Veteran NYC rocker Willie Nile just released his new album "The Great Yellow Light" and to celebrate we asked him to tell us about the song "An Irish Goodbye". Here is the story: After all these years writing songs, I usually have a pretty good idea when to pursue an idea or if I hear a line that could be a title.
Last Spring my daughter Mary went to Ireland with her husband and two children to visit her best friend, who moved back to Ireland before Covid. Mary loves all things Irish and even plays Gaelic football. She went for a week with her family and visited Game of Thrones sites, local pubs, Dublin, Belfast, you name it. They had a great time.
A week after they returned I was in my Greenwich Village, NY apartment finishing dinner and the phrase "An Irish Goodbye" came to me. It stopped me in my tracks. Right away I thought it could be a song. And literally five seconds later wondered what the chorus would be. And the lines just came to me, "An Irish goodbye, an Irish goodbye. Here's fire in your whiskey, here's mud in your eye. It's high time to leave here, it's my turn to fly. So, I'll just say an Irish goodbye." I thought, "Hell Yeah! I'm in!" So, I sat down at my computer and started writing.
To those who don't know what an "Irish goodbye" is, it's when you leave an event without saying goodbye. It's not meant as an insult in any way. You just slip out the door without any fanfare. If you were at an event and planned to head out later without saying goodbye you might go up to the host early on and tell him or her you were going to do an Irish goodbye later and thanks for the party, etc.
But when I sat down to write the song I was writing about the big Irish goodbye, mortality. I was writing for about 45 minutes or so and was close to finishing the song when I did something I never ever do. I stopped writing. I couldn't wait to tell my daughter I was writing a song called "An Irish Goodbye", figuring she'd dig it. And, indeed she did. I told her it was about mortality and said, "Mary, if I do the big Irish goodbye I just want you to know that I love you." And she said. "Thanks Dad. And I want you to know that if I do the big Irish goodbye that I love you too." We both laughed. It was quite beautiful and unexpected. We basically got to say goodbye to each other and now we can carry on and live knowing what we said to each other. It's comforting.
A week later, I went to Buffalo, NY to visit my then 106-year old father. He still lives at home, takes no medication, no naps, does crossword puzzles 3-4 hours a day, reads for about an hour or so and has a happy hour every day. It's pretty crazy. He's been doing very well and is still with it mentally. His sense of humor is still spot on. I'll call him around 4pm in the afternoon when it's usually Happy Hour time and ask him how he's doing. He'll say, "Well, I'm sitting here with your sister having some wine and we're getting boiled. Your sister's on her third glass. I think I'll have to help her out of her seat." He's kidding, of course. His one-liners are priceless: "The last liar always wins." "If it's one thing I'm proud of it's my humility." After a night of poker at one of my brother's house if I ask "Who won?" He'll say, "Tom and Jean won." And I'll say, "Well, they cheat you know." And he'll say, "Doesn't everybody?"
Needless to say, he's a good man full of character and has a good heart. The week after I wrote the song I'm visiting Buffalo and we're having a Happy Hour and I get a guitar and tell Dad and my sister Teresa and brother Joe of a new song I've written. I hadn't played it for anyone at that point so I was reading the lyrics as I played it. Had I not been looking at the lyrics I probably would have had a hard time getting through it. When I looked up after it was over my sister had tears rolling down her cheeks. It's an Irish drinking song and is full of fire and good fun but it's also about mortality so it hit her. My dad loved it and we all raised a glass to the family.
I play it at every gig now and it always gets a great reaction. When we were recording it my co-producer, Stewart Lerman, whom I've been working with since 1988, suggested we ask legendary Irish singer and songwriter Paul Brady, who was a good friend of his, if he might sing on it. It was a great idea, and indeed, within three days we got a file back from Dublin with Paul's magical voice on it. I'm still thrilled and humbled to this day to have him on the song. He's one of the greats and it's a true honor to have him singing on it. Thank you, Paul!
So, here's to Ireland, and family, and whiskey, and Paul Brady, and songs that can bring us all together as we travel on our journeys down the road to who knows where. And thanks to dear Mary for taking her family to Ireland and being the inspiration for the song.
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more here
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