30-498: The Wolfe Tones are an Irish rebel music band that incorporate Irish traditional music in their songs. Formed in 1963, they take their name from Theobald Wolfe Tone , one of the leaders of the Irish Rebellion of 1798 , with the double meaning of a wolf tone ; a sound that can affect instruments in the string family of the orchestra. The origins of the group date back to August 1963, where three neighbouring children from
60-677: A Republican perspective), such as Only our rivers run free , and some have been covered by bands that have tweaked lyrics to be explicitly anti-war , such as the cover of The Patriot Game by Scottish band The Bluebells . Over the years, a number of bands have performed "crossover" music, that is, Irish rebel lyrics and instrumentation mixed with other, more pop styles. Damien Dempsey is known for his pop-influenced rebel ballads and bands like Beltaine's Fire and Kneecap combine Rebel music with Political hip hop and other genres. Irish rebel music has occasionally gained international attention. The Wolfe Tones ' version of A Nation Once Again
90-622: A man! Show your wife how you won medals down in Flanders! Tell her how the IRA, made you run like hell away, from the green and lovely lanes of Killeshandra! Them poor Arabs two by two, Like the Zulu they had spears and bow and arrows! How bravely you faced one, With yer sixteen-pounder gun! And you frightened all the natives to the marrow! Come out and fight me like a man! Show your wife how you won medals down in Flanders! Tell her how
120-511: A man", stating that the "IRA" ( Irish Republican Army ), had made the Black and Tans "run like hell away" from rural Ireland such as the "green and lovely lanes of Killeshandra " (which is in County Cavan , and where, in 1922, ex-RIC and Black and Tan soldiers were forced to retreat from the town after being given a few days warning to leave by the local IRA ). The lyrics make references to
150-571: A number 2 hit for the band. The song Celtic Symphony was written by Warfield in 1987 for the centenary of Celtic Football Club . Other songs written by the group include "Joe McDonnell", a song about the life and death of the Provisional IRA member Joe McDonnell , who was the fifth person to die on the 1981 Hunger Strike ; and "The Protestant Men", a song about notable Protestant Irish nationalists . The band also covered "The Streets of New York", written by Liam Reilly from Bagatelle who
180-885: A popular topic of choice among musicians which supported Irish nationalism and republicanism . When they discuss events during the 20th and 21st centuries, Irish rebel songs focus on physical force Irish republicanism in the context of the Easter Rising , the Irish War of Independence , the Anti-Treaty IRA during the Irish Civil War , and, more recently, the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The tradition of rebel music in Ireland date back to
210-527: Is a Rebel Song", as she explains in her live album How About I Be Me (And You Be You)? Come Out Ye Black and Tans "Come Out, Ye Black and Tans" is an Irish rebel song , written by Dominic Behan , which criticises and satirises pro-British Irishmen and the actions of the British army in its colonial wars. Its title refers to the Black and Tans , mainly former British Army soldiers, who reinforced
240-520: Is used pejoratively in the song to describe people living in Dublin, both Irish Catholic and Protestant , who were pro-British. Behan composed the lyrics in the early 1960s, to the tune of the traditional air Rosc Catha na Mumhan . It was recorded in 1972 by the Irish traditional music group The Wolfe Tones , and re-charted in 2020. The song is attributed to Irish songwriter Dominic Behan , who
270-613: The Atheneum Chicago and Electric Picnic . However, they announced their retirement in 2023, with a 60th-anniversary tour to conclude their career. As well as gigs in the US, the band played concerts at Galway Airport , Castlebar , Co. Mayo and in the 3Arena , with the band's advertised final gig taking place in Dublin on 13 October 2024. On 23 August 2024, the band released a final single, Goodbye to All Our Friends . Despite
300-576: The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) during the Irish War of Independence and committed many acts of violence and terror against the Irish population. The song initially describes Behan's father Stephen coming home drunk and provoking pro-British neighbours, referencing political divisions in working-class Dublin of the 1920s and 1930s. It then continues to list examples of British injustice against Ireland, linking this to British colonial violence worldwide . The term "Black and Tans"
