Enniscorthy
by Peter J. Crowley III
*Written August 14-15, 1996 after a family trip to Ireland with my mother and brothers Scott and Bob
I hope you feel the need to travel to Ireland this year
For there’s a place that comes alive a special time of year
If you have the need for laughter and muse then you’ll agree
There’s no place quite like sweet Enniscorthy
I took a breath of the Irish Sea, my family once did sail
I inhaled the life of ancestors who brought me to this tale
It is a place that I recall fondly in my mind
With cobblestone streets, and chimney sweeps, it remains stuck in time
So raise a glass quite heartily, to all who came before
And journey to your homeland, to a place you will adore
If truth be told, the core of your soul, you surely must agree
You’ll find in the smiling faces of old Enniscorthy.
I felt a passion for this place from the moment we arrived
At this small town fair of strawberries, unity’s not contrived
The people were a mixture of young and old you see
They danced and sang together...in old Enniscorthy
If I could get sentimental for a minute or a-two
And tell you ‘bout the time I spent with brothers 1 and 2
Was such a joy and meant so much to me you can believe
This town brought us together...Enniscorthy.
So raise a glass quite heartily, to all who came before
And journey to your homeland, to a place you will adore
If truth be told, the core of your soul, you surely must agree
You’ll find in the smiling faces of old Enniscorthy.
My brothers and I and mother went to Murphy’s for the night
A B & B in the downtown square, it was perfectly all right
With pub attached and sharing craigh it was the place to be
I’m telling you all, you have to go to old Enniscorthy.
We shuffled to the square and a man did emerge
John O’Leary was his name and damaged he appeared
A Quasimodo figure with posters in his hand
He was a lampoon figure for this foreign land.
To the square for muse and pints for one and all
The ceili band it was grand and step dancers stood so tall
Yet we yearned for the social atmosphere a pub would give to thee
And Murphy Flood’s would prove to be the jewel of Enniscorthy.
So raise a glass quite heartily, to all who came before;
And journey to your homeland, to a place you will adore;
If truth be told, the core of your soul, you surely must agree;
You’ll find in the smiling faces of old Enniscorthy.
When I went to check the pub scene I heard a voice from afar
And went toward the stage and saw a shooting star
His name was Niles Wall and his voice echoed in my mind
I’d never heard a sweeter sound, not one of this kind.
At Murphy Flood’s we spent the night in endless song and rhyme
We came to hear “the Voice” but all we got was mine
Niles declined to sing that night, tis a shame for us all
For he has the lungs of Stewart, Irvine, and them all.
Bob played his harp with all the might that Guinness would allow
He played the blues, “Bus Stop Blues,” although we don’t know how
He gave his all for all the Walls, on that we all agreed
And they took us in, the Crowley clan, in old Enniscorthy.
So raise a glass quite heartily, to all who came before;
And journey to your homeland, to a place you will adore;
If truth be told, the core of your soul, you surely must agree;
You’ll find in the smiling faces, of old Enniscorthy.
We met a girl from Wexford town, her hair a golden brown
The wind it blew upon her face, never altering her frown
An Irish lass, with future cast, in Wexford she’ll remain
In mumbled conversation I said I was a Kane.
We stumbled down the stairs, to a raucous beer hall
To catch the final ceili and order up last call
If romance be your pleasure, there is a place for thee
Just north in County Wexford...sweet Enniscorthy.
At the age of thirty seven, my life was well in place;
I’d traveled around the world in search of that “Great, Good Place”
Cairo, Lagos, Bangkok, Greece and Italy
For just one night they’d never match, sweet Enniscorthy.
So raise a glass quite heartily, to all who came before
And journey to your homeland, to a place you will adore
If truth be told, the core of your soul, you surely must agree
You’ll find in the smiling faces of old Enniscorthy.
“Great Good Place” courtesy of Pete Hamill’s “A Drinking Life”
Murphy Flood’s Hotel - Enniscorthy, County Wexford
All other words borrowed from the English language