”It’s a Long Way to Tipperary” (1912-1918)
It's a Long Way to Tipperary...
On Wednesday, November 11, 1998 the Irish State formally honoured, for the first time, the quarter of a million Irish people who had served in the British Forces during the first World War, of which over 50,000 died. History was made in the Belgian village of MESEN where a monument was unveiled by President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, in the presence of Queen Elizabeth and the King and Queen of Belgium. The monument is a 110 foot Irish Round Tower made from tons of stones taken from a former workhouse in Mullingar, Co. Westmeath.
Many of the pictures of this historic occassion flashed around the world on TV featured a band playing "It's A Long Way To Tipperary", so we thought it was a fitting time to add a page to our Web site with information on this famous song...
Throughout the war years, the strength of the Tipperary town barracks increased substantially and the town gained world fame through the 1912 composition by JACK JUDGE [1878-1938], titled "It's A Long Way To Tipperary". Judge, from Oldbury, near Birmingham, composed the song even though he had never been to Ireland! However, the composer's grandparents were from the county. This song was introduced to the front early in the war (1914) by the 2nd Battalion Connaught Rangers, who were stationed in Tipperary between 1908 - 1910. The Daily Mail correspondent, George Curnock, first heard the tune in Boulogne in August 1914 - "as a company of the 2nd Battalion Connaught Rangers passed us singing, with a note of strange pathos in their rich Irish voices, a song I had never heard before…"
The song sold a million copies in 1914 and was later recorded by Athlone-born Count John McCormack - it was one of the most popular songs among both the British and German armies during World War I. Before Judge died in 1938, he composed a sequel called "It's A Long Way No Longer".
It's a Long Way to Tipperary...
Up to mighty London came an Irishman one day,
As the streets were paved with gold, sure ev'ry one was gay,
Singing songs of Piccadilly, Strand and Leicester Square,
Till Paddy got excited, then he shouted to them there:
It's a long way to Tipperary,
It's a long way to go,
It's a long way to Tipperary,
To the sweetest girl I know!
Goodbye Piccadilly! Farewell Leicester Square!
It's a long, long way to Tipperary,
But my heart's right there!
Paddy wrote a letter to his Irish Molly O',
Saying "Should you not receive it, write and let me know!
If I make mistakes in spelling, Molly dear", said he,
"Remember it's the pen that's bad, don't lay the blame on me"
It's a long way to Tipperary,
It's a long way to go,
It's a long way to Tipperary,
To the sweetest girl I know!
Goodbye Piccadilly! Farewell Leicester Square!
It's a long, long way to Tipperary,
But my heart's right there!
Molly wrote a neat reply to Irish Paddy O',
Saying "Mike Maloney wants to marry me, and so,
Leave the Strand and Piccadilly, or you'll be to blame,
For love has fairly drove me silly - hoping you're the same!"
It's a long way to Tipperary,
It's a long way to go,
It's a long way to Tipperary,
To the sweetest girl I know!
Goodbye Piccadilly! Farewell Leicester Square!
It's a long, long way to Tipperary,
But my heart's right there!
Kilde:
http://www.iol.ie/~tipplibs/Long.htm
