@@CaitlinGrey Hi Caitlin, I've just listened to your beautiful singing of this old wonderful song. My dear wife once used this tune to sing an old hymn when she was introduce to solo with her choir. I remember her singing it for the first time in the High Kirk in Ballymena. No accompanyment at all, just her wonderful voice. As a musician I remember listening intently to her timing, her pitch and diction and all were perfect. It ended with absolute silence from the audience for quite a time, and then great applause. It was a magical moment. As I write this , she's seriously ill in hospital and there is some doubt as to whether she will recover. I plan to take my tablet to her and play her your lovely, clear and beautiful singing of what became a much requested favourite song to sing. Thanks for gifting it to lovers of real music.
Thank you so much Marcus. And thank you for sharing such a poignant memory. xx ps. Apologies for the late reply, I have only just seen the comment. YT hides them from me sometimes. Odd.
Can there be a more beautiful work in time. Move to the head of the Class, Lass....You have done very well, with this effort. Just rest, and feel good about what you've done! This is such a time honored piece to attempt. Now, I need to do some research and find out the origin it's roots in time. Caitlin, you sing this so beautifully, I don't even shy from the tear, you have brought to my once dry eye. You make your Mother and Father proud, Lass...
1 year now since, I bought your cd The Promise, played it whilst driving down to Italy and back last summer, all good, particularly like this song plus Eliza grey, Black is the colour S fair and call of the Clans, yeah it's a great Album CG
+Andy Imrie Hi Andy, thank you so much. I'm thrilled you bought my album and even happier that you like the songs! Many thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. Best wishes to you & your wife! XX
My young love said to me, "My mother won't mind And my father won't slight you for your lack of kind." And she stepped away from me and this she did say It will not be long, love, till our wedding day." As she stepped away from me and she moved through the fair And fondly I watched her move here and move there And then she turned homeward with one star awake Like the swan in the evening moves over the lake. The people were saying, no two e'er were wed But one had a sorrow that never was said And I smiled as she passed with her goods and her gear And that was the last that I saw of my dear. Last night she came to me, my dead love came in So softly she came that her feet made no din As she laid her hand on me and this she did say: It will not be long, love, 'til our wedding day.
Thank you, so glad you like it! The single, 'She moved through the fair' and also my album 'Siren's Song' are both available for download, just check the links under the video, or you can buy a CD of my album from www.newworldmusic.co.uk
This is actually an awful lot like my Grama’s life. She was pure Scot. She lived a tragic life. She married my Grandfather against the will of her wealthy family. and disowned her for staying with my Grandpa They came to Canada during the depression and had four children including my mom. My Grandma had to work as a cleaning lady her whole life. My Grandpa became alcoholic. Grandma died poor, but never lost her spirit and I loved her.
What struck me was the irony of their love. I imagined them young, gramma telling grandpa, “ her mummy won’t mind and her da wouldn’t slight him for his kind. Made me weep. My Gramma could speak, Gaelic My own mom is 88 now. Amazing survivor of those troubled time, never ever lost her integrity, ( never ) My sis and I want to, if it’s ok with you, use this recording at mum’s wake. By the way this Dave using Tina’s iPad.
Sorry Dave! :-) Yes, of course, I'd be honoured to know you were playing it at such an important occasion. Thank you for sharing this. Hugely appreciated. Warm wises, Caitlin xx
Funny you should say this. This track was played on BBC Radio2 today & I found myself singing the Belfast Child lyrics in my head. I never knew it was a song in its onw right.
I am a Briton who wholeheartedly agrees. I have a mother who was born and raised in Ireland, so yours is a country I have visited many times. Beautiful country with its own ancient, beautiful language, and besides Irish, you will hear there perhaps the most beautiful and poetic form of English spoken too. The female Irish singing voice must be the most beautiful there is. My heart breaks that the Irish now are also being forced to give themselves up, through fashionable and vexatious guilting. Please resist, don't fall like the UK, fight for yourselves as ardently as you fought us.
Wow!!! This is probably my favourite song in the world, and this is the best version I've ever heard! I'm here sitting at an office, with my headphones on, and got me goosebumps on my arms! Thank you, Caitlin! Wonderful!!!
I haven't heard a better version of this beautiful song than this. The crystal clear voice, the haunting music - the celtic musical heritage is fantastic. Greetings from Norway, Stig
The last lines are interesting. "And she laid her hands on me and this she did say, "It will not be long love 'til our wedding day." He's touched by the ghost and now is destined to join her on their 'wedding day' in the afterlife.
In the rare event I hear something this beautiful, my perception of things I see and feel changes. It's an experience that can't quite be put into words, but I know there are people out there who understand.
This was my late mother's 'party piece' something she was always prevailed upon to sing at family gatherings. She had a lovely clear voice perfectly in key and although it is probably 60 years or so since I last heard her sing it, it still makes me cry. Thank you for a lovely version.
My mother passed away two years ago, and it was hers too. The first time I heard her sing it was her best friend's wedding. It's burned into my memory for the rest of my life.
I knew that Simple Minds' Belfast Child was based on this but hadn't heard this in full before. This is amazing! What a beautiful voice. Cheers from Australia :-)
I'm Choctaw (native american) but my great-great grandfather was from Ireland and your music/photos always makes me feel like I'm home. I hope to go to Ireland some day ❤
I lost my wife some 18 years ago and while I am over the grief I still miss her. Often in that period I have dreamed of her coming to me in various ways. It is a common thing. So the writer (some many years ago) had similar experiences - the main difference to me being they were planning on marriage, they had not actually married. So the song is very moving and would be to anyone who has lost someone close to them. Beautifully sung.
