The Village Of Astee Lyrics And Chords
Recorded by Tony Stevens, Dominic Kerwin. The guitar chords are for a version by Susan McCann that I'm most familiar with. Susan changes key half way through the song, she ups the tempo, you don't have to if you don't want to. Another ballad that Susan McCann preforms very well is Farewell My Green Valleys Song which is another of Ireland's folk songs about emigration and the hardship endured reaching a new home across the ocean.
I'm [E]just a plain young Irish lad / girl and[A] Kerry is my home,
I [B]love to ramble down the road when my daily chores are[E] done,
It happened that one summers eve when [A]fate was kind to me,
I [B]spied a young girl / lad walking in the village of As[E]tee,
So [E]I resolved to speak with her / him to [A]hear what she might say,
I [B]walked a little faster until I crossed her / his [E]way,
I [E]stated my intentions quite[A] plain for her to see,
Then she / he [B]took my hand and kissed my cheek,
In the village of As[E]tee
Said [E]She / he "My handsome fellow I'm [A]glad we chance to meet,
I've [B]often thought about you as I walked along the [E]street,
If you think I'll make you happy then I'll [A]gladly go your way,
And We'll [B]speak to Father Murphy and we'll name our wedding [E]day,
So we[E] both sat down together and our wedding day we [A]planned
We [B]picked the guests of honor and we choose our wedding [E]bands
We [E]invited all our neighbors to the local Church [A]to see
Our [B]marriage ceremony in the village of As[E]tee
The[F] priest, he spoke of love and life and [Bb]blessed our hearts as one,
He [C]wished us every happiness until life's race is [F]run,
We walked the aisle with loves sweet smile,
for [Bb]all the world to see,
Then we [C]headed out to Kathleens house,
In the village of As[F]tee.
Was [F]there we met to wine and dine un[Bb]til the break of dawn
Tim [C]Reilly played the fiddle and his mother sang her [F]song
We [F]sang the Stack Of Barley and we sang of Innis[Bb]free
And their [C]talking still of this great day in the village of A[F]stee
And [F]now we have a little house and [Bb]lovely children too,
We'd [C]like to have your company if you're ever passing [F]through,
We'll sing a song we'll talk a while and have a [Bb]cup of tea,
For we[C] know you'll like the life we live,
In the village of A[F]stee,,C]
I'm [E]just a plain young Irish lad / girl and[A] Kerry is my home,
I [B]love to ramble down the road when my daily chores are[E] done,
It happened that one summers eve when [A]fate was kind to me,
I [B]spied a young girl / lad walking in the village of As[E]tee,
So [E]I resolved to speak with her / him to [A]hear what she might say,
I [B]walked a little faster until I crossed her / his [E]way,
I [E]stated my intentions quite[A] plain for her to see,
Then she / he [B]took my hand and kissed my cheek,
In the village of As[E]tee
Said [E]She / he "My handsome fellow I'm [A]glad we chance to meet,
I've [B]often thought about you as I walked along the [E]street,
If you think I'll make you happy then I'll [A]gladly go your way,
And We'll [B]speak to Father Murphy and we'll name our wedding [E]day,
So we[E] both sat down together and our wedding day we [A]planned
We [B]picked the guests of honor and we choose our wedding [E]bands
We [E]invited all our neighbors to the local Church [A]to see
Our [B]marriage ceremony in the village of As[E]tee
The[F] priest, he spoke of love and life and [Bb]blessed our hearts as one,
He [C]wished us every happiness until life's race is [F]run,
We walked the aisle with loves sweet smile,
for [Bb]all the world to see,
Then we [C]headed out to Kathleens house,
In the village of As[F]tee.
