DUBLIN OPINION BACKS A WINNER
Apr 26th, 2010 by Conor McCabe
We’ve just been informed that Colm Hall’s song Arán na Fiends, which was championed by Dublin Opinion in a post last week, has come second in the Irish Times’ alternative national anthem competition.
According to the Irish times today,
Also a runner-up was Colm Hall (aka The Drop of a Hat), whose entry mixed a hummable tune with satirical lyrics that sum up the general mood. It also deployed an opening couplet about the “streets of Dublin/ bubblin’ with urine” that is funny, clever and true.
Runner-up, as used in this context, is simply a euphemism for winner. So let those who dare to mock Dublin Opinion’s prophetic power and impeccable ear do so at their peril…
For those who missed it, here’s the song again, with the lyrics below.
Enjoy!
The streets are a-bubblin’ with urine in Dublin as I’m stumblin’ home to my bed
These rivers of Guinnesses shrivel our penises, soon we will be intravenously fedSagely Saint Patrick explained with a hat-trick and made us all good Catholic men
But bishops are blameless, their sermons are shameless, the victims are nameless to themOh by the by
If it weren’t so funny I would cryIn jaw-dropping ignorance we distrust immigrants, haven’t a thing against them per se
As long as you stay in your homes far away, living poor in your wars dying after day after dayHow quickly forgotten how we were once trod on when we were the foreigners feared
Our long Diaspora still means there are more of us living abroad than are hereOh my oh my
If it weren’t so funny I would cry
And the liars in Dail Eireann make statements so glaring while blatantly sharing their bills
With friends and well-wishers, and culchie ass-kissers who back them suspiciously stillCountless brown envelopes approve developments, no talk of elephants in the room
If only tribunals were careerist funerals, but they’ll live to ruin us again quite soon
Oh why oh why?
If it weren’t so funny I would cryI would cry, I would cry, I would cry
“Runner-up, as used in this context, is simply a euphemism for winner.” - brilliant, I’m definitely stealing that line from you at some point Conor.
I don’t know how the lines are meant to link, but wasn’t it the Dubliner councillors, and not the culichies, who were notorious for the brown envelopes?
Love the photograph, Conor. It’s brilliant. Where did you get that one from?
Thanks Jim. Tombuktu, I think there’s more than a few housing estates beyond the Pale which were brown enveloped. The Dubs got caught, that’s all. and the photo I googled with “thumbs up” and there it was!