The Sick Bed Of Cuchulainn Lyrics And Chords
Ebook of tin whistle tabs for The Pogues
Written by Shane MacGowan and recorded by The Pogues [ lyrics and chords ]
Intro guitar chords
[C][Dm][C][D][C][Dm][F][C]
Mc[C]Cormack and Richard [Dm] Tauber
Are [C] singing by the [Dm] bed.
There's a [C] glass of punch below your [Dm]feet
And an angel at your [C] head.
There's [C] devils on each [Dm] side of you
With [C] bottles in their [Dm] hands.
You need [C] one more drop of [Dm] poison
And you'll [C] dream of foreign [Am] lands.
When you [F] pissed yourself in [Bb] Frankfurt
And got [C] syph down in Co[F]logne
And you [F] heard the rattling [Bb] death trains
As you [C] lay there all a[F]lone,
Frank [F] Ryan brought you [C] whiskey
In a [Bb] brothel in Ma[C]drid
And you [Bb] decked some fucking [Bb] blackshirt
Who was [C] cursing all the [C] Yids.
At the [F] sick bed of Cu[F]chulainn
We'll [Bb] kneel and say a [F] prayer
And the [Bb] ghosts are rattling [F] at the door
And the [C] devil's in the [F] chair.
And [F] in the Euston [Bb] Tavern
You [C] screamed it was your [F] shout
But they [F] wouldn't give you [Bb] service
So you [C] kicked the windows [F] out.
They [F] took you out in[C]to the street
And [Bb] kicked you in the [C] brains,
So you [Bb] walked back in through a [Bb] bolted door
And [C] did it all a[C]gain.
At the [F] sick bed of Cu[F]chulainn
We'll [Bb] kneel and say a [F] prayer
And the [Bb] ghosts are rattling [F] at the door
And the [C] devil's in than[F] chair
You re[C]member that foul [Dm] evening
When you [C] heard the banshees [Dm] howl,
There was [C] lazy drunken [Dm] bastards
Singing [F] 'Billy is in the [C] bowl.'
They [C] took you up to [Dm] midnight mass
And [C] left you in the [Dm] lurch
So you [C] dropped a button [Dm] in the plate
And [Am] spewed up in the [Am] church.
Now you'll [F] sing a song of [Bb] liberty
For [C] blacks and paks and [F] jocks
And they'll [F] take you from this [Bb] dump you're in
And [C] stick you in a [F] box.
Then they'll [F] take you to Clough[C]prior
And [Bb] shove you in the [C] ground
But you'll [Bb] stick your head back [Bb] out and shout,
"We'll [C] have another [C] round."
At the [F] graveside of Cu[F]chulainn
We'll [Bb] kneel around and [F] pray
And [Bb] God is in His [F] heaven,
And [C] Billy's down by the [F] bay.
Intro guitar chords
[C][Dm][C][D][C][Dm][F][C]
Mc[C]Cormack and Richard [Dm] Tauber
Are [C] singing by the [Dm] bed.
There's a [C] glass of punch below your [Dm]feet
And an angel at your [C] head.
There's [C] devils on each [Dm] side of you
With [C] bottles in their [Dm] hands.
You need [C] one more drop of [Dm] poison
And you'll [C] dream of foreign [Am] lands.
When you [F] pissed yourself in [Bb] Frankfurt
And got [C] syph down in Co[F]logne
And you [F] heard the rattling [Bb] death trains
As you [C] lay there all a[F]lone,
Frank [F] Ryan brought you [C] whiskey
In a [Bb] brothel in Ma[C]drid
And you [Bb] decked some fucking [Bb] blackshirt
Who was [C] cursing all the [C] Yids.
At the [F] sick bed of Cu[F]chulainn
We'll [Bb] kneel and say a [F] prayer
And the [Bb] ghosts are rattling [F] at the door
And the [C] devil's in the [F] chair.
And [F] in the Euston [Bb] Tavern
You [C] screamed it was your [F] shout
But they [F] wouldn't give you [Bb] service
So you [C] kicked the windows [F] out.
