Dord Na Mara

2018

Story & Lyrics

Nachfolgend geben wir einige Detailinfos zu unseren Songs, ALLE Texte und Übersetzungen der irischen Songs unseres Albums "Dord na Mara". Die erste Idee eines Konzeptalbums entstand bereits mit Olivers Song "White Sails", den wir 2017 bei unserem Sean Nós Konzert in der Kirche in Dortmund-Scharnhorst erstmals live aufführten. Als Marc dann mit "Carry me Home" nur einige Tage später das zweite Stück zum Thema Seefahrt schrieb und der Band präsentierte, war der Entschluss schnell gefasst und der Grundstein für "Dord na Mara" gelegt.


Amhrán na Farraige (M: Henning Nugel / T: Trad. Arr. Marc Hoper)
Eigentlich ein traditionelles Lied, das uns als Introgedicht zur Einleitung des Albums gerade recht kam.

Idir gaoth is idir tonn Idir tuilleadh is idir gann 

Casann sí dhom, amhrán na farraige. 

Suaimhneach, nó ciúin, ag cuardú go damanta.

Idir cósta, idir cléibh, idir mé is idir mé féin. Tá mé i dtiúin

Éisteacht leis an amhrán na farraige!? Éisteacht leis an dord na mara!?

(Zwischen dem Wind und den Wellen, dem Sand und der Küste. Aus der Muschel, das Lied des Meeres. Weder ruhig noch leise, sei vorsichtig, es zieht Dich in seinen Bann. Zwischen den Klippen und dem Sturm, meinem einen und anderen Ich. Ich bin im Einklang. Hörst Du das Lied des Ozeans? Hörst Du den Gesang des Meeres?)


Bonnie Ship the Diamond (Trad. Arr. Ole Peters)
Ebenfalls ein Traditional. Wir haben ganz bewusst ein neues Arrangement gewählt, denn es gibt wirklich unzählige Versionen dieses Songs, wiederum von unzähligen Bands und davon sind viele auch wirklich sehr gut. Wir wollten gerne etwas Anderes machen... Olivers Grundidee unserer Interpretation hebt sich recht deutlich von den bereits existierenden ab, unser Intro fügt sich bestens ein.

"Get on board, get on board, we're hunting for the whale, and we pray and we pray, we will never fail..."
The Diamond is a ship, me lads, for the Davis Straits she's bound;
And the quay it is all garnished with bonnie lassies round.
Captain Thompson gives the order to sail the ocean wide,
Where the sun it never sets, me lads, nor darkness dims the sky.

CHORUS
And it's cheer up, me lads!
Let your hearts never fail!
For the Bonnie Ship The Diamond goes a'hunting for the whale!

Along the quay at Peterhead the lassies stand around,
With their shawls all pulled about them and the salt tears running down.
Oh, don't you weep, me bonnie lass, though you be left behind,
For the rose will grow on Greenland's ice before we change our mind.
Here's a health to The Resolution! Likewise The Eliza Swan!
Three cheers to The Battler of Montrose and The Diamond, ship of fame!
We wear the trousers of the white and the jackets of the blue.
When we return to Peterhead, we'll hae sweethearts anew.

It will be bright by day and night when the Greenland lads come hame,
With a ship that's full of oil, my lads, and money to our name.
We'll make the cradles for to rock and the blankets for to tear,
And every lass in Peterhead sing "hushabye" my dear!


Carry me Home (Marc Hoper)
Das Lied handelt von mutigen, jungen Seefahrern, die mit viel Fernweh in ihre Abenteuer starten. Im Laufe der Jahre weicht die Abenteuerlust jedoch der Sehnsucht nach dem Heimathafen. Alle Seeleute feiern am Ende des Songs in ihrer heimischen Hafenkneipe lautstark ihre Rückkehr nach Hause.

We were young and we were free
as we sailed out to sea.
We were brave and never afraid of changing weathers.
Always carrying a smile
Leaving home for a while
the prospect of any adventure made us strong.
But with the years we had to learn
that homesickness is a concern.
And each of us while lying in bed was singing this song. 

CHORUS
Take me (us) back to place where I was (we were) born.
Just carry me (us) home to the one I love (ones we love).
I (we) don't wanna stay out here on the deep, wide ocean.
Every minute is an hour and the sea is rough,
but we've got enough of the rare auld stuff.
Take me (us) over the ocean wide, carry me (us) home.

Our ship was moving fast
We nailed our colors to the mast
"Full speed", the captain cried, "get your butts together."
The crew was working hard,
Anyway - from the start... :-)
So we all joined in and everybody was singing this song.

