They took away my brogues
and they robbed me of my spade
They put me in the army
and a soldier of me made
But I couldn't beat a drum
and I couldn't play a flute
So they handed me a musket
and they taught me how to shoot.
But the Injuns they were sly,
And the Frenchies they were coy,
So they shot off the left leg
Of this poor Irish boy.
We had a bloody fight
After we had scaled the wall,
And the divil a bit of mercy
Did the Frenchies show at all.
Then they put me on a ship,
And they sent me home again,
With all my army training,
After battle's strife and din.
They headed for the Downs,
And we landed at the quay,
My mother came to meet me,
And these words to me did say,
"O Felix, are you drunk,
Or Felix are you mad?
And whatever has become
Of the two legs you had!"
I will bid my spade adieu,
For I cannot dig the bog,
But I still can play the fiddle,
And I still can drink my grog.
I have learned to smoke a pipe
And I've learned to fire a gun,
To the divil with the fighting,
I am glad the war is done.
and they robbed me of my spade
They put me in the army
and a soldier of me made
But I couldn't beat a drum
and I couldn't play a flute
So they handed me a musket
and they taught me how to shoot.
But the Injuns they were sly,
And the Frenchies they were coy,
So they shot off the left leg
Of this poor Irish boy.
We had a bloody fight
After we had scaled the wall,
And the divil a bit of mercy
Did the Frenchies show at all.
Then they put me on a ship,
And they sent me home again,
With all my army training,
After battle's strife and din.
They headed for the Downs,
And we landed at the quay,
My mother came to meet me,
And these words to me did say,
"O Felix, are you drunk,
Or Felix are you mad?
And whatever has become
Of the two legs you had!"
I will bid my spade adieu,
For I cannot dig the bog,
But I still can play the fiddle,
And I still can drink my grog.
I have learned to smoke a pipe
And I've learned to fire a gun,
To the divil with the fighting,
I am glad the war is done.
Contributed by dq82 - 2017/6/26 - 15:00
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Non si trovano molte registrazioni del brano, eccezion fatta per una recente versione interpretata dal supergruppo irlandese Ushers Island: Andy Irvine (Planxty), Dónal Lunny (Planxty, Bothy Band, Moving Hearts), Paddy Glackin (tra i fondatori della Bothy Band, prima di lasciare il posto a Tommy Peoples), Mick McGoldrick (inglese di Manchester, di genitori irlandesi, membro degli scozzesi Capercaillie, dei Flook e poi di Lùnasa) e John Doyle (ex Solas)
Alan Lomax says in The Folk Songs of North America: (in the English Language) (Amazon Books), “If soldier folk songs were the only evidence, it would seem that the armies that fought in early American wars were composed of Irishmen. The finest folk ballads of the Indian Wars, the American Revolution, the Mexican War, the Civil War, and the Plains Indian War, all had Irish tunes.”
One reason for the preponderance of Irish tunes and content were the many poor Irish lads forced by privation and poverty to become soldiers. Songs related in content to Felix the Soldier are Mrs. McGrath and The Kerry Recruit which will be blogged soon, along with another Irish tune, The Wars of America.