A traditional Irish song. It’s the song of a woman trying to ‘will’ her soldier lover back to her side, back to safety. He had been ‘pressed’ into service; sent to war against his will lest he face hanging for treason. A common practice. So he is not a volunteer, not burning with passion or duty, but a blackmailed young man, a prisoner of the king, a slave really. It makes me angry. So my take on this song has a sense of that anger, that urgency. She implores him in the chorus to “run my love, run to safety, hear me, meet me in secret and together we will escape and live our own lives in peace, please, love, be safe”
lyrics
shool, shool, shool, a roon
shool go soccer agus, shule go kyoon
shool go dorrus agus aylig lum
iss guh jay too mavoorneen slahn
I wish I were on yonder hill
'Tis there I'd sit and I'd cry my fill,
And ev'ry tear would turn a mill,
Is go dte tu mo mhuirnin slan
Chorus:
Siúil, siúil, siúil a ruin
Siúil go sochair agus siúil go ciuin
Siúil go doras agus ealaigh liom
Is go dte tu mo mhuirnin slan
I'll sell my rod, I'll sell my reel
I'll sell my bonny spinning wheel
To by my lover a sword of steel
Is go dte tu mo mhuirnin slan
I'll dye my petticoat, I'll dye it red
And 'round the world I'll beg my bread,
Until my parents shall wish me dead
Is go dte tu mo mhuirnin
my love was pressed and he’s gone to France
the kings own fortune to advance.
If he e'er comes back, oh 'tis but a chance
Is go dte tu mo mhuirnin slan
The Australian pianist offers a meditative collective of gentle instrumental compositions meant to soothe a fraying world. Bandcamp New & Notable Aug 13, 2020
The second EP from Northern Irish singer-songwriter Bea Stewart runs from gentle folk to pillowy pop ballads, all perfectly executed. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 15, 2024
Stirring Americana set to acoustic arrangements and topped by the legendary Alice Gerrard’s lovely, world-wise voice. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 23, 2023
Michelle Stodart’s folk music captures hope in melancholy, addressing the transformational aspects of the most challenging times. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 3, 2023
Introspective, homespun folk tunes from John Donne that feel informed by the sugary bleakness of '80s and '90s indie pop. Bandcamp New & Notable Aug 1, 2023