330-845: The nationalist cause in Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State , including support for the Anti-Treaty IRA , the Provisional IRA , the INLA , and Sinn Féin . However, the subject matter is not confined to Irish history, and includes the exploits of the Connolly Column , who fought for the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War , and also those who participated in the American Civil War . There are also some songs that express sorrow over war (from
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#1732771754456360-528: The 18th century. The tune is also used by the loyalist song The Boyne Water . A variant of the tune migrated to Scotland and to the Appalachian Mountains , where it became the most common melody for the traditional folk ballad Barbara Allen . While the song title and lyrics refer to the Black and Tans from the War of Independence, the Black and Tans themselves do not figure prominently in
390-518: The 3Arena show being advertised as the bands final gig, the band announced two shows at Thomond Park in Limerick for July 2025, as well as a gig in Liverpool . Inactive Defunct The song "Irish Eyes" was written by Brian Warfield as a paean for his mother Kathleen who died of cancer the year prior to its release. A song about emigration to London entitled "My Heart is in Ireland" became
420-480: The Dublin suburb of Inchicore , Brian Warfield , Noel Nagle, and Liam Courtney, had been musical friends from childhood. In August 1964, Brian's brother Derek Warfield joined the band, and in November 1964 Tommy Byrne replaced Courtney, creating the band's most recognizable line-up, which would last for nearly 37 years until January 2001. In 1995, Derek Warfield released a solo studio album entitled Legacy as he
450-528: The Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War . At times, the song's authorship has been mistakenly attributed to Stephen Behan. The melody of the song was adapted by Behan from an old air, Rosc Catha na Mumhan (Irish for "Battlecry of Munster"), by Piaras Mac Gearailt [ ga ] (Pierce FitzGerald, c. 1709 – c. 1792), which was closely associated with the Jacobite cause during
480-666: The Irish government's planned commemoration of the RIC , as part of its ' Decade of Commemoration '. As a result of this, on 10 January, the song entered the Irish Singles Chart at No. 33 and also debuted at No. 1 in the Scottish Singles Chart . Irish rebel music In the music of Ireland , Irish rebel songs are folk songs which are primarily about the various rebellions against British Crown rule . Songs about prior rebellions are
510-610: The airwaves in the Republic of Ireland in the 1980s. More recently, Derek Warfield 's music was banned from Aer Lingus flights, after the Ulster Unionist politician Roy Beggs Jr compared his songs to the speeches of Osama bin Laden . However, a central tenet of the justification for rebel music from its supporters is that it represents a long-standing tradition of freedom from tyranny. Themes include "Arbour Hill", about
540-501: The execution of the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising , and to the fall of the Irish nationalist political leader, Charles Stewart Parnell . There are variations of the original lyrics that incorporate references to more modern events in Irish nationalism, such as the Troubles . where the Royal drums did beat, the loving English feet, they walked all over us, and every single night, when me da' would come home tight, he'd invite
570-671: The history of Irish nationalism , and "links the Irish experience with other peoples’ struggles against the British Empire, from the Zulus to the Middle East." One line of the song states to the Dublin neighbours: " Come tell us how you slew them poor Arabs two by two / Like the Zulus , they had spears and bows and arrows ". The lyrics reference the disdain by his neighbours (saying "sneers and jeers that you loudly let us hear"), to
600-488: The lyrics. Instead, the song initially relates a dispute between republican and unionist neighbours in inner-city Dublin in the Irish Free State era of the 1920s and 1930s. During this era, Dublin continued to elect unionist pro-British politicians and voluntary service in the British Army was a popular career choice amongst working-class Dubliners, for both Catholics and Protestants. Supporting this tradition