"Not so many miles to go
Soon we will be back home, you know."
And when we reached the harbour these words echoed through the docks.

CHORUS II
We sit down at the bar with the best of friends
and we're glad our journey had to end.
We enjoy a few pints of stout and porter. (SLÁINTE!!!)
Never again will we set the sails,
finally it's reason that prevails.
We're back in the land of the free, yes, we are home!

Yes, we are hoooome! Once again in the land of the free, Yes, we are home!


White Sails (Ole Peters)
Auch bei White Sails lautet das Thema: Fernweh. Am Kai sitzend träumt der Erzähler davon, eines Tages mit den Seeleuten, mit denen er im Hafen schon das eine oder andere Gläschen getrunken hat, auf große Fahrt zu gehen. Sein Traum ist es außerdem, nach seinem Tod dem Meer übergeben zu werden.

I sit at the quai, with some booze in my pocket watching the sailors clearing their ship
And when they depart the safe of the harbour I put out my bottle and I have a sip.

CHORUS
I see the white sails getting smaller and smaller, think of the brave sailors like of true friends.
And when these white sails finally disappear --- I pray to God let me be with them one day.

The gin mill is the place to meet all the sailors. To drink with them, laugh with them, fighting with goons.
To listen to yarns that might almost be true, and to dream while a fiddler plays us some tunes

When my time is up, and you lay me to rest think of my sincere words, I told you all day
Put my bones in a kitbag, let a cleric say some words and abandon me on the open sea to the waves.


Anne Bonny (Marc Hoper)
Die (wahre?) Lebensgeschichte der Piratin Anne Bonny (geb. ca. 1700), die Zeit ihres Lebens gezwungen war, Jungen- bzw. Männerkleidung zu tragen, um nicht als Frau erkannt und damit in der Männerwelt akzeptiert zu werden. Sie hatte keine Lust auf ein Leben als Haushälterin oder Ähnlichem, also entschied sie sich, mit dem Piraten Calico Jack raubend und mordend die Weltmeere unsicher zu machen. Das Letzte, was von ihr bekannt ist, ist dass sie gemeinsam mit Calico Jack gehängt werden sollte. Ihr Name tauchte aber nie auf einer Totenliste auf, so dass man davon ausgeht, dass sie entkommen konnte. Ein Lebenszeichen gab es jedoch seither nie wieder von ihr...

Born in Kinsale in 1699, a bastard, your father ruined your life,
long before he dressed you in young boys' clothes, by cheating on his wife with a little young whore.

William Cormac you could not resist, but the whistle was blown, your honor now missed.
No clients, no money, no name to sell, so you went off to Amerikay.

CHORUS
Little Anne Bonny now where can you go (Aye!) you became a pirate as everybody knows
Now out on the sea is your way to be free (Aye!) Is that your life, how you like it to be?
Hand in hand with Calico Jack (Aye!). Killing, stealing, drinking there's no turning back

Your mother's death it drove you to tears oh, it was a hard loss in your early years
as a maid you soon took care of the house and in these days, your anger arouse.

Falling in love at only 16 to James Bonny, a small-time pirate to the queen
He trapped you into this relationship your father was against it, cause he saw through his tricks

Calico Jack what a handsome young lad. You ran away from Bonny, a sissy in your eyes
On board of the "Revenge" you shot a man dead. He found out you're a woman - he discovered your lies.

Nine months pregnant a punch in the neck You first were abandoned by Calico Jack You returned to ship, leaving your child and carried on killing, brutally and wild.

In 1720 they took you to trial, you were about to hang there was no denial
Caught in a haze when the crew was drunk Those dirty cowards, they all hid in the trunk.

Now they're taking Jack to the gallows pole. Your last known words piercing heart and soul
"I am sorry to see you here, my love,but if you'd have fought like a man you needn't hang like a dog"

CHORUS II
Little Anne Bonny a pirate's life you preferred to being a bored young wife
If that was the end no one can tell if you walked the path straight into hell.
Nobody knows what happened to thee but sure your ghost now walks abroad the Caribbean Sea.


Cambria (Ole Peters)
Und noch eine wahre Geschichte. Hier geht es um den tragischen Unfall des Passagierschiffes >Cambria< im Jahr 1870 nach nur 17 Monaten im Dienst. Die Cambria prallte bei rauher See gegen die Klippen einer irischen Insel vor der Küste Donegals und sank umgehend.179 Menschen starben, nur ein einziger Passagier überlebte...