Was [F]there we met to wine and dine un[Bb]til the break of dawn
Tim [C]Reilly played the fiddle and his mother sang her [F]song
We [F]sang the Stack Of Barley and we sang of Innis[Bb]free
And their [C]talking still of this great day in the village of A[F]stee
And [F]now we have a little house and [Bb]lovely children too,
We'd [C]like to have your company if you're ever passing [F]through,
We'll sing a song we'll talk a while and have a [Bb]cup of tea,
For we[C] know you'll like the life we live,
In the village of A[F]stee,,C]
Typical Irish street in the 1950's
Key Of G Major
I'm [G]just a plain young Irish lad / girl and[C] Kerry is my home,
I [D]love to ramble down the road when my daily chores are[G] done,
It happened that one summers eve when [C]fate was kind to me,
I [D]spied a young girl / lad walking in the village of As[G]tee,
So [G]I resolved to speak with her / him to [C]hear what she might say,
I [D]walked a little faster until I crossed her / his [G]way,
I [G]stated my intentions quite[C] plain for her to see,
Then she / he [D]took my hand and kissed my cheek,
In the village of As[G]tee
Said [G]She / he "My handsome fellow I'm [C]glad we chance to meet,
I've [D]often thought about you as I walked along the [G]street,
If you think I'll make you happy then I'll [C]gladly go your way,
And We'll [D]speak to Father Murphy and we'll name our wedding [G]day,
So we[G] both sat down together and our wedding day we [C]planned
We [D]picked the guests of honor and we choose our wedding [G]bands
We [G]invited all our neighbors to the local Church [C]to see
Our [D]marriage ceremony in the village of As[G]tee
The[G#] priest, he spoke of love and life and [C#]blessed our hearts as one,
He [D#]wished us every happiness until life's race is [G#]run,
We walked the aisle with loves sweet smile,
for [C#]all the world to see,
Then we [D#]headed out to Kathleens house,
In the village of As[G#]tee.
Was [G#]there we met to wine and dine un[C#]til the break of dawn
Tim [D#]Reilly played the fiddle and his mother sang her [G#]song
We [G#]sang the Stack Of Barley and we sang of Innis[C#]free
And their [D#]talking still of this great day in the village of A[G#]stee
And [G#]now we have a little house and [C#]lovely children too,
We'd [D#]like to have your company if you're ever passing [G#]through,
We'll sing a song we'll talk a while and have a [C#]cup of tea,
For we[D#] know you'll like the life we live,
I'm [G]just a plain young Irish lad / girl and[C] Kerry is my home,
I [D]love to ramble down the road when my daily chores are[G] done,
It happened that one summers eve when [C]fate was kind to me,
I [D]spied a young girl / lad walking in the village of As[G]tee,
So [G]I resolved to speak with her / him to [C]hear what she might say,
I [D]walked a little faster until I crossed her / his [G]way,
I [G]stated my intentions quite[C] plain for her to see,
Then she / he [D]took my hand and kissed my cheek,
In the village of As[G]tee
Said [G]She / he "My handsome fellow I'm [C]glad we chance to meet,
I've [D]often thought about you as I walked along the [G]street,
If you think I'll make you happy then I'll [C]gladly go your way,
And We'll [D]speak to Father Murphy and we'll name our wedding [G]day,
So we[G] both sat down together and our wedding day we [C]planned
We [D]picked the guests of honor and we choose our wedding [G]bands
We [G]invited all our neighbors to the local Church [C]to see
Our [D]marriage ceremony in the village of As[G]tee
The[G#] priest, he spoke of love and life and [C#]blessed our hearts as one,
He [D#]wished us every happiness until life's race is [G#]run,
We walked the aisle with loves sweet smile,
for [C#]all the world to see,
Then we [D#]headed out to Kathleens house,
In the village of As[G#]tee.
Was [G#]there we met to wine and dine un[C#]til the break of dawn
Tim [D#]Reilly played the fiddle and his mother sang her [G#]song
We [G#]sang the Stack Of Barley and we sang of Innis[C#]free
And their [D#]talking still of this great day in the village of A[G#]stee
And [G#]now we have a little house and [C#]lovely children too,
We'd [D#]like to have your company if you're ever passing [G#]through,
We'll sing a song we'll talk a while and have a [C#]cup of tea,
For we[D#] know you'll like the life we live,
Below is the list of sheet music and tin whistle songs that are in my ebooks. This is the largest collection of tin whistle songs ever put together.[over 900 songs ] Including folk, pop and trad tunes plus German And French songs along with Christmas Carols.
All of the sheet music tabs have been made as easy to play as was possible.
The price of the ebooks is €7.50
The village of Astee sheet music included
All of the sheet music tabs have been made as easy to play as was possible.
