Norric and Gaul Book of Folkmusic

[Grayson]

The Ballad of Brannigan Tarr
A Norric Tribe Folksong

For an ensemble of djembe, mandolin, fiddle, flute, and vocals.

(instrumental opening)

Let me tell ye all a tale
About a man known far and wide
His adventures, they be legend
An' his battles, a people's pride

His blade shone like the sun
O'er the mountains' showy top
As he cut his foes to ribbons
Heads from their shoulders he did chop

(fiddle break)

He could put away rivers
Full o' gallons of brandy and mead
The booze barrels all left dry
But no one bothered to plead

The peoples' grandest champion he was
Usin' his shield like a maul
No one said a peep 'bout his drinkin'
When he stuck it to those filthy Gauls

(flute break)

One day wise old Brannigan
On his way home from the bar
A few o' them Gaul scalliwags
Thought they could take the likes o' Tarr

But what they didn't know o' him
Was the champion's fabled power
They wailed and screamed and yelled and cried
As ol' Tarr pounded 'em for an hour

(fiddle break)

Now the great old Brannigan
Hero to you an' me
He's buried six feet underground
As peaceful as a he'll ever be

But don't get me wrong, my friend
T'was old age that left him dead
He lived his life long and drunk
An' all the women he did bed

(flute break)

So when you find yourself sitting down
By sorrow ye be pinned
Remember of the champion
An' his blade as swift as wind

For all those who hope to be great
At every party and battle and bar
Don't ye ever forget the tale
O' the man named Brannigan Tarr

(flute and fiddle break to end of song)

[Grayson]

The Snowy Road to Iggrind
(Based on the 19th century Irish folksong 'The Rocky Road to Dublin'.)

A Norric and Gaul Shared Folksong

Ensemble isn't defined.

In the frigid days of Auld, From my home I started,
Left the girls of Yold, Nearly broken hearted,
Saluted father grand, Kissed me dear old mother,
Grabbed me blade of the brand, Me grief and tears to smother,
And off I was to lead, A journey forged of greed,
Drank a pint of mead, To stifle great and cold wind
In a brand new shirt of mail, The sun hot on me tail,
But still in frigid gale, On the snowy road to Iggrind

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the hare and turn her
Down the snowy road
All the way to Iggrind
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra

In Halfolgar that night, I rested limbs so weary,
Waiting for daylight, That mornin' light and airy,
Hit the bottle to start, To keep my blood from freezin',
That's a (Norric/Gaul)men's heart, The journey I be breezin',
To see the lasses smile, Laughin' all the while,
Must have lost a mile, Through it I just grinned,
Next mornin' woke too late, Not feelin' all that great,
Sprinted out the gate, On the snowy road to Iggrind,

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the hare and turn her
Down the snowy road
All the way to Iggrind
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra

In Iggrind next arrived, I thought it such a blight,
To be so soon deprived, The pride of Graal's first sight,
So then I met me foe, He looked not so unlike me,
Battered from head to toe, The trek too took his fee,
A fellow man I saw, His feet were rubbed down raw,
And I stood in awe, T'was like we had been like kinned,
His look reflected mine, We spoke o'er some wine,
Till the mornin' hour was nine, In the shrine of Iggrind,

One, two, three, four, five
Hunt the hare and hold her
Down the snowy road
All the way to Iggrind
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra
Whack-fol-lol-de-ra