The Rocky Road to Dublin: what the song means

We’re in an Irish port for the next two songs. That means a break from sea shanties and a chance to dive into some popular traditional music. The Rocky Road to Dublin is one of the best known Irish trad songs. It’s fast, fun, and tells a great story.

We’ll dig into the history of the song, break down the lyrics, and share our favourite versions. If you’re familiar with the tune and fancy singing it, check out our instrumental karaoke version of The Rocky Road to Dublin.

History of The Rocky Road to Dublin

This Irish song has its origins in the 19th century. It was written by Irish poet D. K. Gavan – “The Galway Poet” – and tells the exploits of a man’s journey from Tuam, Ireland to Liverpool, England. The song was made popular by English singer “Handsome Harry Clifton” – his nickname during his career.

It quickly became a favourite of the people and has been covered many times. It’s now considered a classic Irish song. To illustrate how deeply it’s entered the Irish psyche, the song is even sung by a character in Ulysses by James Joyce – the renowned Irish writer.

The Rocky Road to Dublin lyrics

In the merry month of June from me home I started

Left the girls of Tuam nearly broken-hearted

Saluted Father dear, kissed me darling mother

Drank a pint of beer, me grief and tears to smother

Then off to reap the corn, leave where I was born

Cut a stout blackthorn to banish ghosts and goblins

A brand new pair of brogues, rattlin’ o’er the bogs

Frightenin’ all the dogs on the rocky road to Dublin

–

One two three four five

Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road

And all the way to Dublin, Whack-fol-lol-le-rah!

–

In Mullingar that night I rested limbs so weary

Started by daylight next morning light and airy

Drunk a drop of the pure, to keep me heart from sinking

That’s the Paddy’s cure whenever he’s on drinking

To see the lassies smile, laughing all the while

At me curious style, ‘twould set your heart a-bubblin’

They’ asked if I was hired, wages I required

‘Till I was almost tired of the rocky road to Dublin

–

One two three four five

Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road

And all the way to Dublin, Whack-fol-lol-le-rah!

–

In Dublin next arrived, I thought it such a pity

To be soon deprived a view of that fine city

Well then I took a stroll, out among the quality

My bundle it was stole, all in a neat locality

Something crossed me mind, then I looked behind

No bundle could I find upon me stick a wobblin’

Enquiring for the rogue, they said me Connaught brogue

Wasn’t much in vogue on the rocky road to Dublin

–

One two three four five

Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road

And all the way to Dublin, Whack-fol-lol-le-rah!

–

From there I got away, me spirits never falling

Landed on the quay, just as the ship was sailing

The Captain at me roared, said that no room had he

When I jumped aboard, a cabin found for Paddy

Down among the pigs, played some funny rigs

Danced some hearty jigs, the water round me bubbling

When off Holyhead wished myself was dead

Or better far instead, on the rocky road to Dublin

–

One two three four five

Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road

And all the way to Dublin, Whack-fol-lol-le-rah!

–

The boys of Liverpool, when we safely landed

Called meself a fool, I could no longer stand it

Blood began to boil, temper I was losing

Poor old Erin’s Isle they began abusing

“Hurrah me soul!” says I, me shillelagh I let fly

Some Galway boys were by and saw I was a hobbling

With a loud “Hurray!” joined in the affray

We quickly cleared the way for the rocky road to Dublin

–

One two three four five

Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road

And all the way to Dublin, Whack-fol-lol-le-rah!

–

Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road

And all the way to Dublin, Whack fol lol le rah!

Whack fol lol le rah!

Whack fol lol le rah!

What the lyrics mean

“Left the girls of Tuam nearly broken-hearted”

Tuam is a town in Ireland. The hero of the song started his journey there and feels the women are all extremely sad that he left.

“Then off to reap the corn, leave where I was born”

“Off to reap the corn” is a metaphor that means he’s going to make money. ‘Corn’ is used to refer to any grain, which was a measure of wealth.

“Cut a stout blackthorn to banish ghosts and goblins”

A blackthorn is a tree known for its hard wood. It was often used for making staves because it was so strong. He’s preparing a weapon for fighting any monsters he might come across on the road.

“A brand new pair of brogues, rattlin’ o’er the bogs”

Brogues are a type of shoe. He’s got a new pair of shoes and they’re making a noise as he crosses the bogs. This is also likely a reference to another popular Irish song, Rattlin’ Bog.