They [F] took you out in[C]to the street
And [Bb] kicked you in the [C] brains,
So you [Bb] walked back in through a [Bb] bolted door
And [C] did it all a[C]gain.
At the [F] sick bed of Cu[F]chulainn
We'll [Bb] kneel and say a [F] prayer
And the [Bb] ghosts are rattling [F] at the door
And the [C] devil's in than[F] chair
You re[C]member that foul [Dm] evening
When you [C] heard the banshees [Dm] howl,
There was [C] lazy drunken [Dm] bastards
Singing [F] 'Billy is in the [C] bowl.'
They [C] took you up to [Dm] midnight mass
And [C] left you in the [Dm] lurch
So you [C] dropped a button [Dm] in the plate
And [Am] spewed up in the [Am] church.
Now you'll [F] sing a song of [Bb] liberty
For [C] blacks and paks and [F] jocks
And they'll [F] take you from this [Bb] dump you're in
And [C] stick you in a [F] box.
Then they'll [F] take you to Clough[C]prior
And [Bb] shove you in the [C] ground
But you'll [Bb] stick your head back [Bb] out and shout,
"We'll [C] have another [C] round."
At the [F] graveside of Cu[F]chulainn
We'll [Bb] kneel around and [F] pray
And [Bb] God is in His [F] heaven,
And [C] Billy's down by the [F] bay.
Below is the list of of tabs in the Ebook Of The Pogues Tin Whistle Sheet Music Tabs. Price €7.40.
The Sick Bed Of Cuchulainn is included. Price is €7.40.
The Sick Bed Of Cuchulainn is included. Price is €7.40.
James Fearnley Accordion Player The Pogues
Guitar chords in A Major
[A][Bm][A][B][A][Bm][D][A]
Mc[A]Cormack and Richard [Bm] Tauber
Are [A] singing by the [Bm] bed.
There's a [A] glass of punch below your [Bm]feet
And an angel at your [A] head.
There's [A] devils on each [Bm] side of you
With [A] bottles in their [Bm] hands.
You need [A] one more drop of [Bm] poison
And you'll [A] dream of foreign [F#m] lands.
When you [A] pissed yourself in [D] Frankfurt
And got [E] syph down in Co[A]logne
And you [A] heard the rattling [D] death trains
As you [E] lay there all a[A]lone,
Frank [A] Ryan brought you [E] whiskey
In a [D] brothel in Ma[E]drid
And you [D] decked some fucking [D] blackshirt
Who was [E] cursing all the [E] Yids.
At the [A] sick bed of Cu[A]chulainn
We'll [D] kneel and say a [A] prayer
And the [D] ghosts are rattling [A] at the door
And the [E] devil's in the [A] chair.
And [A] in the Euston [D] Tavern
You [E] screamed it was your [A] shout
But they [A] wouldn't give you [D] service
So you [E] kicked the windows [A] out.
They [A] took you out in[E]to the street
And [D] kicked you in the [E] brains,
So you [D] walked back in through a [D] bolted door
And [E] did it all a[E]gain.
At the [A] sick bed of Cu[A]chulainn
We'll [D] kneel and say a [A] prayer
And the [D] ghosts are rattling [A] at the door
And the [E] devil's in than[A] chair
You re[E]member that foul [F#m] evening
When you [E] heard the banshees [F#m] howl,
There was [E] lazy drunken [F#m] bastards
Singing [A] 'Billy is in the [E] bowl.'
They [E] took you up to [F#m] midnight mass
And [E] left you in the [F#m] lurch
So you [E] dropped a button [F#m] in the plate
And [C#m] spewed up in the [C#m] church.
Now you'll [A] sing a song of [D] liberty
For [E] blacks and paks and [A] jocks
And they'll [A] take you from this [D] dump you're in
And [E] stick you in a [A] box.
Then they'll [A] take you to Clough[E]prior
And [D] shove you in the [E] ground
But you'll [D] stick your head back [D] out and shout,
"We'll [E] have another [E] round."
At the [A] graveside of Cu[A]chulainn
We'll [D] kneel around and [A] pray
And [D] God is in His [A] heaven,
And [E] Billy's down by the [A] bay.