"Like a swan in the evening moves over the lake." For those who don't know, Irish folklore dictates that when a young woman dies, she turns into a swan. So that explains why she was ghostlike in the last verse. (I'm a singer for an Irish band)
Thank you very much for the explanation! I've always loved this part of the music and never understood it completely! I would like to know if Is there any relation of this fact with the swan representation in Swan lake? Once more, thank you and kisses from Brazil...
Hmmmm..... * consults mythology books * I know the Celts thought swans were shapeshifters but again thought very high of them, a sort of sacred animal, if you will, that represented the Tuatha De Danann, the tribe of gods. One story comes to mind that might be the roots of Swan Lake in a way... Aengus Og, a god of love, once fell for with a woman he saw in his dreams, and looked for years until he found her. But she turned into a swan for a year, and he if he was to marry her he would have to identify her as a swan. Eventually he did find her and turned into a swan so they could fly away together and sing beautiful songs. ((You can read a slightly more detailed story here: www.pantheon.org/articles/a/aengus.html))
This song has been sung by many fine singers, but your version and that of Anne briggs are the ones i like best. Unfortunately Anne Briggs mangles the words to some extent while you know and sing them correctly. (And sing all four verses - well done.)
I was going to have the Simple Minds Version played at my funeral but I will be using this now. Tempted to upgrade my sound system so I can get the true raw depth of your voice. With love and hope to see you one day. Martin
Sorry I have lost touch Caitlin. Things are not going to well. Long Covid has it's grips around me. 18 months of isolation and Diabetic issues on top. Your voice brought me back to the land of the living. It brings tears to my eyes and stops me dead in my tracks every time. What a beautiful, beautiful, voice. Have you ever sung The Fields of Athenry? Martin
This wonderful ballad is perhaps more tragic then you believe. You see it's meaning, as was told to me back home in the 1980's,, is given away in the second verse,, "The people were saying no two 'ere were wed. for one had a sorrow that never was said." You see she fell pregnant to a poor man, "my father won't slight you for your lack of kine (cattle)",, She fell pregnant and thought she would have to be married,, but she was never seen again. And the swans, yes they are from the depths of Irish folklore and the legend of "Tir na nOg", the land of the young. where the children of the King were decieved and cast into swans , to stay so for 300 years. forever young.
@@CaitlinGrey And thank you Caitlin for your reply. And perhaps I may be so bold as to proffer my interpretation of the last verse. He is now an old man. Over his lifetime her love has not faded. She has never grown old. She returns to him in a dream to foretell of his death and welcome him to the afterlife where she is waiting and has been waiting for him. "It will not be long love, till our wedding day". Here we can see where W.B Yeats, in his poem, "The Song of Wandering Aengus" ,mirrors the ancient Celtic belief that death comes to man in the form of a beautiful woman who leads him into the afterlife. The last verse being,, Though I am old with wandering through hollow lands and hilly lands I will find out where she has gone, and kiss her lips and take her hands And walk among long dappled grass, and pluck till time and times are done The silver apples of the moon. The golden apples of the sun". Thank you Caitlin for your beautiful music.
Caitlin, what a wonderful voice you've got! You can touch deep within with such a beautiful interpretation of this folk song. Thanks for sharing it! Greetings from Brazil! Sandro Luz
I came across this song while researching DADGAD guitar techniques so I searched youtube for different versions. Bert Jansch is a popular version and admittedly his guitar work is good but his voice UGH! I listened to the all female singers until I found the one that made me cry like a baby each time I heard her sing this hauntingly sad love song, such a beautiful version this is and I love it!
You have a stunning voice, it chills me to the bone, fills me with nostalgia of the old land, brings a tear to my eye, and completely removes me from the dull world for the time that your voice fills my eardrums...All this you do with your celestial voice, you have a gift, and I'm ever so grateful that you brought it to the world, for it has benefited so many...
Only when we understand that the fair is this unfair world we all inhabit that we may begin to understand the immense pain and depth of this incredible piece
No no not at all, I'm so so flattered by your comments please stop, lest I get a bigger ( no talent ) head than you a star 🌟 have already given me, a nobody
A Modern Lyric I Wrote To This Timeless Music THEY WOKE THE DAWN EARLY THEY WOKE THE DAWN EARLY ON THE DAY TO KILL TRUTH ON THE DAY THAT THEY PLANED SO TO MAKE LOVE NO USE SO THEY CROWNED HIM WITH THORNS THEN LED HIM AWAY TO A HILL WITH THREE CROSSES IN THE DAWN OF THAT DAY TO A CROSS HIGH THEY NAILED HIM THEY THOUGHT HE WOULD DIE THEY THOUGHT EVIL HAD TRIUMPHED THOUGHT LOVES TRUTH A LIE SO LOST IN THEIR BLINDNESS COULD NOT UNDERSTAND THAT LOVES TRUTH WAS BORN FOREVER IN THE DAWN OF THAT DAY THOUGH TIME LIES SO HEAVY SINCE THEY THOUGHT HE WOULD DIE THOUGH LOVES TRUTH IS ETERNAL YET HATE FILLS THIS WORLD SO EACH MUST FIND LOVES TRUTH AS WE MOVE THRU THIS LIFE BUT KNOW HE WALKS WITH YOU AS YOU MOVE TO THE LIGHT THEY WOKE THE DAWN EARLY ON THE DAY TO KILL TRUTH ON THE DAY THAT THEY PLANED SO TO MAKE LOVE NO USE SO THEY CROWNED HIM WITH THORNS THEN LED HIM AWAY TO A HILL WITH THREE CROSSES IN THE DAWN OF THAT DAY Lyrics Copyright Jamie Corrigan
Thanks so very much for posting, Caitlin! This is the first I've heard your version. I'll definitely Subscribe. I first heard Mairéid Sullivan's version on the CD "Celtic Voices: Women of Song" was issued in 1995: ua-cam.com/video/LFAhcLoBfJA/v-deo.html Like you, she sings all of the verses. So few singers do, but I think the full richness, sadness, and heartache evoked by this mysterious tune requires all of the verses. Thanks so much. (Please - delete my comments if you'd prefer not having this reference to the older CD!)