“Hunt the Hare and turn her down the rocky road”

‘Hunt the Hare’ is a traditional Irish Jig. This line is suggesting that he’s in good spirits and dancing his way to Dublin. ‘Turn her down the rocky road’ seems to suggest he’s dancing with a female partner. This makes sense considering he’s already outed himself as somewhat of a ladies man. It doesn’t seem a stretch to imagine he’s breaking out the Irish charm on any pretty ladies he comes across.

“Drunk a drop of the pure, to keep me heart from sinking”

A ‘drop of the pure’ is a reference to whiskey. Note that we’ve spelt it ‘whiskey’ not ‘whisky’ – the ‘e’ is used when referring to Irish whisky, if there’s no ‘e’ it’s Scotch. He’s having a small drink to keep his spirits up.

“That’s the Paddy’s cure whenever he’s on drinking”

Paddy is a way of referring to an Irishman. It’s sometimes used as a slur but many Irish people will use it to refer to themselves. The ‘cure’ is a small drink in the morning. The commonly used expression is ‘the hair of the dog’ – it’s widely believed to be the best remedy for a hangover.

“My bundle it was stole, all in a neat locality”

‘Bundle’ is talking about all his belongings. They’re wrapped up in a sheet and attached to the top of the staff he fashioned earlier. Someone has stolen it without him realising.

“Enquiring for the rogue, they said me Connaught brogue…wasn’t much in vogue on the rocky road to Dublin”

He’s talking to the Dublin locals about the theft and asking if they know anything about the thief. Instead of answering his question, they make fun of his ‘Connaught brogue’ – his accent.

“Down among the pigs, played some funny rigs”

He’s now on a ship to Liverpool but didn’t get a cabin and had to go down among the cargo – in this case, pigs. ‘Rigs’ can mean tricks or a song played on a string instrument. It’s likely intended to be ambiguous and mean both. He was making some funky moves to avoid the pigs whilst playing a tune.

“Danced some hearty jigs, the water round me bubbling”

‘Jigs’ are a style of dance. Our traveller is saying he was enthusiastically dancing around the pigs and the water that had come into the bottom of the ship.

“When off Holyhead wished myself was dead”

He’s regretting his choices as the voyage continues. Which isn’t a surprise really… You need to remember he’s in the bottom of the ship surrounded by nasty seawater that the pigs are in amongst.

“Poor old Erin’s Isle they began abusing”

He’s now arrived in Liverpool and the local lads start insulting “Erin’s Isle” – this is another name for Ireland. It comes from the Irish word “Éirinn” for Ireland and gives the country a female personification.

“Hurrah me soul!” says I, me shillelagh I let fly

He’s had enough of them insulting his homeland and attacks them with his ‘shillelagh’. This is the traditional Gaelic name for his blackthorn walking stick.

“Some Galway boys were by and saw I was a hobbling”

Galway is also in Ireland. He was spotted by some other Irish lads and they saw he was outnumbered.

“With a loud “Hurray!” joined in the affray”

An ‘affray’ is a group fighting in public that disturbs the peace. The ‘Galway boys’ jumped into the fight to help even the odds for our hero. Which according to the next line was a success as they ‘cleared the way’.

Best versions of The Rocky Road to Dublin

Almost any band or singer involved in Irish trad has sung this song at one point or another. It wasn’t easy narrowing it down to our top 3 versions of the song.

The High Kings

This is one of the most popular ‘modern’ versions. It has a steady energy that grows throughout as the instruments progressively play a bigger part. You also get to see how involved the audience gets.

The Kings of Connaught

This group of younger guys does a fantastic version.  Firstly, you couldn’t find people more Irish if you tried. Their accents add to the overall appeal of the song, they’ve incorporated several traditional instruments such as the tin whistle, and they filmed the video in an Irish castle. Immersive and exciting. 

The Ramparts

This is our all-time favourite version. If you only listen to one version, make it this one. It’s sung in an Irish pub by a choir. It’s fully acapella and they have great harmonies. Unlike most other versions of the song, they‘ve made it truly their own.  I wish we’d had the opportunity to witness this live!

Final thoughts

You’ve learned that The Rocky Road to Dublin follows a man’s journey from the Irish town Tuam to Liverpool in England. We explained the meaning of the tricky lyrics and shared a few fantastic versions. Think we missed a great one? Let us know in the comments.

If you’d like to sing it, why not give our acoustic karaoke version a go? You’ll need a good set of lungs for this one!