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The Holy Ground #1

  • (Trad)

    Chorus:
    Fine girl you are !
    You´re the Girl that I adore
    And still I live in the hopes to see
    The Holy Ground once more.
    (Fine girl you are !)

    Adieu to you my Dinah,
    A thousand times adieu
    We´re going away from the Holy Ground
    And the girls that we love true
    We will sail the salt sea over
    And then return for shore
    To see again the girls we love
    The Holy Ground once more

    Chorus

    See the storm a-rising
    I see it coming soon
    And the sky it is so cloudy
    You can scarcely see the moon
    And the good old ship, she was tossing about
    The riggin was all tore
    And still I live with hopes to see
    The Holy Ground once more.

    Chorus

    And now the storm is over
    And we are safe on shore
    We´ll drink a toast to the Holy Ground
    And the girls that we adore
    We will drink strong ale and porter
    And make the rafters roar
    And when our money is all spent
    We´ll go to sea for more.

    Chorus


The Holy Ground #2

  • (Trad)

    Fare thee well, my lovely Nancy,
    a thousand times adieu
    We are going away from the Holy
    Ground and the girls we all love true
    We will sail the salt seas over and
    we'll return for shore
    To see again the girls we love and
    the Holy Ground once more

    We're on the salt seas sailing
    and you are safe behind
    Fond letters I will write to you,
    the secrets of my mind
    The secrets of my mind, my love,
    you're the girl I do adore
    But still I live in hopes to see the
    Holy Ground once more

    And I see a storm arising, and
    it's coming quick and soon
    And the night's so dark and cloudy
    you can scarcely see the moon
    And the secrets of my mind, my love,
    you're the girl I do adore
    But still I live in hopes to see the
    Holy Ground once more

    But now the storms are all over
    and we are safe and well
    We will go into a public house and
    we'll sit and we'll drink our fill
    We will drink strong ale and porter
    and we'll make the rafters roar
    But when our money it is all spent
    we will go to sea once more

    You're the girl I do adore
    But still I live in hopes to see the
    Holy Ground once more

    (as sung by Jimmy Crowley)

Susannes Folksong-Notizen

  • deutsch [1972:] The Holy Ground war ein Bezirk zweifelhaften Rufes im County Cork, den die Seeleute besonders liebten. Wenn sie abfuhren, riefen sie "Fine girls you are" den am Kai versammelten Mädchen zu. (Manfred Bonson, notes 'The Best of the Dubliners')

  • english  [1965:] Cork men maintain the 'The Holy Ground' is the waterfront at Cobh (Queenstown), but others hold that it is Swansea dockland, and others still that it is part of New York harbour. [...] Nigel Hudleston's mother, who came of a Cornish naval family called it Portsmouth Docks. (O Lochlainn II, 220)

  • english [1967:] When the men got ashore [at Queenstown, now Cork] they would head for a rather squalid part of the port known as the Holy Ground where there were many taverns and the fishermen and waterfront workers of Cobh had their being. Some say that, as well as this curious name being the name of the district, in days gone by it was also the nickname of the brothel quarter of Queenstown. (Hugill, 'Sailortown')

  • english  [1979:] Although there did exist a seedy quarter of this name in the harbour of Cobh, Co. Cork, it is more likely that Swansea in Wales can lay claim to this song. It dates from the last century when sailors diffused its rousing chorus to many a shore. Other versions are: Adieu My Lovely Nancy, and Nancy of Yarmouth. Originally this was a sea-shanty aiding the sailors with the various slow-paced actions aboard a sailing ship. (Loesberg II, 64)

  • english [1998:] I always felt the "full-steam-ahead" version lost some of the pathos. The Holy Ground itself lies to the east of the sea-port town of Cobh, Co Cork and held many houses of ill-repute which helped to satiate the frustrations of love-lorn sailors. (Jimmy Crowley, notes 'Uncorked!')

  • http://www.contemplator.com/folk3/holygrnd.html

Quelle: Ireland

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26.08.2000, aktualisiert am 27.04.2003