Ahh, thanks Ken. Leaving your comment up, very much appreciated. Never heard Mairéid Sullivan's version, so will definitely have a listen. Thanks for subscribing!
Ahh, sorry about that Susan. In some versions I've heard, it's 'dead', in some it's 'true'. So, I left it as 'true' for a slightly more 'ambiguous' meaning. But many thanks for commenting. Very much appreciated. 😍
One had a sorrow That never was said. Always wondered what the sorrow was? I've loved this song since I first heard it as a child back in the 60s. It's such an intriguing song! And it's lovely to sing. I really enjoyed your version, Caitlin!
CaitlinGrey I can't believe that this is you! Beautiful! I am telling my subscribers to come here. Lots of America Irish, legitimate Irish families that moved to America during the famine. God bless you sister.
I used this recording to help me in arranging the tune for handbells a couple of years ago, when we were living in Ireland and trying to teach handbell tune playing. I do this entirely by ear, and used this recording because it gave me what I needed. The uncertainties that Brexit introduced led to us returning to the UK, after 9 great years in West Cork, and my handbell arrangement only ever got played at a few practices. One day, it will get an airing, I hope! I just got it into my head this evening, and so listened to it again, and it is still as stunning as ever!
This is one of the best interpretations of this song I have ever heard . I feel sadness and an eeriness . So beautiful . To Caitlin ...much love from Canada . "May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live ."
Hi, thank you! 2:55 and 3:30 are of Kerrera, an island in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, close to the town of Oban & 3:13 is of a valley in Gower, mid Wales, UK. Warm wishes, Caitlin x
It is typically graceful of her, and also thoroughly appropriate, that Loreena McKennitt gives credit to the poet who composed the lyrics. In the introduction to "Collected Poems of Padraic Colum" (1953) John L. Sweeney writes of Colum that "oddly enough he will be remembered by many who (as Yeats noted) have never heard his name. At least one of his poems "She Moved Through the Fair", with an air composed by the late Herbert Hughes, has so securely acquired the status of folksong that it has been collected as such."
Thank you for the comments Robert, that's really interesting. Indeed, she is a wonderful, gracious artist. I first heard Loreena's version of this lovely lament some time ago & I loved it. There are some amazing versions of this song around. I really love Sinead O'Connor's too. I just hope everyone enjoys mine as much as I love hearing others sing it.
There is some controversy to that. There's no doubt he wrote some of the lyrics and changed some and was the first to produce a printed version. But many have noted that the melody is very old and at least some of the lines came from much older songs. Once upon a time, before the age of litigation and copyright, that was a common practice.
The message of this beautiful song reminds me of something I found in A.E. Houseman's " A SHROPSHIE. LAD". BREDON HILL.. " In summertime on Bredon The bells they sound so clear" ( Find and read on ) A lost love ......
once Padraig o'Pearse've been asked by one of his pupil's father what to do with the boy for him being interested in nothing but playing tin whistle. He replied: Buy him a good whistle. greetings from Poland. Never been on the green island, but I never move without my tin whistle...
so i was searching up Celtic songs cause my vocals teacher said my voice would go great with a celtic song , an so i ended up here and my god, if my voice could ever sound that beautiful ide never stop singing , your voice is amazing :D
Hi Tina, of course, I would be honoured! If you send me your email address, I will send you a copy of your own to download. You can reach me at: enquiries@caitlingrey.com Just email me there and we'll get it done! Very best wishes, Caitlin xx
Many thanks to all for the wonderful comments, I'm so happy that you like my version of this lovely song! Warm wishes, Caitlin xx
We used this for our wedding, for my wife's song
@@cryptking6283 Fantastic! And many congratulations. XX
Without any kind of exaggeration, it really is breathtaking and totally takes you to another world! Please keep it up!!!🙂🙂🙂
@@nspr9721 Many thanks for this lovely compliment.
@@CaitlinGrey Hi Caitlin, I've just listened to your beautiful singing of this old wonderful song. My dear wife once used this tune to sing an old hymn when she was introduce to solo with her choir. I remember her singing it for the first time in the High Kirk in Ballymena. No accompanyment at all, just her wonderful voice. As a musician I remember listening intently to her timing, her pitch and diction and all were perfect. It ended with absolute silence from the audience for quite a time, and then great applause. It was a magical moment.
As I write this , she's seriously ill in hospital and there is some doubt as to whether she will recover. I plan to take my tablet to her and play her your lovely, clear and beautiful singing of what became a much requested favourite song to sing. Thanks for gifting it to lovers of real music.