The price of the ebooks is €7.50
The village of Astee sheet music included
🎶 “The Village of Astee” — Guitar Accompaniment
Key: C major
Meter: 4/4
Tempo: ♩ = 108 (folk ballad tempo)
Tuning: Standard (EADGBE)
🎸 1. STRUMMING PATTERN (Folk Waltz Feel in 4/4)
Use this gentle rolling strum for verses:
Bass ↓ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑
(Counted as “1 2 & 3 & 4 &”)
1 2 & 3 & 4 &
Bass ↓ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑
Strike bass note (root or fifth) on beat 1
Keep a steady, relaxed pulse — Irish storytelling style, not rigid
Let open treble strings ring for brightness
Example (C chord):
e|--0---0---0---0---|
B|--1---1---1---1---|
G|--0---0---0---0---|
D|--2---2---2---2---|
A|--3----------------|
E|-------------------|
↓ ↓ ↑ ↓ ↑
🎵 2. SUGGESTED CHORD PROGRESSION
(Aligned to your ABC melody and phrasing)
Phrase Lyrics Chords
1 I’m just a plain young Irish girl and Kerry is my home C – F – G – C
2 I love to ramble down the road when my daily chores are done Am – F – G – C
3 It happened that one summer’s eve when fate was kind to me F – C – G – C
4 I spied a young lad walking in the village of Astee F – G – C – C
5 So I resolved to speak with him to hear what he might say Am – F – G – C
6 I walked a little faster until I had crossed his way F – C – G – C
7 I stated my intentions quite plain for him to see C – G – Am – F
8 Then he took my hand and kissed my cheek, in the village of Astee F – G – C
🎸 3. FINGERPICKING PATTERN (Arpeggio Style)
Use a folk arpeggio pattern (Thumb + 3 fingers):
P – i – m – a – m – i
Example (C major):
C
e|---------0-------0-----|
B|-------1---1---1---1---|
G|-----0-------0-------0-|
D|---2--------------------|
A|-3----------------------|
E|------------------------|
P i m a m i
🎼 4. FINGERPICKING TAB — Full Verse Example
“I’m just a plain young Irish girl and Kerry is my home…”
C F
e|---------0-------0-------0-|---------1-------1-------1-|
B|-------1---1---1---1---1---|-------1---1---1---1---1---|
G|-----0-------0-------0-----|-----2-------2-------2-----|
D|---2------------------------|---3-----------------------|
A|-3--------------------------|-3-------------------------|
E|----------------------------|---------------------------|
I'm just a plain young Irish girl and Kerry is my home
G C
e|---------3-------3-------3-|---------0-------0-------0-|
B|-------0---0---0---0---0---|-------1---1---1---1---1---|
G|-----0-------0-------0-----|-----0-------0-------0-----|
D|---0------------------------|---2-----------------------|
A|----------------------------|-3-------------------------|
E|-3--------------------------|---------------------------|
I love to ramble down the road when my daily chores are done
“It happened that one summer’s eve when fate was kind to me…”
F C
e|---------1-------1-------1-|---------0-------0-------0-|
B|-------1---1---1---1---1---|-------1---1---1---1---1---|
G|-----2-------2-------2-----|-----0-------0-------0-----|
D|---3------------------------|---2-----------------------|
A|-3--------------------------|-3-------------------------|
E|----------------------------|---------------------------|
It happened that one summer's eve when fate was kind to me
G C
e|---------3-------3-------3-|---------0-------0-------0-|
B|-------0---0---0---0---0---|-------1---1---1---1---1---|
G|-----0-------0-------0-----|-----0-------0-------0-----|
D|---0------------------------|---2-----------------------|
A|----------------------------|-3-------------------------|
E|-3--------------------------|---------------------------|
I spied a young lad walking in the village of Astee
💡 PERFORMANCE NOTES
Keep your thumb alternating between the root and fifth bass notes:
For C: 5th → 4th
For F: 4th → 3rd
For G: 6th → 4th
Play legato — let all notes ring together.
Add slight dynamics by pressing a bit harder on melody notes (usually top string).
When repeating verses, alternate between fingerpicking and light strumming for texture.
Susan McCann lyrics The Village Of Astee