630-455: The neighbours out with this chorus: Come out and fight me like a man! Show your wife how you won medals down in Flanders! Tell her how the IRA, made you run like hell away, from the green and lovely lanes of Killeshandra! How you slandered Great Parnell, When you thought him well and truly persecuted! Where are those sneers and jeers, That you bravely let us hear, When our leaders of '16 were executed! Come out and fight me like
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#1732771754456660-521: The period of English (and later British) crown rule , and describe historical events in Irish history such as rebellions against the Crown and reinforcing a desire for self-determination among the Irish people and the Irish diaspora . As well as a deep-rooted sense of tradition, rebel songs have nonetheless remained contemporary, and since the end of the Irish Civil War in 1923, the focus has moved onto
690-599: The place ; "Fergal O'Hanlon", about the man ; "Northern Gaels"/"Crumlin Jail", about the prison ; "The Ballad of Mairead Farrell", about the woman ; "Seán Treacy", about the man ; and "Pearse Jordan", about the man . The 1983 U2 album War includes the song " Sunday Bloody Sunday ", a lament for the Northern Ireland troubles whose title alludes to the 1972 Bloody Sunday shooting of Catholic demonstrators by British soldiers. In concert, Bono began introducing
720-525: The song with the disclaimer "this song is not a rebel song". These words are included in the version on Under a Blood Red Sky , the 1983 live album of the War Tour . The 1988 concert film Rattle and Hum includes a performance hours after the 1987 Remembrance Day bombing in Enniskillen, which Bono condemns in a mid-song rant. In response, Sinéad O'Connor released a song with the title "This
750-424: Was born into the literary Behan family in Dublin in 1928 (his brother was Brendan Behan ). It was composed at some time in the early 1960s. The setting of the song is the Dublin into which Behan was born in the late 1920s, and the main character in the song (who is calling his neighbours "Black and Tans"), is believed to be Behan's father, Stephen Behan , who was a prominent Irish republican, and who had fought in
780-630: Was inspired by stories of the Tones' friendship with the NYPD. Footballer James McClean attracted criticism when he tweeted that he listened to their rendition of The Broad Black Brimmer before a match, a song in which a son learns of how his father was killed in fighting for the IRA. He was told by club manager Martin O'Neill to refrain from using Twitter. In 2002, after an allegedly orchestrated e-mail campaign by fans to "try and mess it up" their rendition of " A Nation Once Again " by Thomas Osborne Davis
810-669: Was still eligible to record under his own name. With Derek on vocals and mandolin, the music on this album was performed by a new band, although he was still touring with the Wolfe Tones. Derek's solo releases continued annually until 2006. The Wolfe Tones continued to tour as a three-piece band. In 2022–2024, the band played shows in the Olympia Theatre, Dublin , the INEC Ireland , Broadway (Manhattan) in New York ,
840-823: Was the existence of a relatively large, and now generally forgotten and disappeared, Dublin Protestant working class. It is this pro-British working class, of both religions, that the composer is confronting in the song (a noted representation of this cultural group is Bessie Burgess in the Seán O'Casey play The Plough and the Stars ). In the chorus, the composer is pejoratively labelling his Dublin neighbours, who are pro-British and First World War veterans ("show your wife how you won medals down in Flanders "). He calls them "Black and Tans", and asks them to come out and "fight me like
870-558: Was voted the number one song in the world by BBC World Service listeners in 2002. Many of the more popular acts recently such as Saoirse , Éire Óg , Athenrye, Shebeen, Mise Éire and Pádraig Mór are from Glasgow . The Bog Savages of San Francisco are fronted by an escapee from Belfast 's Long Kesh prison who made his break in the September 1983 " Great Escape " by the IRA. Music of this genre has often courted controversy with some of this music effectively banned from
900-483: Was voted the number one song of all time in a BBC World Service poll. The BBC hosts an artist's page for the band that includes excerpts of their songs. The band's 1982 hit Admiral William Brown pays homage to the Irish-born Argentine sailor William Brown . In January 2020, the band's version of " Come Out Ye Black and Tans " reached No. 1 on the Ireland and UK iTunes charts, following criticism of
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