Song title – Kissed by the Blarney Stone
Verse 1
Old Shamus lived in Ballymore
In a cottage by the lane
A decent man, a quiet soul
As ordinary as the rain
He’d nod to people passing by
Then stare down at his shoes
If someone spoke for half a while
He wouldn’t know what to do
The girls all danced with farmer’s sons
With charm and easy grace
While Shamus stood beside the wall
Half missing from the place
Chorus
But everything changed in County Cork
On a cold October morn
The day old Shamus climbed the steps
Where castle walls were worn
He dangled laughing upside down
While the crowd all gasped and groaned
And Ireland’s never been the same
Since he kissed the Blarney Stone
Verse 2
Next morning in McCarthy’s pub
He quietly took a chair
And had the whole room laughing loud
Before they knew he was there
He spoke about the weather first
Then taxes, sheep and tea
And half the county stayed till dawn
To hear philosophy
The widow Flynn near dropped her glass
Young Katie blushed bright red
And even Father Callaghan
Forgot what he had said
Chorus
For everything changed in County Cork
On that wild enchanted morn
The day old Shamus kissed the lips
Of legends old and worn
He talked the baker out of bread
The butcher out of bones
And nobody could get a word
Past Shamus since the Stone
Verse 3
Now strangers came from miles around
To hear what Shamus knew
He’d settle feuds in fifteen words
And swear each word was true
He talked a judge from giving fines
A banker out of fees
And once convinced the Dublin train
To wait another three
The postman stayed for hours on end
The blacksmith missed his meal
And every soul who heard him speak
Believed that he was real
Verse 4
He sweet-talked Mrs Donnelly
To lowering all his rent
Convinced a man from Donegal
His goat was heaven-sent
He sold umbrellas in July
And blankets in the heat
Then somehow won a fishing prize
Without a fish to eat
The mayor asked him into town
To open fairs and shows
And women leaned from upstairs rooms
Wherever Shamus goes
Bridge
His mother cried, “That stone’s bewitched!
There’s devilment in Cork!”
His father said, “Leave well alone —
The lad can’t stop his talk!”
But Shamus only raised his glass
With twinkling Irish eyes
And talked so long the candles burned
Halfway into sunrise
Final Chorus
So if you’re ever down in Cork
Where old Blarney Castle stands
And hear a silver-tongued old rogue
Still charming all the lands
You may just hear old Shamus laugh
With stories, songs and poems
The quiet man nobody knew
Till the Stone had made him known
And some still swear in Ballymore
When evenings fall soft and slow
You can hear old Shamus talking yet
Where the Cork-side rivers flow
For once he kissed that ancient stone
No silence could remain
And Ireland gained a thousand songs
From one shy man that day
Michael Forty