[A][Bm][A][B][A][Bm][D][A]
Mc[A]Cormack and Richard [Bm] Tauber
Are [A] singing by the [Bm] bed.
There's a [A] glass of punch below your [Bm]feet
And an angel at your [A] head.
There's [A] devils on each [Bm] side of you
With [A] bottles in their [Bm] hands.
You need [A] one more drop of [Bm] poison
And you'll [A] dream of foreign [F#m] lands.
When you [A] pissed yourself in [D] Frankfurt
And got [E] syph down in Co[A]logne
And you [A] heard the rattling [D] death trains
As you [E] lay there all a[A]lone,
Frank [A] Ryan brought you [E] whiskey
In a [D] brothel in Ma[E]drid
And you [D] decked some fucking [D] blackshirt
Who was [E] cursing all the [E] Yids.
At the [A] sick bed of Cu[A]chulainn
We'll [D] kneel and say a [A] prayer
And the [D] ghosts are rattling [A] at the door
And the [E] devil's in the [A] chair.
And [A] in the Euston [D] Tavern
You [E] screamed it was your [A] shout
But they [A] wouldn't give you [D] service
So you [E] kicked the windows [A] out.
They [A] took you out in[E]to the street
And [D] kicked you in the [E] brains,
So you [D] walked back in through a [D] bolted door
And [E] did it all a[E]gain.
At the [A] sick bed of Cu[A]chulainn
We'll [D] kneel and say a [A] prayer
And the [D] ghosts are rattling [A] at the door
And the [E] devil's in than[A] chair
You re[E]member that foul [F#m] evening
When you [E] heard the banshees [F#m] howl,
There was [E] lazy drunken [F#m] bastards
Singing [A] 'Billy is in the [E] bowl.'
They [E] took you up to [F#m] midnight mass
And [E] left you in the [F#m] lurch
So you [E] dropped a button [F#m] in the plate
And [C#m] spewed up in the [C#m] church.
Now you'll [A] sing a song of [D] liberty
For [E] blacks and paks and [A] jocks
And they'll [A] take you from this [D] dump you're in
And [E] stick you in a [A] box.
Then they'll [A] take you to Clough[E]prior
And [D] shove you in the [E] ground
But you'll [D] stick your head back [D] out and shout,
"We'll [E] have another [E] round."
At the [A] graveside of Cu[A]chulainn
We'll [D] kneel around and [A] pray
And [D] God is in His [A] heaven,
And [E] Billy's down by the [A] bay.
Alternative chords in the key of D
Intro guitar chords In D
[D][Em][D][E][D][Em][G][D]
Mc[D]Cormack and Richard [Em] Tauber
Are [D] singing by the [Em] bed.
There's a [D] glass of punch below your [Em]feet
And an angel at your [D] head.
There's [D] devils on each [Em] side of you
With [D] bottles in their [Em] hands.
You need [D] one more drop of [Em] poison
And you'll [D] dream of foreign [Bm] lands.
When you [D] pissed yourself in [G] Frankfurt
And got [A] syph down in Co[D]logne
And you [D] heard the rattling [G] death trains
As you [A] lay there all a[D]lone,
Frank [D] Ryan brought you [A] whiskey
In a [G] brothel in Ma[A]drid
And you [G] decked some fucking [G] blackshirt
Who was [A] cursing all the [A] Yids.
At the [D] sick bed of Cu[D]chulainn
We'll [G] kneel and say a [D] prayer
And the [G] ghosts are rattling [D] at the door
And the [A] devil's in the [D] chair.
And [D] in the Euston [G] Tavern
You [A] screamed it was your [D] shout
But they [D] wouldn't give you [G] service
So you [A] kicked the windows [D] out.
They [D] took you out in[A]to the street
And [G] kicked you in the [A] brains,
So you [G] walked back in through a [G] bolted door
And [A] did it all a[A]gain.
