I read a post here about something or other, its content not the point, and my gaze settled on the posters location.
There’s stuff with USA attached, and then all on it’s own ‘Co. Clare…’ I couldn’t be bothered to pursue where the author is really from, as today it is no longer relevant to Irish folk music, all sorts of nationalities partaking of the hobby. Maybe ‘Co. Clare Michigan’? or China?
But, and here is the source of my amusement, if a person solely is ‘Co. Clare Ireland’ . then he/she is barred from most of ‘Capt Francis O’Niell’s 1001 Irish Dance Tunes’. Because the majority of those are not ‘Co. Clare ..’ but other counties.
Remarkable achievement too, to have this wonderful place as part of one’s being. After all is said and done, it must be a great county, what with all the people going to Ireland every summer for their vacation and so on.
But still, I don’t know at which part of the globe it is. And if it is in Ireland maybe it is a separate new republic there? The Republic of 'Co. Clare.. '. It has to have those dots to set the reader wondering what should have been next.
Who would have thought back in the old days, Coleman, Morrison, Cooley et al, that there isn’t anywhere else in Ireland that a person could be from, much less to have any pride in his/her roots except from there! I mean, one is almost tempted to think that admitting Co. Roscommon Ireland is your origin admits defeat!
Now there are some, Wiki experts for example, who have labored hard to make such as Matt Molloy to be ‘not’ from there. According to these scholars Matt is a Sligo man, at least the last time I looked, that’s what is published.
Still my amusement at the identity game of being from mystical places, and never from some rainy bog riddled flat part of the world, the Shannon delta Ireland, for example. I think I should be from somewhere as nice as ‘Co. Clare ..’ so that I can get more scope for my advertising and so on, but then those dots are kind of a put on job, not at all in character with the place I really am from. Renowned for honesty, and mighty music, BTW most of the great tunes in Irish folk music begun there, and modesty.
Next stop, The Drone ..
I’ll get me hat !