd secure;
They thought they would soon win the battle.
Until he met at Glenmalure
But they faced a difficult challenge at Glenmalure.
With Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne.
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne led the opposing side.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Lord Kildare, express your frustration.
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne will do whatever he wants.
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Be careful, FitzWilliam.
Fallen is your star, low.
Your star has fallen.
Up with halberd out with sword
Take up your weapons.
On we'll go for by the lord
We will continue forward, by the lord.
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne has given the command.
Follow me up to Carlow.
Follow me to Carlow.
From Tassagart to Clonmore,
From Tassagart to Clonmore.
There flows a stream of Saxon gore
A river of English blood flows.
Oh, great is Rory Oge O'More,
Rory Oge O'More is a great leader.
At sending loons to Hades.
He sends his opponents to their death.
White is sick and Grey is fled,
The opposing leaders are unwell and have fled.
And now for black FitzWilliam's head
Now, they seek FitzWilliam's head.
We'll send it over, dripping red,
They will send it with blood on it
To Liza and her ladies.
To Liza and her ladies.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Lord Kildare, express your frustration.
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne will do whatever he wants.
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Be careful, FitzWilliam.
Fallen is your star, low.
Your star has fallen.
Up with halberd out with sword
Take up your weapons.
On we'll go for by the lord
We will continue forward, by the lord.
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne has given the command.
Follow me up to Carlow.
Follow me to Carlow.
See the swords of Glen Imayle,
Look at the swords of Glen Imayle.
They flash all o'er the English pale,
They shine over the land where the English are.
See all the children of the Gael,
Look at all the Irish.
Beneath O'Byrne's banners
Under O'Byrne's flag.
Rooster of the fighting stock,
A strong fighting rooster.
Would you let a Saxon cock
Would you let an English rooster do this?
Crow out upon an Irish rock?
Boast on Irish land?
Fly up and we'll teach him manners.
Fight back and we'll teach him a lesson.
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Lord Kildare, express your frustration.
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne will do whatever he wants.
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Be careful, FitzWilliam.
Fallen is your star, low.
Your star has fallen.
Up with halberd out with sword
Take up your weapons.
On we'll go for by the lord
We will continue forward, by the lord.
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne has given the command.
Follow me up to Carlow.
Follow me to Carlow.
Contributed by Allison W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ink Tea
By far the best version of this song! Angry, edgy, crass, and just so Irish! 😂
LOSTie1TREKie2
This song is awesome live! AND THESE GUYS ARE BRILLIANT LIVE! *got to see 'em live twice mate! "right astoundin'!*
ronthecyborg
thanks to this song, I now have a newfound love for celtic rock. Lovin' the fiddle/guitar solo @ 1:40!
Hamburger Jung
Exellend Irish Music , I love it
John Doe
Play that on your iPhone, stick in into your car, wind your windows down and make it heard in the world (or at least make it heard on your way to work or shopping^^). Just knew Jim McCann's version, but this one is such as great as his one. Fuckin' great, just love it!
meggiemeown
My favorite version of this song...these guys rock!
Kai Thongsavanh
The Rumjacks, an Aussie band does some good work creating original Irish songs.
Danielle Christian
I just saw The Young Dubliners last night, great show!!
jesse garza
I think that like...90% of "celtic punk" bands are a dime a dozen. The Dropkick Murphy's first album was brilliant because it combined it with Oi! and 77' punk influences.
anon01111
The only reason said work is known as "Motzart's Symphony No. 3" is because it was included in Breitkopf & Härtel's first complete edition of Motzart's works. It's not uncommon for classical pieces to mislabeled as another composer's work. Classical composers often *didn't* number their works or even name them -- the people that compiled did that later. " Lastly do you honestly believe that the young dubliners is trash metal?" No, I misread what you wrote.