At the [D] sick bed of Cu[D]chulainn
We'll [G] kneel and say a [D] prayer
And the [G] ghosts are rattling [D] at the door
And the [A] devil's in than[D] chair
You re[A]member that foul [Bm] evening
When you [A] heard the banshees [Bm] howl,
There was [A] lazy drunken [Bm] bastards
Singing [D] 'Billy is in the [A] bowl.'
They [A] took you up to [Bm] midnight mass
And [A] left you in the [Bm] lurch
So you [A] dropped a button [Bm] in the plate
And [F#m] spewed up in the [F#m] church.
Now you'll [D] sing a song of [G] liberty
For [A] blacks and paks and [D] jocks
And they'll [D] take you from this [G] dump you're in
And [A] stick you in a [D] box.
Then they'll [D] take you to Clough[A]prior
And [G] shove you in the [A] ground
But you'll [G] stick your head back [G] out and shout,
"We'll [A] have another [A] round."
At the [D] graveside of Cu[D]chulainn
We'll [G] kneel around and [D] pray
And [G] God is in His [D] heaven,
And [A] Billy's down by the [D] bay.
Intro guitar chords In D
[D][Em][D][E][D][Em][G][D]
Mc[D]Cormack and Richard [Em] Tauber
Are [D] singing by the [Em] bed.
There's a [D] glass of punch below your [Em]feet
And an angel at your [D] head.
There's [D] devils on each [Em] side of you
With [D] bottles in their [Em] hands.
You need [D] one more drop of [Em] poison
And you'll [D] dream of foreign [Bm] lands.
When you [D] pissed yourself in [G] Frankfurt
And got [A] syph down in Co[D]logne
And you [D] heard the rattling [G] death trains
As you [A] lay there all a[D]lone,
Frank [D] Ryan brought you [A] whiskey
In a [G] brothel in Ma[A]drid
And you [G] decked some fucking [G] blackshirt
Who was [A] cursing all the [A] Yids.
At the [D] sick bed of Cu[D]chulainn
We'll [G] kneel and say a [D] prayer
And the [G] ghosts are rattling [D] at the door
And the [A] devil's in the [D] chair.
And [D] in the Euston [G] Tavern
You [A] screamed it was your [D] shout
But they [D] wouldn't give you [G] service
So you [A] kicked the windows [D] out.
They [D] took you out in[A]to the street
And [G] kicked you in the [A] brains,
So you [G] walked back in through a [G] bolted door
And [A] did it all a[A]gain.
At the [D] sick bed of Cu[D]chulainn
We'll [G] kneel and say a [D] prayer
And the [G] ghosts are rattling [D] at the door
And the [A] devil's in than[D] chair
You re[A]member that foul [Bm] evening
When you [A] heard the banshees [Bm] howl,
There was [A] lazy drunken [Bm] bastards
Singing [D] 'Billy is in the [A] bowl.'
They [A] took you up to [Bm] midnight mass
And [A] left you in the [Bm] lurch
So you [A] dropped a button [Bm] in the plate
And [F#m] spewed up in the [F#m] church.
Now you'll [D] sing a song of [G] liberty
For [A] blacks and paks and [D] jocks
And they'll [D] take you from this [G] dump you're in
And [A] stick you in a [D] box.
Then they'll [D] take you to Clough[A]prior
And [G] shove you in the [A] ground
But you'll [G] stick your head back [G] out and shout,
"We'll [A] have another [A] round."
At the [D] graveside of Cu[D]chulainn
We'll [G] kneel around and [D] pray
And [G] God is in His [D] heaven,
And [A] Billy's down by the [D] bay.
Irish warrior Cuchulainn
The song 'The Sick Bed of Cuchulainn' is a powerful and poignant ballad that tells the story of the legendary Irish hero, Cuchulainn, as he lies on his deathbed. With its haunting melody and evocative lyrics, the song captures the tragic and heroic essence of Cuchulainn's final moments, making it a timeless and enduring piece of Irish folklore.
The song, written and performed by the Irish punk band The Pogues, was first released in 1985 as part of their album 'Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash'. It was written by the lead singer, Shane MacGowan, who drew inspiration from the Irish mythology and folklore he grew up with. 'The Sick Bed of Cuchulainn' is a testament to MacGowan's skill as a songwriter and his ability to weave together history, mythology, and personal experiences into a compelling narrative.
