This article is about the song. For the Thin Lizzy album, see. The song is about a , who is betrayed by his wife or lover, and is one of the most widely performed traditional Irish songs. It has been recorded by numerous professional artists since the 1950s. The song first gained wide exposure when the Irish folk band performed it internationally as a signature song, and recorded it on three albums in the 1960s. Building on their success, the Irish rock band hit the Irish and British pop charts with the song in 1973. In 1990 The Dubliners re-recorded the song with with a faster rocky version charting at No. The American metal band brought it to a wider rock audience in 1998 by playing a version very similar to that of Thin Lizzy's, though with a heavier sound, winning a for the song in 2000 for. Various versions of the song take place in , , , , and other locales throughout Ireland. It is also sometimes placed in the American South, in various places among the or , possibly due to Irish settlement in these places. Names in the song change, and the official can be a Captain or a Colonel, called Farrell or Pepper among other names. The protagonist's wife or lover is sometimes called Molly, Jenny, Emzy, or Ginny among various other names. The details of the betrayal are also different, being either betraying him to the person he robbed and replacing his ammunition with sand or water, or not, resulting in his killing the person. The song's exact origins are unknown. Such feelings inspired this rollicking ballad. The American versions are sometimes set in America and deal with American characters. One such version, from , is about , an Irish-American soldier who is sentenced to death by hanging for robbing British officials. When O Lochlainn included the song in Irish Street Ballads, he wrote down the lyrics from memory as he had learnt them from his mother. Versions of the song were collected in the 1920s in Northern Ireland by song collector. Contrary to common belief, never recorded the song. This version has since been covered by , first released on a 1996 various artist compilation album Childline and later on deluxe edition of in 2006 , , 1998, which won a Grammy , EP 2006 , 2006 , Top Musicians Play 2008 , Searching for the Lost Boys 2009 , and Israeli musician. The song is also on the live compilation disc five. On the scene, and recorded a version for the album. It has also been performed by the Scarecrows bluegrass band and the Dutch band Blue Grass Boogiemen. Finnish band recorded a version as the title track of their 1997 album Humppamaratooni. I, Law in Popular Culture collection, Tarlton Law Library, University of Texas at Austin 22 March 2008 at the. Originally published in 1909. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