Exploring

the waves, the sky - the deep dark water, the wide, the wind - the endless ocean

Exceeding
the drift, the tides - the far horizon
the swell, the clouds - the sparkling foam crests the wild, the chill - the heavy weather
the storm, the storm, the stoooorm

CHORUS
With the wind and the waves, the ship was wrecked pulled, pulled to the ocean ground
with the wind and the waves the ship was wrecked (where all but one man drowned)
at the cliffs of Donegal

Extinction
the truth, the hope - a wrong decision
the spume, the fog - the missing lighthouse the reef, the crack - the ruined ship's side
the floods, the floods, the floooooods

Implication
the surge, the draught - the rising waters the boats, the men - the senseless rowing the course, the crest - collapsing breakers
the cold, the cold, the coooold

The Long Lost Crew (Pascal Junker)
Die Fortsetzung eines der beliebtesten Irish Folksongs überhaupt, die Rede ist von THE IRISH ROVER. Wie bekannt sein dürfte, ist ja der Erzähler im Irish Rover der einzig Überlebende, nachdem auch der arme Hund ertrank. Aber hat sich schon einmal jemand Gedanken gemacht, was mit der (untoten) Crew passierte...!? ;-)

Break the waves and feel the fog, the dark is in your eyes
I lost my barrels, my life and my old frog but tonight my ship will rise
Any light house is so far away, the green island's out of reach
The last one on this boat was led astray. So we're on the bottom of the sea and bleach

For seven years we rode the wind, for two hundred we reposed
The reaper put us to the seabed as he grinned. We laugh, since the door to life remained unclosed

CHROUS
We're rovers and riders on the storm
We're sailing ghosts from Cork to New York
Tonight we're rising, sailing shore to shore
We're Irish Rovers sailing out forevermore!

Tonight when you sail across the waves, the fog will tell my tale
Don't lose your way and sail around our graves. Try to make it through the storm, out of the pale

I'm the captain who never made it to New York I roam these waters to and fro
In my dreams I come into port of Cork. So I'll take your ship and end this tale of woe

For seven years we rode the wind, for two hundred we reposed
The reaper put us to the seabed as he grinned. We laugh, since the door to life remained unclosed
For all these years we rode the wind, I feel, my years as ghost are done
The storm I rose will reign and steer our ships, now twinned This might will bring us to the port as one

CHORUS II
We're rovers and riders on the storm
We're sailing ghosts from the south to the north,
Every night we sail from shore to shore.
We're Irish Rovers sailing out forevermore!


The High Hill of Skryne (Eddie Who?)
Ein Lied, das wir schon seit geraumer Zeit live spielen. Geschrieben wurde das Stück von dem leider viel zu früh verstorbenen Singer-Songwriter Eddie Who? aus Navan, Irland. Wir hatten das Glück seit den 1990er Jahren immer mal gemeinsam mit Eddie musizieren zu können. Seine Familie hat uns die freundliche Genehmigung erteilt, diesen Song über eine dem Alltag zum Opfer fallende Liebesbeziehung als Tribute für Eddie zu covern und auf Dord na Mara zu veröffentlichen.

Sick and tired of the island sick and tired of this life
sick and tired of the weather sick and tired of his wife.

So they saved up the money and they've followed their dream
to the milk and the honey and an apartment in Queens - New York city...

CHORUS
He'd sing far away hills are greener my love
greater than the moon and the stars up above
oh I'll take you back home where the grass it is green
down by the Boyne and the high Hill of Skryne
oh the high Hill of Skryne

But the husband's at the race track and he's loosing his shirt
the wife waits 'til he gets back shoes all covered in dirt.

He goes home to the woman as she sits by the fire.
Yeah, she hears him coming singing higher and higher... and higher.

But the husband's out drinking and he's full to the gill.
And whenever he's drinking he takes a far away hill.

There's lipstick on his collar, there's perfume on his neck
he'd just borrow 10 dollars on the strength of a cheque.


Western Comfort (Pascal Junker)
Die Bedeutung des Songs ist aus zweierlei Sicht zu werten, Er erzählt die Geschichte von zwei "Parteien" einerseits eines Musikers, der fröhlich und dankbar ist, Musik machen zu können und friedlich im Pub sein Bier trinkt sowie andererseits über eine kriminelle Bande, die nur auf der Suche nach Streit und Möglichkeiten ist, Verbrechen zu begehen. Die Sinnlosigkeit der Kriminalität und die Musik als Aussicht auf Veränderung stehen in diesem komplexen Song gegenüber.