At its core, the song is a retelling of the final moments of Cuchulainn, a semi-divine hero of Irish mythology and the central character in the Ulster Cycle. Cuchulainn is known for his incredible strength, bravery, and skill in battle, as well as his tragic fate. According to legend, Cuchulainn was mortally wounded in a battle against his enemies, the forces of Queen Maeve of Connacht. He tied himself to a standing stone to maintain his upright position and continue fighting until his enemies realized he was already dead.
The song opens with a somber and melancholic melody, setting the mood for the tragic tale that is about to unfold. The first verse introduces Cuchulainn on his sick bed, surrounded by his comrades and loved ones. He is a shadow of his former self, weakened and in pain, but still determined to fight until the end. The imagery used in the lyrics paints a vivid picture of Cuchulainn's suffering, with lines such as 'His days withered and his nights were haunted/By the whiskey and the beer' and 'His eyes were sharp and his gaze unflinching/His fists like knuckles of brass' evoking both physical and emotional pain.
As the song progresses, Cuchulainn's past is revealed through flashbacks and references to his heroic deeds. The line 'He fought the champ in every land' is a nod to Cuchulainn's many battles and victories, while 'He'd make them beg for mercy' showcases his reputation as a fearsome warrior. The use of Irish mythology and imagery, such as the mention of the Morrigan, a goddess of war and fate, adds depth and authenticity to the song.
One of the most striking aspects of 'The Sick Bed of Cuchulainn' is the contrast between the tragic fate of the hero and the upbeat and almost celebratory tone of the music. This juxtaposition reflects the Irish tradition of finding humor and joy in the face of adversity, as well as the resilience and strength of the Irish people. The use of traditional Irish instruments, such as the tin whistle and fiddle, further enhances the song's connection to Irish culture and history.
The song, written and performed by the Irish punk band The Pogues, was first released in 1985 as part of their album 'Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash'. It was written by the lead singer, Shane MacGowan, who drew inspiration from the Irish mythology and folklore he grew up with. 'The Sick Bed of Cuchulainn' is a testament to MacGowan's skill as a songwriter and his ability to weave together history, mythology, and personal experiences into a compelling narrative.
At its core, the song is a retelling of the final moments of Cuchulainn, a semi-divine hero of Irish mythology and the central character in the Ulster Cycle. Cuchulainn is known for his incredible strength, bravery, and skill in battle, as well as his tragic fate. According to legend, Cuchulainn was mortally wounded in a battle against his enemies, the forces of Queen Maeve of Connacht. He tied himself to a standing stone to maintain his upright position and continue fighting until his enemies realized he was already dead.
The song opens with a somber and melancholic melody, setting the mood for the tragic tale that is about to unfold. The first verse introduces Cuchulainn on his sick bed, surrounded by his comrades and loved ones. He is a shadow of his former self, weakened and in pain, but still determined to fight until the end. The imagery used in the lyrics paints a vivid picture of Cuchulainn's suffering, with lines such as 'His days withered and his nights were haunted/By the whiskey and the beer' and 'His eyes were sharp and his gaze unflinching/His fists like knuckles of brass' evoking both physical and emotional pain.
As the song progresses, Cuchulainn's past is revealed through flashbacks and references to his heroic deeds. The line 'He fought the champ in every land' is a nod to Cuchulainn's many battles and victories, while 'He'd make them beg for mercy' showcases his reputation as a fearsome warrior. The use of Irish mythology and imagery, such as the mention of the Morrigan, a goddess of war and fate, adds depth and authenticity to the song.
One of the most striking aspects of 'The Sick Bed of Cuchulainn' is the contrast between the tragic fate of the hero and the upbeat and almost celebratory tone of the music. This juxtaposition reflects the Irish tradition of finding humor and joy in the face of adversity, as well as the resilience and strength of the Irish people. The use of traditional Irish instruments, such as the tin whistle and fiddle, further enhances the song's connection to Irish culture and history.