I used to sing this to my mother. It always makes me think of her. This is the best version l have heard. Brought tears to my eyes. Thankyou Caitlin.
Thank you so much Marcus. And thank you for sharing such a poignant memory. xx ps. Apologies for the late reply, I have only just seen the comment. YT hides them from me sometimes. Odd.
@@CaitlinGrey thankyou for taking the time to reply youtube works in very strange ways..Sending high vibes from the South African Bush to you.
It reminds me of my Dad (💔💯 RIP 🪦) The last I heard him sing this beautiful song was in the car, to Josh Groban’s version
To my beautiful cousin Eve, who surely transformed into a swan.
Can there be a more beautiful work in time. Move to the head of the Class, Lass....You have done very well, with this effort. Just rest, and feel good about what you've done! This is such a time honored piece to attempt. Now, I need to do some research and find out the origin it's roots in time.
Caitlin, you sing this so beautifully, I don't even shy from the tear, you have brought to my once dry eye.
You make your Mother and Father proud, Lass...
Thank you so much Casey! I'm thrilled that you like my version of this beautiful song!
Absolutely lovely. What a gorgeous voice you have!
Many thanks Sean most kind!
Its nice that artists like this can make such piece in those who take the time to listen.
1 year now since, I bought your cd The Promise, played it whilst driving down to Italy and back last summer, all good, particularly like this song plus Eliza grey, Black is the colour S fair and call of the Clans, yeah it's a great Album CG
+Andy Imrie Ps wife loves it too lol
+Andy Imrie Hi Andy, thank you so much. I'm thrilled you bought my album and even happier that you like the songs! Many thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. Best wishes to you & your wife! XX
My young love said to me, "My mother won't mind
And my father won't slight you for your lack of kind."
And she stepped away from me and this she did say
It will not be long, love, till our wedding day."
As she stepped away from me and she moved through the fair
And fondly I watched her move here and move there
And then she turned homeward with one star awake
Like the swan in the evening moves over the lake.
The people were saying, no two e'er were wed
But one had a sorrow that never was said
And I smiled as she passed with her goods and her gear
And that was the last that I saw of my dear.
Last night she came to me, my dead love came in
So softly she came that her feet made no din
As she laid her hand on me and this she did say:
It will not be long, love, 'til our wedding day.
Amazing version.
Best version of this song i've ever heard :O Extraordinary voice!!
Thank you so much! :-))
This video makes me miss home so much! Beautiful!!
very correct
Thank you Carmen. :-)
INCREDIBLE where can I get your album
Thank you, so glad you like it! The single, 'She moved through the fair' and also my album 'Siren's Song' are both available for download, just check the links under the video, or you can buy a CD of my album from www.newworldmusic.co.uk
Thanks Dave! :-)
This is actually an awful lot like my Grama’s life.
She was pure Scot. She lived a tragic life.
She married my Grandfather against the will of her wealthy family.
and disowned her for staying with my Grandpa
They came to Canada during the depression and had four children including my mom.
My Grandma had to work as a cleaning lady her whole life. My Grandpa became alcoholic.
Grandma died poor, but never lost her spirit and I loved her.
Oh wow Tina, that's so sad and moving. Thank you so much for sharing your story. Much love, Cxx
What struck me was the irony of their love. I imagined them young, gramma telling grandpa, “ her mummy won’t mind and her da wouldn’t slight him for his kind. Made me weep. My Gramma could speak, Gaelic
My own mom is 88 now. Amazing survivor of those troubled time, never ever lost her integrity, ( never )
My sis and I want to, if it’s ok with you, use this recording at mum’s wake.
By the way this Dave using Tina’s iPad.
Sorry Dave! :-) Yes, of course, I'd be honoured to know you were playing it at such an important occasion. Thank you for sharing this. Hugely appreciated. Warm wises, Caitlin xx
Thanks. We will.
Not a problem. By the way I like the Richard Thompson arrangement
Thanks Catlin
Belfast child brought me here and I’m so glad it did absolutely beautiful a stunning voice 👏👏👏
Thank you so much Danny. I also love Belfast Child. :-)
Funny you should say this. This track was played on BBC Radio2 today & I found myself singing the Belfast Child lyrics in my head. I never knew it was a song in its onw right.
Great version in Michael Collins movie with Neeson
We must fight back to preserve our heritage & culture !!
🙏
You got that right. Good for you!
I am a Briton who wholeheartedly agrees. I have a mother who was born and raised in Ireland, so yours is a country I have visited many times. Beautiful country with its own ancient, beautiful language, and besides Irish, you will hear there perhaps the most beautiful and poetic form of English spoken too. The female Irish singing voice must be the most beautiful there is. My heart breaks that the Irish now are also being forced to give themselves up, through fashionable and vexatious guilting. Please resist, don't fall like the UK, fight for yourselves as ardently as you fought us.
@@vernonhedge4530 God bless you, brother. May our Lady set her gaze upon you. ALWAYS RESIST!
Wow!!!
This is probably my favourite song in the world, and this is the best version I've ever heard!
I'm here sitting at an office, with my headphones on, and got me goosebumps on my arms!
Thank you, Caitlin! Wonderful!!!
Thank you so much. :-)
I haven't heard a better version of this beautiful song than this. The crystal clear voice, the haunting music - the celtic musical heritage is fantastic. Greetings from Norway, Stig
Thank you so much Stig, you are most kind. :-)
Thank you so much Stig, you are most kind. :-)
As a Macedonian Christan must admit the Irish are amazing pure angelic I love Irish
The last lines are interesting.