The first street lights begin to flicker as I make way out of this town
The evening sky from blue to red, wipes away my worries and frown
A misty shroud is creeping low, falls cold onto the ground
I packed my gigbags and my songs into my car and started out

The muzzle flashes begin to flicker as they head towards a town
The heat of the sun and the burning houses make them sweat and frown
The shimmering air is rising high and blurs their view around
They packed their bags with guns and rifles, wordless they started out

CHORUS
Tell me why don't these guys just sing with us or have a drink there at the bar?
Is it just because they don't like the tune,
or is there someone who bars them from it?

I'm driving through the darkest streets in the shine of the brightest light
My banjo and my guitar in the back, warmed seats in the coldest night
When I arrive, there's great musicians and happiness in sight
These hours we'll never forget, warm atmosphere ignites

They're driving through the darkest cries in the shine of exploding mines
Loads of guilt on their backs, returning cries in coldest nights
Meanwhile they forgot the reason for their duty and the fight
These hours they'll never forget, dead atmosphere ignites

We're singin' and laughin' all the night, like the sun will never rise
Each song is better than the one before, emotion in disguise
Meanwhile happiness is strolling around, through the pubs and alleys alike
By sunrise I'll be home in my bed, where I will close my eyes

They're shooting and killing all the night, no reason for the sun to rise
Each kill more senseless than the one before, devil in disguise
Meanwhile hate is strolling grimly around, through ruins and men alike
By sunrise they start over again, until they finally close their eyes


Song for Navan (Marc Hoper)
Wieder geht es um wahre Begebenheiten... Marc hat diesen Song 2001 während unserer ersten Irlandtour (und auch darüber) am Kaminfeuer geschrieben und er gilt als Liebeserklärung an die Stadt Navan, in die wir immer wieder gerne zurückkehren. Nachdem wir das Stück jahrelang live gespielt hatten, war es die über letzten Jahre irgendwie "verschwunden". Auf und durch die Vorbereitungen auf Dord na Mara kommt es nun zu späten Ehren und sicherlich auch künftig wieder auf die Bühne.

In Ireland there's a lovely place and it's called Navan Town.
The music there is flowing free you'll never be on your own.
The people are nicest that you have ever met.
It's a shame we had to leave so soon, but for sure we will be back.

CHORUS
When we arrived in Navan I thought I'd been here before
The second day just seemed to me like it was a day ago.
The third day was like being here for even more than a year
On the fourth day it felt like a lifetime being here.

Lough Crew, the Hill of Tara, all this we went to see.
We were having just a good time And it seems so strange to me
it really felt like home from the first day we were here
with the beautiful landscape and the people we love dear.

The beautiful house we lived in will alike well never be found
in another town than Navan it's the only place around.
We found our love in different ways and I hope it's understood
One day we'll return to Navan and we'll stay there for good.


Leave Her Johnny (Trad. Arr. Marc Hoper / Henning Nugel)
Ein altes englisches Sea Shanty, das den Seefahrer auffordert, nicht auf sein Schiff zurückzukehren, um wieder in See zu stechen, sondern von nun an im Hafen zu bleiben. Die Reise würde lang (in manchen Transkriptionen heißt es auch "the voyage is DONE = die Reise ist zu Ende)" und der Wind hat sich gelegt. Der Song baut eine Brücke zu >Carry me Home<, in dem die Seeleute wieder im Heimathafen angekommen sind und nicht mehr in See stechen wollen... eigentlich, jedoch...

Oh the work was hard and the wages low
Leave her Johnny, leave her.
I guess its time for us to go
an' it's time for us to leave her!

CHORUS
Leave her Johnny leave her,
oh leave her Johnny, leave her.
For the voyage is long and the winds don't blow
an' it's time for us to leave her!

Oh I thought I heard the old man say,
Oh tomorrow you will get your pay

The winds blew foul and the seas ran high.
We shipped up green and none went by

The mate was a bucko an' the Old Man a Turk,
The bosun wuz a beggar with the middle name o' Work.

The old man swears and the mate swears, too
The crew will swear and so will you.


Dord na Mara (M: Henning Nugel / T: Marc Hoper)
... schließt mit unserem Outro nicht nur musikalisch den Kreis zum Intro >Amhrán na Farraige<, denn, wie die Übersetzung des Textes, den Marc in irischer Sprache verfasst hat, zeigt, kann ein Seemann auf Dauer nicht an Land bleiben. Er muss immer wieder zurück aufs Meer.

Seoltóir, dul ar an long, toisc ta fhios a bheith agat,
riamh féidir leat seasamh in aghaidh an ghlao na farraige.

Cloisfidh tú é, i gcónaí.

An Dord na Mara...


(Seemann, geh an Bord, denn du weißt,
du kannst dem Ruf des Ozeans niemals widerstehen.
Du wirst ihn immer hören... den Gesang des Meeres.)