Looking for a half remembered song

Poststructural Pub
1

(Please forgive my singing…)

Does anyone recognize this old traditional song?

I am several months into trying to find any mention of it online and I’ve officially finished searching through all of my friends CDs and cassettes.

This is the first verse to the best of my memory:

"Oh Come to the sea side and hear the wild waves.

On the dark rocks we’ll stand as the storm wildly raves.

And we’ll watch the white seagulls o’er tempest and spray.

For the mighty ocean ridge is fierce and loud.

Oh come come away."

The second and third verses start with:

" Oh come to the hedge row…

(Something about the blackthorn and bramble)…"

And

“Oh come to the meadow, with gay flowers all around…”

Exhaustive Google searches and AI only managed to find the first verse by lyrics and it turns out that it was a poem from an older book that someone wrote a few more verses for and turned into a song.

I remember hearing it first some time around 2006 in either CD or cassette format, but it may have been recorded way earlier. The whole album was English language acapella singing “field recordings” in the Sean-nós style. I had thought that the singer was either Paddy Berry or Paddy Tunney, but I couldn’t find it in the CDs that I could track down.

Any help or leads at all would be greatly appreciated. This has been driving me crazy.

2

It doesn’t perhaps immediately sound like your average traditional song.

I imagine you will have better luck on Mudcat, where more song aficionados are available.

1 Like
3

Thank you for the recommendation, I had not heard of Mudcat.

4

Someone named Reinhard on Mudcat found it. I’ll post the info here for anyone interested:

| Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Looking for a half-remembered song
From: Reinhard
Date: 16 Jul 26 - 03:09 PM

RoudFS/S201853

COME COME AWAY

First line: Oh come to the seaside to hear the wild waves
Roud no: 5707    |   Sound recording   |   Audio
Veteran VT 132 ('From Donegal and Back')
Byrne, Packie   |   Northern Ireland - Co. Donegal |

|----|

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Looking for a half-remembered song
From: Reinhard
Date: 16 Jul 26 - 03:26 PM

COME, COME AWAY
sung by Packie Byrne

O come to the seaside, to hear the wild waves,
On the dark rocks we’ll stand, whilst the storm wildly raves,
And we’ll watch the white seagulls, over tempest and spray,
Where the mighty ocean ridges fierce and loud,
O come, come away.

O come to the hedgerows, with gay flowers all bright,
See the daffodils dancing beneath the sunlight,
Where the blackthorn and bramble in harmony sway,
And the little birds are singing merrily,
O come, come away.

O come to the valley, let’s sit by the stream,
See the fast flowing waters reflect the sunbeam,
Where the lambs in the meadows are sporting in play,
And the whispering breezes tell us we’re in love,
O come, come away.

From Julie McNamara’s album liner notes:
A song probably made for consumption in respectable parlours accompanied by the strains of the genteel piano. However, this sort of song was far more popular among Irish traditional singers (as well as those in Britain) than has been admitted. It’s of a type which originated early in the twentieth century.