Faith, and since it’s an Irish mood we’re in, here’s my personal favourite Irish musical group, The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, doing “The Whistling Gypsy Rover,” a song which puts the lie entire to the vile slanders of Phil (and Ian in Comments) that all Irish (or all folk, if you prefer) songs are about misery and loss.
Granted, 99% of folk songs are about misery and loss. Because, to be sure, when a fellow’s happy he generally has better things to do than write songs, while when he’s feeling low writing songs is about all he does feel up to.
Nordic Folk Songs are the best. . . they are mostly pretty gruesome. But even then, that is not always the case.
I really think the Irish songs are generally pretty happy, though. I’ve been listening to them all week.
Submitted for your approval: A splendid Irish ditty. It makes me laugh and cry at the same time.
“The Worst Day Since Yesterday” by Flogging Molly
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDSud7vAH_0
(during the four months I was getting chemotherapy, I listened to this almost every day because, oh brother, it did make me laugh)
I know the feeling. Not chemotherapy, just the general principle.