St. Patrick's Day Giveaway

According to family legend, my great-great grandfather, George Convy, brought a piece of sod from the homeland when he emigrated from Ireland in 1866. Now and then, when he was feeling particularly homesick, he would take it out and have a good cry.

The Irish, who fled their country by the thousands, did not have a word for "emigrate" -- instead, they used the word for "exile," which struck me as sad and poignant. In this song, The Turf o' Tullamore, I pay tribute to my Irish ancestors, who came from Tullamore, Ireland, to make a new life in St Louis, MO, -- and who occasionally grieved for their homeland.

In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, t

he song is available as a free download on our website, . Click here: Free Download Turf o' Tullamore

The Turf o' Tullamore

words and music © Erin Coombs Friedman


Into the West – land of the free
In freedom will I e’er a stranger be
So up the stairs I climb
Open up the trunk and find
The piece of home I carried ‘cross the sea

chorus:

Weeping o’er The Turf o’ Tullamore
Exiles both – the Irish sod and I
The Turf o’ Tullamore
Will know my bones forevermore
Sweeten my grave when I
Lay down to die


For my sons, I made a pledge
They’ll not beg the Crown for daily bread
There’s days I understand
The promise in this promised land
And days I fill my glass with my regrets

chorus

When I take my final rest
Lay the Turf o’ Tullamore upon my breast
And it’s sweet - the dream I’ll dream
Home to Erin’s fields of green
By the Shannon’s holy waters, I’ll be blessed

chorus

Youtube Link Here

A Bit of Irish for St. Patrick's Day

According to family legend, my great-great grandfather George Convy brought a piece of sod from the homeland when he emigrated from Ireland in 1866. Now and again he would take it out and have a good cry.

The Irish, who fled their country by the thousands, did not have a word for "emigrate" -- instead, they used the word for "exile," which struck me as sad and poignant. In this song.The Turf o' Tullamore - I pay tribute to my Irish ancestors, who came from Tullamore, Ireland, to make a new life in St Louis, MO, -- and occasionally grieved for their homeland.





The Turf o' Tullamore
words and music © Erin Coombs Friedman


Into the West – land of the free
In freedom will I e’er a stranger be
So up the stairs I climb
Open up the trunk and find
The piece of home I carried ‘cross the sea

chorus:

Weeping o’er The Turf o’ Tullamore
Exiles both – the Irish sod and I
The Turf o’ Tullamore
Will know my bones forevermore
Sweeten my grave when I
Lay down to die


For my sons, I made a pledge
They’ll not beg the Crown for daily bread
There’s days I understand
The promise in this promised land
And days I fill my glass with my regrets

chorus

When I take my final rest
Lay the Turf o’ Tullamore upon my breast
And it’s sweet - the dream I’ll dream
Home to Erin’s fields of green
By the Shannon’s holy waters, I’ll be blessed

chorus

Youtube Link Here

Irish Roots

According to family legend, my great-great grandfather, George Convy, brought a piece of sod from the homeland when he emigrated from Ireland in 1866. Now and again he would take it out and have a good cry.

I loved that story and I enjoy studying Irish history with the kids.

We learned that the Irish, who fled their country by the thousands, did not have a word for "emigrate" -- instead, they used the word for "exile," which struck me as sad and poignant. In one book we read, a women sent her children off to America, but refused to go herself. She believed she'd be dying soon, and she wanted to be buried in familiar ground, ground that "knew her bones."

In this song.The Turf o' Tullamore - I tried to pay tribute to my Irish ancestors, who came from Tullamore, Ireland, to make a new life in St Louis, MO, -- and occasionally grieved for their homeland.





The Turf o' Tullamore
words and music © Erin Coombs Friedman


Into the West – land of the free
In freedom will I e’er a stranger be
So up the stairs I climb
Open up the trunk and find
The piece of home I carried ‘cross the sea

chorus:

Weeping o’er The Turf o’ Tullamore
Exiles both – the Irish sod and I
The Turf o’ Tullamore
Will know my bones forevermore
Sweeten my grave when I
Lay down to die


For my sons, I made a pledge
They’ll not beg the Crown for daily bread
There’s days I understand
The promise in this promised land
And days I fill my glass with my regrets

chorus

When I take my final rest
Lay the Turf o’ Tullamore upon my breast
And it’s sweet - the dream I’ll dream
Home to Erin’s fields of green
By the Shannon’s holy waters, I’ll be blessed

chorus

The Parting Glass

Craig and I are working on this Irish tune -- planning to add it to our repertoire.

I fell in love with The Clancy Brothers' simple, spare version of The Parting Glass, but I found this masterful rendition by The High Kings while poking around Youtube.

Love listening to and ::::deep sigh:::: watching these guys. Bagpipes, kilts....oh, my.

Enjoy.

Celtic Harp - coming to Redding

I didn't get to see the Natalie MacMaster concert the other night, but while waiting for my kids to come out of the Cascade, I ran into friends. They were passing out fliers for an upcoming concert, presented by the Greater Redding Chapter of the American Harp Society and the Shasta Celtic Society:

Masters of the Celtic Harp: Two sides of Celtic
Grainne Hambly & William Jackson
Saturday, November 1st, 7 PM
at the Pilgrim Congregational Church

Music in that beautiful building is, indeed, heavenly.

Tickets are available at Bernies, Mike's Music and Sound, LiVolsi Chiropractic. Call 230-7729 for more info.

Pretty stuff, indeed. Enjoy this youtube video: