Introducing Songs in the Shade of the Oak Tree, a sweeping collection of 14 lullabies and nursery rhymes from Ireland passed down from generation to generation. This collection invites children to discover the rich Irish tradition of hopeful and heartfelt music, filled with pride, passion, storytelling and heartwrenching tones. Vocals are accompanied by traditional Irish instruments like the fiddle, bodhrán, flute and Celtic harp. Lyrics appear in English and Irish, followed by notes describing the cultural background of each song, along with a QR code to access the recordings. Below, we share a few of our favourites.
“Siúil A Rúin” is a traditional Irish song that shares the personal reaction of a woman lamenting the loss of her lover, who has gone off for a life of soldiering. Verses are in English and the chorus is in Irish, a style known as Irish macaronic verse. The literary device befits the song’s literary legacy: It appears in Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Master of Ballantrae and James Joyce’s Ulysses. In the Roud Folk Song Index, the love song is listed as Roud 911.
TÉIR ABHAILE RIÚ (Go Home)
The dialect used in this song suggests it hails from Munster or Connacht, and the tale it tells puts it in the Irish “matchmaking song” tradition. The lyrics recount the story of a young woman who dreams of running off with a sailor. She is teased by her father, who asks her to come home, finish her chores and marry a lad from the village.
FAIR ROSA
“Fair Rosa” is an adaptation of the popular fairy tale Sleeping Beauty. In 1935, Sam Henry collected the song in County Derry, Ireland. Over time, it became the action song you hear in this collection. “Fair Rosa” is included in a compilation of songs by filmmaker David Hammond entitled Green Peas and Barley O, performed by children from a school in Belfast.
THUGAMAR FÉIN AN SAMHRADH LINN (We Brought the Summer with Us)
This song celebrates nature and the arrival of summer. The version in this collection is sung by John Spillane, a celebrated performer and defender of the Irish language originally from a suburb of Cork, whose many albums are almost exclusively in Irish. As a two-time winner of the Meteor Award, he is one of Ireland’s most talented and popular singer-songwriters.
EILEANÓIR A RÚN (Eleanor My Love)
“Eileanóir A Rún” (“Eleanor My Love”) is a love song attributed to a harpist of the early seventeenth century and author of love poems to Eleanor Kavanagh, daughter of Sir Morgan Kavanagh of Clonmullen Castle. The song describes how Eileanóir (Eleanor) ran off with Cearbhall (Carroll) just before she was to marry another man.
MICHAEL FINNEGAN
“Michael Finnegan” is an example of a repetition song to which any number of variations can be added. Like most songs that repeat endlessly, it is usually sung at school, around a campfire or during a scout jamboree. The lyrics recount the misadventures of “poor old Michael Finnegan,” who is unlucky in all he undertakes.
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay informed about our new releases and events and for a chance to win our subscriber giveaway. To order books for your library or bookstore, please contact Hornblower Books/University of Toronto Press (Canada, United States) and MMS/BookSource (United Kingdom). For additional information, email info@thesecretmountain.com.
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14 Lullabies and Nursery Rhymes from Ireland for Children
Introducing Songs in the Shade of the Oak Tree, a sweeping collection of 14 lullabies and nursery rhymes from Ireland passed down from generation to generation. This collection invites children to discover the rich Irish tradition of hopeful and heartfelt music, filled with pride, passion, storytelling and heartwrenching tones. Vocals are accompanied by traditional Irish instruments like the fiddle, bodhrán, flute and Celtic harp. Lyrics appear in English and Irish, followed by notes describing the cultural background of each song, along with a QR code to access the recordings. Below, we share a few of our favourites.
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SIÚIL A RÚIN (Go My Love)
“Siúil A Rúin” is a traditional Irish song that shares the personal reaction of a woman lamenting the loss of her lover, who has gone off for a life of soldiering. Verses are in English and the chorus is in Irish, a style known as Irish macaronic verse. The literary device befits the song’s literary legacy: It appears in Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Master of Ballantrae and James Joyce’s Ulysses. In the Roud Folk Song Index, the love song is listed as Roud 911.
TÉIR ABHAILE RIÚ (Go Home)
The dialect used in this song suggests it hails from Munster or Connacht, and the tale it tells puts it in the Irish “matchmaking song” tradition. The lyrics recount the story of a young woman who dreams of running off with a sailor. She is teased by her father, who asks her to come home, finish her chores and marry a lad from the village.
FAIR ROSA
“Fair Rosa” is an adaptation of the popular fairy tale Sleeping Beauty. In 1935, Sam Henry collected the song in County Derry, Ireland. Over time, it became the action song you hear in this collection. “Fair Rosa” is included in a compilation of songs by filmmaker David Hammond entitled Green Peas and Barley O, performed by children from a school in Belfast.
THUGAMAR FÉIN AN SAMHRADH LINN (We Brought the Summer with Us)
This song celebrates nature and the arrival of summer. The version in this collection is sung by John Spillane, a celebrated performer and defender of the Irish language originally from a suburb of Cork, whose many albums are almost exclusively in Irish. As a two-time winner of the Meteor Award, he is one of Ireland’s most talented and popular singer-songwriters.
EILEANÓIR A RÚN (Eleanor My Love)
“Eileanóir A Rún” (“Eleanor My Love”) is a love song attributed to a harpist of the early seventeenth century and author of love poems to Eleanor Kavanagh, daughter of Sir Morgan Kavanagh of Clonmullen Castle. The song describes how Eileanóir (Eleanor) ran off with Cearbhall (Carroll) just before she was to marry another man.
MICHAEL FINNEGAN
“Michael Finnegan” is an example of a repetition song to which any number of variations can be added. Like most songs that repeat endlessly, it is usually sung at school, around a campfire or during a scout jamboree. The lyrics recount the misadventures of “poor old Michael Finnegan,” who is unlucky in all he undertakes.
Listen to the full playlist on Spotify. Watch the trailer below. See more in Songs in the Shade of the Oak Tree.
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay informed about our new releases and events and for a chance to win our subscriber giveaway. To order books for your library or bookstore, please contact Hornblower Books/University of Toronto Press (Canada, United States) and MMS/BookSource (United Kingdom). For additional information, email info@thesecretmountain.com.