"And she laid her hands on me and this she did say, "It will not be long love 'til our wedding day."
He's touched by the ghost and now is destined to join her on their 'wedding day' in the afterlife.
In the rare event I hear something this beautiful, my perception of things I see and feel changes. It's an experience that can't quite be put into words, but I know there are people out there who understand.
Gosh, thank you Brian...that's quite a compliment! I'm so happy you like my version.
Warm wishes, Caitlin
There are lots who feel this way Brian. Like me just now
Thank you so much!! @@MsSpock1
@sean jones Thank you Sean, much appreciated! :-))
First time I hear this song and I love it! I am obsessed by Carrickferus and now O found this song. Many many thanks. Fantastic
This was my late mother's 'party piece' something she was always prevailed upon to sing at family gatherings. She had a lovely clear voice perfectly in key and although it is probably 60 years or so since I last heard her sing it, it still makes me cry. Thank you for a lovely version.
Thank you too Ron for sharing this wonderful story about your mum. How lovely. Warm wishes to you. x
My mother passed away two years ago, and it was hers too. The first time I heard her sing it was her best friend's wedding. It's burned into my memory for the rest of my life.
I knew that Simple Minds' Belfast Child was based on this but hadn't heard this in full before. This is amazing! What a beautiful voice.
Cheers from Australia :-)
Thank you Allan, so glad you enjoyed my version of this gorgeous song. Warm wishes from the UK. :-)
@@CaitlinGrey My pleasure. All the best :-)
What a truly angelic voice.I cried listening to her ❤️
Ahh, many thanks Eugene. ☺
@@CaitlinGrey You were born with the most beautiful gift . Embrace it 👍
@@eugenebuckley7657 🙏🙏
I'm Choctaw (native american) but my great-great grandfather was from Ireland and your music/photos always makes me feel like I'm home. I hope to go to Ireland some day ❤
Oh wow, how amazing! Thank you so much for the lovely comment. Warm wishes & blessings, love Caitlin xx
CaitlinGrey 💖💖💖
Native american and celtic mythologies have many similarities.
Thankyou you to your ancestors for supporting us irish in times of hardship and poverty.
@@tomasmcclements1491 Thank you Tomas. I'm grateful that our nations have this shared connection.
enjoy it people, close your eyes take it in because her voice is the closest we will get to heaven while still in the land of the living.
Wow, thank you so much. I'm hugely flattered. Warm wishes, Caitlin
Listen to this Swan move o’er the lake ua-cam.com/video/4GqkMrdYQ-M/v-deo.html
I lost my wife some 18 years ago and while I am over the grief I still miss her. Often in that period I have dreamed of her coming to me in various ways. It is a common thing. So the writer (some many years ago) had similar experiences - the main difference to me being they were planning on marriage, they had not actually married. So the song is very moving and would be to anyone who has lost someone close to them. Beautifully sung.
Thank you so much for sharing this. And for your kind comments. Much love, Caitlin x
I’ve just listened to about 10 or more versions of this song. This is one of the finest 🙂.
Thank you so much.
It is, one of the finest.x
"Like a swan in the evening moves over the lake." For those who don't know, Irish folklore dictates that when a young woman dies, she turns into a swan. So that explains why she was ghostlike in the last verse.
(I'm a singer for an Irish band)
Thank you very much for the explanation! I've always loved this part of the music and never understood it completely! I would like to know if Is there any relation of this fact with the swan representation in Swan lake? Once more, thank you and kisses from Brazil...
what is the name of your band, i'm part irish myself. & german)
Hi Zeb. It's just me, Caitlin Grey. :-)
Hmmmm..... * consults mythology books *
I know the Celts thought swans were shapeshifters but again thought very high of them, a sort of sacred animal, if you will, that represented the Tuatha De Danann, the tribe of gods.
One story comes to mind that might be the roots of Swan Lake in a way... Aengus Og, a god of love, once fell for with a woman he saw in his dreams, and looked for years until he found her. But she turned into a swan for a year, and he if he was to marry her he would have to identify her as a swan. Eventually he did find her and turned into a swan so they could fly away together and sing beautiful songs.
((You can read a slightly more detailed story here: www.pantheon.org/articles/a/aengus.html))
I adore your version of this song, Catlin!! It's hauntingly beautiful
Such a beautiful song. And the voice matches perfectly to it - as much as the breathtaking images. ☘🍀🍀
Thank you so much Cecilia.
@@CaitlinGrey Thank YOU for sharing such a lovely tune with us.💖
This song has been sung by many fine singers, but your version and that of Anne briggs are the ones i like best. Unfortunately Anne Briggs mangles the words to some extent while you know and sing them correctly. (And sing all four verses - well done.)
Thank you Rachel, most kind!
I'm covered in goosebumps. Beautiful. Thank you for making my day better.
Thank you so much Nellie, what a lovely compliment. :-))
I m from turkey this music chrısty Brown
I was going to have the Simple Minds Version played at my funeral but I will be using this now. Tempted to upgrade my sound system so I can get the true raw depth of your voice. With love and hope to see you one day. Martin
+Martin Green Oh wow, Martin! I'm honoured. Thank you. I hope to see you one day too. Warm wishes, Caitlin
Sorry I have lost touch Caitlin.
