Paddy McGuigan

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Paddy McGuigan (born August 13, 1939 in Belfast , † March 17, 2014 ) was an Irish musician .

Life

McGuigan played in the folk group Barleycorn for several years . He wrote the popular political song The Men Behind the Wire , as well as The Boys of the Old Brigade and Irish Soldier Laddie . The ballad The Men Behind the Wire , performed by the band Barleycorn , was number 1 on Ireland's hit list for a total of five weeks at the beginning of 1972 .

McGuigan composed The Men Behind the Wire after Operation Demetrius . This operation marked the start of internment policy in Northern Ireland when on August 9, 1971 the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary interned 342 Northern Irishmen. The song describes the raid by British soldiers and aims to persevere in the internees who were illegally held in the Long Kesh Magilligam camps and on board the prison ship HMS Maidstone . McGuigan himself was later interned in another internment policy operation, presumably in response to the British state's response to his political song.

British singer and songwriter Dido , whose father William Armstrong was a Northern Irishman, recorded text from The Men Behind The Wire in her 2008 song Let's Do the Things We Normally Do on her album Safe Trip Home . This was the beginning of the song and the refrain: Armored cars and tanks and guns, came to take away our sons. But every man must stand behind, the men behind the wire. (German: Armored cars and tanks and cannons came to us to take our sons. But everyone has to stand behind them, the people behind the barbed wire.) She was then taken over by Gregory Campbell , Member of the Northern Irish Parliament for East Londonderry and Minister for Culture, Arts and government leisure in Belfast, heavily attacked: “She must know it was written about people who were murderers, arsonists and terrorists. She should clarify her position so that her fans and the wider public knows where she stands on these things. ”(German: Sie [Dido] must know, it was written about people who were murderers, arsonists and terrorists. She should her position so that her fans and the general public know where she stands with regard to these things. To which Dido replied that she had used songs that her father sang in her youth.

Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, McGuigan later lived in Portrane in (now) County Fingal in the Republic of Ireland.

Songs (selection)

  • The Boys of the Old Brigade
  • The Men Behind the Wire
  • My Country, My Songs and Me (1975 album)
  • Platform - The Brave Unitedmen
  • The Brave Unitedmen (Album)
  • Playing Danny Boy

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c BBC News - Foyle and West - Dido slammed for republican riff
  2. ↑ A History of Ireland in Song ( Memento of the original from March 24, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / ireland.dyndns.org
  3. ↑ a b Chapter 8 , Internment, McGuffin G.
  4. ↑ Irish History: Internment
  5. ↑ a b The Daily Mail - 'Thoughtless' Dido criticized over IRA rebel song on new album
  6. ↑ Ballad songwriter Paddy McGuigan died on St Patrick's Day , obituary on independent.ie , March 19, 2014
personal data
SURNAME McGuigan, Paddy
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Irish musician
DATE OF BIRTH August 13, 1939
PLACE OF BIRTH Belfast
DATE OF DEATH 17th March 2014