Hi 

 

I �m currently trying to put together a lesson on Irish immigrants to the USA. This lesson is to be based on songs. I already have one about their coming to the USA: Isle of Hope by Brendan Graham, but I �m looking for a song (traditional, recent, ...) that tells of the life they had after they settled in the USA.

 

Hope you can help me with this.

 

Merry Christmas

 

Celine 

All kinds of immigrants to the US, among them Irish, a very bitter song though, but SOOOOO POWERFUL! is Bruce Springsteen �s American Land. Guess exactly what you �re looking for, but not a rosy picture

 

Make sure to find it with lyrics as Bruce doesn �t exacly sing clearly ;-) 

I�ve just looked through youtube and can�t find the video I once downloaded with the lyrics, anyway, if you want it write to me a pm with your email and I�ll send it to you.

Not sure if it fits your needs. as it �s more of a love song, but I �ve always liked The Lakes of Pontchartrain, by Planxty. There �s a wiki entry for it too. Lyrics are here. There were a lot of Irish soldiers who came over to North America with the British army and no doubt many decided to stay. Planxty �s version seems to tell it from that kind of point of view anyway.

 

For a complete contrast, have a look at the Dropkick Murphys, for example, "The Hardest Mile" (lyrics here, background to the story here).

 

And of course, as Christmas is approaching, The Pogues � Fairy Tale of New York is a classic.

A couple more links for you to mine:

Ten Irish emigration songs that will stir your heart

Songs of Irish Immigration Playlist - YouTube

Tap

Thousands are Sailing by The Pogues (it is one of the songs referred to in Tap �s link to "Ten Irish emigration songs that will stir your heart") goes about causes for emigration ("a famished man") and about life there as an immigrant (in the US) - you may check the lyrics here.
And if it somehow comes relevant to your  course (I don �t know if it does - in Portugal, we are often asked to establish a connection between what we teach and what ss see / feel / experience outside school), it can also be used to establish a parallel between the period of the Great Famine and the current refugee crisis (thousands are now sailing to a land in which some will be a religious minority) - what was/were/are the cause(s) for emigration? + How did/will it work out?

Sandra