Things are not going to well. Long Covid has it's grips around me. 18 months of isolation and Diabetic issues on top.
Your voice brought me back to the land of the living.
It brings tears to my eyes and stops me dead in my tracks every time.
What a beautiful, beautiful, voice.
Have you ever sung The Fields of Athenry?
Martin
Chrısty Brown Sol Ayağım💫✨
This wonderful ballad is perhaps more tragic then you believe.
You see it's meaning, as was told to me back home in the 1980's,, is given away in the second verse,,
"The people were saying no two 'ere were wed.
for one had a sorrow that never was said."
You see she fell pregnant to a poor man, "my father won't slight you for your lack of kine (cattle)",,
She fell pregnant and thought she would have to be married,,
but she was never seen again.
And the swans,
yes they are from the depths of Irish folklore and the legend of "Tir na nOg", the land of the young.
where the children of the King were decieved and cast into swans , to stay so for 300 years.
forever young.
Fabulous. Many thanks.
@@CaitlinGrey And thank you Caitlin for your reply.
And perhaps I may be so bold as to proffer my interpretation of the last verse.
He is now an old man. Over his lifetime her love has not faded. She has never grown old.
She returns to him in a dream to foretell of his death and welcome him to the afterlife where she
is waiting and has been waiting for him.
"It will not be long love, till our wedding day".
Here we can see where W.B Yeats, in his poem, "The Song of Wandering Aengus" ,mirrors the ancient Celtic belief that death comes to man in the form of a beautiful woman
who leads him into the afterlife. The last verse being,,
Though I am old with wandering through hollow lands and hilly lands
I will find out where she has gone, and kiss her lips and take her hands
And walk among long dappled grass, and pluck till time and times are done
The silver apples of the moon. The golden apples of the sun".
Thank you Caitlin for your beautiful music.
@@louisabridge Beautifully interpreted Diarmuid. Thank you so much. And a quote from one of my favourite poets too! Blessings to you. X
@@CaitlinGrey Thanks again, and I shall be sure to see you sing live if you should ever come to London.
Be Lucky. x
@@louisabridge Thanks Diarmuid, I'll keep you posted! :-)
Ireland - a beautiful country inhabited by a beautiful race of people
races are not a scientific term
*ethnicity
@Koulik Ghosh nah, that would be ethnos. Race is specifically a pseudobiological term
they're not people, they're magical creatures...
I thought they're all elves and gnomes
Caitlin, what a wonderful voice you've got! You can touch deep within with such a beautiful interpretation of this folk song. Thanks for sharing it! Greetings from Brazil! Sandro Luz
Obrigado Sandro. Very kind words! :-)
I came across this song while researching DADGAD guitar techniques so I searched youtube for different versions. Bert Jansch is a popular version and admittedly his guitar work is good but his voice UGH! I listened to the all female singers until I found the one that made me cry like a baby each time I heard her sing this hauntingly sad love song, such a beautiful version this is and I love it!
+CarlosTheCruiser Many thanks Carlos, what a lovely compliment. :-)
I walked down the isle on my wedding day to this song, In memory of my wee granny who couldn't be with me ❤️🇮🇪
Oh, thank you so much for sharing this Caroline. Blessings to you. xx
You have a stunning voice, it chills me to the bone, fills me with nostalgia of the old land, brings a tear to my eye, and completely removes me from the dull world for the time that your voice fills my eardrums...All this you do with your celestial voice, you have a gift, and I'm ever so grateful that you brought it to the world, for it has benefited so many...
+Jourdan Wolf Wow, thank you so much Jourdan. What a lovely compliment. Warm wishes, Caitlin X
Only when we understand that the fair is this unfair world we all inhabit that we may begin to understand the immense pain and depth of this incredible piece
Beautifully put Russell.
@@CaitlinGrey
Beautifully sung Caitlin
@@russellwiley2484 Most kind! :-))
No no not at all, I'm so so flattered by your comments please stop, lest I get a bigger ( no talent ) head than you a star 🌟 have already given me, a nobody
@@russellwiley2484 LOL. Nice one. :-)
Incredbly beautiful and my personal favourite version EVER !!!!!!!!!
So kind Yvonne, many thanks. :-)) xx
Brought a tear to my eye, and I'm dead inside 😂
Gorgeous version. Pure voice.
Thank you so much Gregory.
Outstanding in every way
Just hauntingly beautiful ❤
Thank you so much Claire.
Wow!. Cool stuff. A voice that pushes sonic parameters and defy's all EQ frequencies. i.e. don't need it. One of the gr8 LGBTQI love songs
absolutely wonderful version of a wonderful song
Many thanks Reinhard.
I was moved deep listening and enjoying this magistral performance!! Thank you so much!!
Many thanks Arturo.
Beautiful version Caitlin I love It ♥ You have a Great voice !! Thanks for sharing !!
Thank you so much Annie. :-))
Beautiful voice.. Perfect for a song that needs such a powerful vocal. Well done.
A truly lovely voice.
Thank you so much Mark, most kind. :-)
Beautiful voice, Could we get a Simply minds - Belfast child cover?
Thank you so much. And I'll do my best! :-)
How come this isn't in the thousands! !!!!!!
Beautiful voice that encapsulates the song and draws you in. Brilliant.
+Martin Green Many thanks Martin! :-))
Miss ya nana .... Need ya right now, should never have left this gobshite in charge. Xxxx
Reminded of a Swiss woman Arianne Fuqua I never could marry.
