Follow Me Up To Carlow
Young Dubliners Lyrics
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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.
"Follow Me Up to Carlow" is a traditional Irish song that recounts the events of the Second Desmond Rebellion, which occurred in the late sixteenth century. The song details the actions of a rebel force led by Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne against the English invaders. The lyrics start with a call to action and an urge to lift MacCahir Og's face out of shame and sadness over his family's defeat. The song then goes on to describe the tactics and bravery of the rebels in their quest to take down the English, with a particular focus on Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne's leadership and the glory of his victory against the English at Glenmalure.
Throughout the song, the lyrics are laced with a sense of defiance and a refusal to accept defeat in the face of oppression. The words also reflect the strong sense of national pride and a desire to defend the Irish way of life against encroaching English influence. The song ultimately ends on a triumphant note, casting the rebels as heroes defending their land and culture against invaders.
Line by Line Meaning
Lift MacCahir Og your face
MacCahir Og, lift up your head and look at me
You're brooding o'er you're old disgrace
You're brooding over the past time when you were disgraced
That black FitzWilliam stormed your place,
The black FitzWilliam attacked your lands
He sent you to the Fern.
He exiled you to the woods
Grey said victory was sure
Grey (an English soldier) was sure of victory
Soon the firebrand he'd secure;
He thought he would soon be successful
Until he met at Glenmalure
But then he met at Glenmalure
With Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne.
With Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne, a leader of Irish resistance
Curse and swear Lord Kildare,
Curse and swear, Lord Kildare (an English nobleman)
Fiach will do what Fiach will dare
Fiach will do whatever he dares to do
Now FitzWilliam, have a care
Now, FitzWilliam (an English official), be careful
Fallen is your star, low.
You have lost your status and power, and you're in decline now
Up with halberd out with sword
Take your weapons out and get ready for battle
On we'll go for by the lord
We will move forward, by God
Fiach MacHugh has given the word,
Fiach MacHugh has given the signal
Follow me up to Carlow.
Follow me up to Carlow (a city in Ireland)
From Tassagart to Clonmore,
From Tassagart to Clonmore (places in Ireland)
There flows a stream of Saxon gore
There flows a river of English blood
Oh, great is Rory Oge O'More,
Oh, great is Rory Oge O'More (an Irish chieftain)
At sending loons to Hades.
At sending foolish people to hell
White is sick and Grey is fled,
The English are not doing well
And now for black FitzWilliam's head
And now, we're going after FitzWilliam's head
We'll send it over, dripping red,
We'll send it over, covered in blood
To Liza and her ladies.
To Liza (the queen) and her court
See the swords of Glen Imayle,
Look at the swords of Glen Imayle (a battle site)
They flash all o'er the English pale,
They shine over the borders of English-ruled areas
See all the children of the Gael,
See all the Irish people
Beneath O'Byrne's banners
Fighting under O'Byrne's flag
Rooster of the fighting stock,
A brave fighter
Would you let a Saxon cock
Would you let an Englishman be the leader?
Crow out upon an Irish rock?
Occupy a position of power in Ireland?
Fly up and we'll teach him manners.
Take action and show him how to behave
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.