Thady Quill

"Lyrics Ye maids of Dunhallow who're anxious for courting A word of advice I will give unto ye Proceed to Banteer to the athletic sporting And hand in your names to the club committee And never commence any skits on your programme Till the carriage you see flying over the hill Right down through the valleys and glens of Kilcorney With our own darling sportsman the bold Thady Quill (Chorus): For ramblin', for rovin', for football' or courtin' For drinkin' black porter as fast as you'd fill In all your days rovin' you'll find none so jovial As our Muskerry sportsman, the bould Thady Quill At the great hurling match between Cork and Tipperary ('Twas played in the park on the banks of the Lee) Our own darling lads were afraid of being beaten So they sent for bold Thady to Ballinagree He hurled the ball right and left in their faces And showed the Tipperary men action and skill If they touched on his lines he would certainly brain them And the papers were full of the praise of Thade Quill (Chorus) At the Cork Exhibition there was a fair lady Whose fortune exceeded a million or more But a bad constitution had ruined her completely And medical treatment had failed o'er and o'er O, Mother, says she, sure I know what will ease me And cure this disease that will certainly kill Give over your doctors and medical treatment I'd rather one squeeze out of bold Thady Quill (Chorus)"

Thady Quill is a popular traditional Irish song. The song is ironic as it was written about an individual living in County Cork who was not a heroic figure.^{[citation needed]} It was recorded by The Clancy Brothers on their album Come Fill Your Glass with Us.

Composer

The ballad "The Bould Thady Quill" was composed by Johnny Tom Gleeson around 1895 and first put to paper in 1905. Johnny Tom Gleeson (1853–1924) was a farmer who lived near Rylane, County Cork. He fancied himself a poet/balladeer, lampooning many of his neighbors and acquaintances.^{[citation needed]}

Subject

Timothy "Thady" Quill (c.1860-1932) was a poor laborer and occasional cattle jobber, who, owning no land nor house, did odd-jobs for the local farmers. Thady, although a burly man, was no athlete, and sleeping in barns did not endear him to the ladies - he died a bachelor. Johnny Tom Gleeson engaged Thady as a labourer. However, instead of paying him, he "immortalized" Thady with this ballad, which pleased Thady to no end.^{[citation needed]}

Notes

• A version of the ballad with music was published in "Soodlum's Irish Ballad Book" by Oak Publications, London, England, 1982, and another in "Comic Songs of Cork and Kerry" by James N. Healy, published by Mercier Press, 1978.
• Reference: "Johnny Tom Gleeson" written by James A. Chisman and published by The Three Spires Press, Cork, Ireland, 1994.