Fuqua to the best of my limited knowledge referred to The Guardian Folk.
If ...
A Modern Lyric I Wrote To This Timeless Music
THEY WOKE THE DAWN EARLY
THEY WOKE THE DAWN EARLY
ON THE DAY TO KILL TRUTH
ON THE DAY THAT THEY PLANED SO
TO MAKE LOVE NO USE
SO THEY CROWNED HIM WITH THORNS
THEN LED HIM AWAY
TO A HILL WITH THREE CROSSES
IN THE DAWN OF THAT DAY
TO A CROSS HIGH THEY NAILED HIM
THEY THOUGHT HE WOULD DIE
THEY THOUGHT EVIL HAD TRIUMPHED
THOUGHT LOVES TRUTH A LIE
SO LOST IN THEIR BLINDNESS
COULD NOT UNDERSTAND
THAT LOVES TRUTH WAS BORN FOREVER
IN THE DAWN OF THAT DAY
THOUGH TIME LIES SO HEAVY
SINCE THEY THOUGHT HE WOULD DIE
THOUGH LOVES TRUTH IS ETERNAL
YET HATE FILLS THIS WORLD
SO EACH MUST FIND LOVES TRUTH
AS WE MOVE THRU THIS LIFE
BUT KNOW HE WALKS WITH YOU
AS YOU MOVE TO THE LIGHT
THEY WOKE THE DAWN EARLY
ON THE DAY TO KILL TRUTH
ON THE DAY THAT THEY PLANED SO
TO MAKE LOVE NO USE
SO THEY CROWNED HIM WITH THORNS
THEN LED HIM AWAY
TO A HILL WITH THREE CROSSES
IN THE DAWN OF THAT DAY
Lyrics Copyright Jamie Corrigan
Why is this song usually sung by a woman when if you pay attention the narrator is clearly a man?
Good question Toad! I sing it because I love it. Simple as that! :-)
Thanks so very much for posting, Caitlin! This is the first I've heard your version. I'll definitely Subscribe. I first heard Mairéid Sullivan's version on the CD "Celtic Voices: Women of Song" was issued in 1995: ua-cam.com/video/LFAhcLoBfJA/v-deo.html Like you, she sings all of the verses. So few singers do, but I think the full richness, sadness, and heartache evoked by this mysterious tune requires all of the verses. Thanks so much. (Please - delete my comments if you'd prefer not having this reference to the older CD!)
Ahh, thanks Ken. Leaving your comment up, very much appreciated. Never heard Mairéid Sullivan's version, so will definitely have a listen. Thanks for subscribing!
This song is the finest composition ever created.
Thankyou for singing it so beautifully.
🥰
Thank you. It is a stunning melody for sure. Love the modal quality of Irish music.
What a beautiful, beautiful rendition. Such a lush song that never fails to bring a tear to the eye! Brava
Thank you so much, I'm so happy that you enjoyed my version. XX
So good to hear that third verse - so often omitted. My one sadness is that she didn't sing "last night she cane to me, my dead love came in ......"
Ahh, sorry about that Susan. In some versions I've heard, it's 'dead', in some it's 'true'. So, I left it as 'true' for a slightly more 'ambiguous' meaning. But many thanks for commenting. Very much appreciated. 😍
"As the swan in the evening moves over the lake". What a beautiful image.
One had a sorrow
That never was said.
Always wondered what the sorrow was?
I've loved this song since I first heard it as a child back in the 60s.
It's such an intriguing song!
And it's lovely to sing.
I really enjoyed your version, Caitlin!
Ahh, thank you so much. Yes, it's such a melancholy & mysterious song. One of my faves, for sure. x
I am always coming back to this song why because this ladies voice melts my heart and makes my soul warm
What a wonderful compliment. Thank you so much Thomas. This is a very beautiful song to sing. Warm wishes, Caitlin
Can't hold back the tears!
xx
CaitlinGrey I can't believe that this is you! Beautiful! I am telling my subscribers to come here. Lots of America Irish, legitimate Irish families that moved to America during the famine. God bless you sister.
Oh wow, thank you so much for spreading the word and for the lovely compliments. Warm wishes, Caitlin xx
@@CaitlinGrey ive just heard your version of this beutifull song. You have the voice of an angel. I will always listen to your music from now forward.
@@jamescourt4703 Thank you James, that is so kind. I'm sorry I missed your comment until now. I do hope you see my reply.
Maybe it was a song about a (coming) marriage celebration of some type.
I just came across this song because the poet Helen Ivory wrote that it was the first poem she encountered. You sing it beautifully. I am mesmerized.
Thank you so much Alexandra.
I used this recording to help me in arranging the tune for handbells a couple of years ago, when we were living in Ireland and trying to teach handbell tune playing. I do this entirely by ear, and used this recording because it gave me what I needed. The uncertainties that Brexit introduced led to us returning to the UK, after 9 great years in West Cork, and my handbell arrangement only ever got played at a few practices. One day, it will get an airing, I hope! I just got it into my head this evening, and so listened to it again, and it is still as stunning as ever!
Oh what a lovely story. Thank you for sharing it with us Martin. Perhaps one day I will get to hear your arrangement. :-)
Beautiful song, beautifully sung no need to say anything else
Many thanks Trevor.
This is one of the best interpretations of this song I have ever heard . I feel sadness and an eeriness . So beautiful . To Caitlin ...much love from Canada . "May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live ."
