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Finnegan's Wake

"Finnegan's Wake" is a ballad which arose in perhaps the 1850s in the vaudeville tradition of comical Irish songs. It is famous for being the basis of James Joyce's masterwork, Finnegans Wake, where the comic resurrection becomes symbolic of a universal cycle of life. Whiskey, which brought both Finnegan's fall and his resurrection, is derived from Irish uisce beatha (IPA: [ˈiʃkʲə ˈbʲahə]), meaning "water of life." So too, the word "wake" is both of a passing and of a new rising. Joyce removed the apostrophe in the title to assert an active process in which a multiplicity of "Finnegans," that is, all of us, wake, that is, arise after falling. It also featured as the climax of the primary storyline in Philip José Farmer's award-winning novella, Riders of the Purple Wage. The song is a staple of the Irish folk-music group, The Dubliners, who have played it on many occasions and included it on several albums. For the street ballad which the novel is named after, see Finnegans Wake. ... Image File history File links Wikisource-logo. ... The original Wikisource logo. ... For the game, see: 1850 (board game) 1850 (MDCCCL) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday [1] of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the writer and poet. ... For the street ballad which the novel is named after, see Finnegans Wake. ... Whisky (or whiskey) is an alcoholic beverage distilled from grain, often including malt, which has then been aged in wooden barrels. ... Uisce beatha is the name given by Irish monks of the Sixth Century to the drink they had concocted. ... For the prime symbol (′) used for feet and inches, see Prime (symbol). ... Philip José Farmer (born January 26, 1918) is an American author, principally known for his science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. ... A novella is a narrative work of prose fiction somewhat longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. ... Riders of the Purple Wage was a science fiction novella by Philip José Farmer. ... The Dubliners are an Irish folk band founded in 1962, making them one of the older bands still playing music today. ...

Recordings

• Brigid's Cross on their album Coolin' Out.
• The Clancy Brothers on their album Come Fill Your Glass with Us.
• The Dubliners on several live-albums.
• Dropkick Murphys on their albums Do or Die and Live on St. Patrick's Day From Boston, MA.
• Shilelagh Law on their album Good Intentions.
• Brobdingnagian Bards on their album Songs of Ireland.
• Cliudan on their album Whiskey on Sunday.
• The Tossers on their album Communication & Conviction: Last Seven Years.
• Orthodox Celts on their album The Celts Strike Again.
• The Bloody Irish Boys on their album Drunk Rock.

Brigids cross, Brighids cross, or Brigits cross, or Crosóg Brigde(in gaelic) is an old Irish symbol, probably derivative of the pagan sunwheel. ... The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem from left to right: Tom, Pat, Liam, and Tommy Makem The Clancy Brothers were an Irish folk music singing group, most popular in the 1960s, who are often credited with popularizing Irish traditional music in the United States. ... Come Fill Your Glass with Us- Irish Songs of Drinking & Blackguarding is a collection of traditional Irish drinking songs performed by The Clancy Brothers with often time collaborator Tommy Makem. ... The Dubliners are an Irish folk band founded in 1962, making them one of the older bands still playing music today. ... “DKM” redirects here. ... Do or Die was the first album released by Bostons Irish-American punk band, Dropkick Murphys. ... Live on St. ... The Brobdingnagian Bards are a Celtic music group from Austin, Texas. ... Songs of Ireland is an album by the Brobdingnagian Bards released on Saint Patricks Day in 2002. ... The Tossers are a seven-piece celtic punk band from Chicago. ... Orthodox Celts is a band from Belgrade, Serbia which plays Irish folk music. ...

Lyrics

Tim Finnegan lived in Walkin Street^[1]
A gentle Irishman, mighty odd;
He'd a beautiful brogue so rich and sweet
And to rise in the world he carried a hod.
Now, Tim had a bit of the tipplin' way
With a love for the liquor poor Tim was born
And to help him on with his work each day
He'd a "drop of the Craythur every morn. A brogue is a strong dialectal accent, notably in Irish dialects of the English language. ... A brick hod is a three-sided box for carrying bricks or other construction materials, often mortar. ... Craythur is an Irish term for Whiskey. ...

Chorus: Whack fol the dah O, dance to your partner
Welt the floor, your trotters shake;
Wasn't it the truth I told you
Lots of fun at Finnegan's wake!

One mornin' Tim was rather full
His head felt heavy which made him shake;
He fell from the ladder and broke his skull
And they carried him home his corpse to wake.
They rolled him up in a nice clean sheet
And laid him out upon the bed,
A gallon of whiskey at his feet
And a barrel of porter at his head.
A wake is a ceremony associated with death. ... Porter is a beer with a dark colour. ...

Chorus

His friends assembled at the wake
And Mrs. Finnegan called for lunch,
First she brought in tay and a cake
Then pipes, tobacca' and whiskey punch.
Biddy O'Brien began to cry
"Such a nice clean corpse, did you ever see?
"O Tim, mavourneen^[2], why did you die?"
"Arragh, hold your gob^[3]" cried Paddy McGee! For other uses, see Tea (disambiguation). ...

Chorus

Then Maggie O'Connor took up the job
"O Biddy," says she, "You're wrong, I'm sure"
Biddy she gave her a belt in the gob
And left her sprawlin' on the floor.
And then the war did soon engage
'Twas woman to woman and man to man,
Shillelagh law was all the rage
And a row and a ruction soon began. A shillelagh (commonly pronounced (IPA: , in Irish Gaelic, (IPA: É•ale:lÉ™)) is a wooden club or cudgel, typically made from a stout knotty stick with a large knob on the end, that is associated with Ireland in folklore. ...

Chorus

Then Mickey Maloney ducked his head
When a noggin of whiskey flew at him,
It missed, and falling on the bed
The liquor scattered over Tim!
Tim revives! See how he rises!
Tim he rises from the dead,
Says, "Whirl your whiskey around like blazes"
"Thanum an Dhul^[4], do you thunk I'm dead?"

Chorus

Notes