Oh thank you so much for this wonderful comment RD. I'm so thrilled that you enjoyed my version. Blessings to you. :-) Caitlin x
Absolutely beautiful! I have goosebumps. Lovely song, sung perfectly. Thank you.
padraic colum our forgotten poet my grandmothers cousin you do him proud
Hi, thank you! 2:55 and 3:30 are of Kerrera, an island in the Scottish Inner Hebrides, close to the town of Oban & 3:13 is of a valley in Gower, mid Wales, UK. Warm wishes, Caitlin x
One of the best versions ever.... well done Caitlin!
Thank you so much Athanasios, I'm so happy that you like my version of this beautiful song. Warm wishes, Caitlin xx
Beautiful Caitlin
We don't have enough music like this today.
Dave
Thank you Dave...much appreciated! :-))
So far I only liked Lothlórien's version of this song, but this one is also beautiful! Strong voice!
Many thanks! :-)
Simple minds brought me here, Glad they did.
Hi from Australia.
Simple minds brought me here too. Hello from France .
Hello back 7 years too late, but sure better late than never
@@psychobear1290 hello sir
@@drschnaps8081 good afternoon good sir
@@psychobear1290 thank you sir. What type of music are you listening at sir?
This piece of music ,makes it all clear , and im homesick for co louth in a very loving and respectful way ,,,,thank you for your reminder,Caitlin.
I'm so happy the song has evoked fond memories for you Garry! Warm wishes, Caitlin
like a bell darling ,,,keep the magic flowing thanks a million
Will do! :-))
I feel that this is the absolute correct tempo for this song and oh so beautifully sang. Truly the voice of an Irish Angel.
Thank you so much Larry, that's so kind of you.
Simple Minds Belfast
Yes that's right. Simple Minds did indeed use the melody of this traditional old song in Belfast Child. :-)
The music is the same with Simle Minds`s "Belfast Child" ua-cam.com/video/7vhhTvcLoRw/v-deo.html
It is indeed the same. Simple Minds used the melody from this very old Irish song for Belfast Child.
From Romania!! 🙋♂️Beautiful voice ,beautiful woman 😌
Thank you so much! :-)
It is typically graceful of her, and also thoroughly appropriate, that Loreena McKennitt gives credit to the poet who composed the lyrics. In the introduction to "Collected Poems of Padraic Colum" (1953) John L. Sweeney writes of Colum that "oddly enough he will be remembered by many who (as Yeats noted) have never heard his name. At least one of his poems "She Moved Through the Fair", with an air composed by the late Herbert Hughes, has so securely acquired the status of folksong that it has been collected as such."
Thank you for the comments Robert, that's really interesting. Indeed, she is a wonderful, gracious artist. I first heard Loreena's version of this lovely lament some time ago & I loved it. There are some amazing versions of this song around. I really love Sinead O'Connor's too. I just hope everyone enjoys mine as much as I love hearing others sing it.
Yes indeed, Caitlin. And your fine performance of this song is poised, passionate and deeply understanding. / R.M.C.
@@robertcommon6974 Thank you Robert, most kind! :-)
There is some controversy to that. There's no doubt he wrote some of the lyrics and changed some and was the first to produce a printed version. But many have noted that the melody is very old and at least some of the lines came from much older songs. Once upon a time, before the age of litigation and copyright, that was a common practice.
The message of this beautiful song reminds me of something I found in A.E. Houseman's " A SHROPSHIE. LAD". BREDON HILL.. " In summertime on Bredon The bells they sound so clear" ( Find and read on ) A lost love ......
How lovely. Thanks for sharing this M. X
CaitlinGrey Ok thanks ..I have smiles outside, and tears inside.....
Such a great song, even as the version Belfast Child bt the Simple Minds.
Totally agree. :-)
Haunting crystal-clear rendering of a well-loved traditional masterpiece ❄🔥♥🍁🍀
Thank you so much Keith.
once Padraig o'Pearse've been asked by one of his pupil's father what to do with the boy for him being interested in nothing but playing tin whistle. He replied: Buy him a good whistle. greetings from Poland. Never been on the green island, but I never move without my tin whistle...
What a beautiful voice!
Thank you so much. :-)
I've always liked Judy Collins version,this at least matches it.
:-)
so i was searching up Celtic songs cause my vocals teacher said my voice would go great with a celtic song , an so i ended up here and my god, if my voice could ever sound that beautiful ide never stop singing , your voice is amazing :D
Thank you so much! Wishing you the very best of luck with your singing! Warm wishes, Caitlin xx
what a beautiful voice and so soothing almost angelic
Thank you so much! :-)
This is beautiful; great to hear the penultimate verse as well. Thank you kindly for uploading. A true inspiration.
Many thanks.
theres a celt blood in you John Palmer
This song shakes me to the core.
Thank you Nasser.
Very good performance but for me the version that moves me the most is still that of the eternal voice of the late great Sandy Denny.
Thank you so much. And yes, indeed, Sandy Denny's sublime talent is beyond compare.
If it’s ok with you I’m going to play this version at our celebration.
Dave in Canada
Hi Tina, of course, I would be honoured! If you send me your email address, I will send you a copy of your own to download. You can reach me at: enquiries@caitlingrey.com
Just email me there and we'll get it done! Very best wishes, Caitlin xx
No Michael don't leave the vehicle!!
Not many songs can move me to tears, but this with your beautiful voice has managed, thank you
+Alan Law Thank you so much Alan, that's very kind of you to say.