Krauss, Alison - Molly Bán (Bawn) Lyrics






Come all ye young fellas
That handle a gun
Beware of night rambling
By the setting of the sun
And beware of an accident
That happened of late
To young Molly Ban
And sad was her fate

She was going to her uncles
When a shower came on
She went under a green bush
The shower to shun

Her white apron wrapped around her
He took her for a swan
But a hush and sigh
Was his own Molly Ban

He quickly ran to her
And found she was dead
And there on her bosom
Where he soaked, tears he shed

He ran home to his father
With his gun in his hand
Saying "Father dear father
I have shot Molly Ban"

Her white apron wrapped around her
He took her for a swan
But a hush and a sigh
'Twas his own Molly Ban

He roamed near the place
Where his true love was slain
He wept bitter tears
But his cries were in vain
As he look on the lake
A swan glided by
And the sun slowly sank
In the gray up sky





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Krauss, Alison Molly Bán (Bawn) Comments
  1. j.... i....

    What a beautifully haunting song!
    I've loved the Chieftains' music for years and Allison Krauses voice blends beautifully. I hope to find the live version on DVD. I used to have it but it went missing during a move. Thank you for posting. Blessings on you and yours.

  2. S.... L....

    The 25 people that gave this a thumbs down are pricks🖕beautiful song

  3. M.... M....

    A holy union...Alison Kraus and the mighty Chieftains. Brilliant. Should be so much more of it!

  4. S.... A....

    This makes me want to strap on my long knife and pistol, throw a cloak over my shoulders, pull on my boots, and hit the road to make my living by the point of a blade.

  5. J.... G....

    Her voice fits Celtic music so well. I'm obsessed with her.

  6. F.... G....

    Lyrics:
    Come all ye young fellas
    That handle a gun
    Beware of night rambling
    By the setting of the sun
    And beware of an accident
    That happened of late
    To young Molly Ban
    And sad was her fate
    She was going to her uncle's
    When a shower came on
    She went under a green bush
    The shower to shun
    Her white apron wrapped around her
    He took her for a swan
    But a hush and sigh
    Was his own Molly Ban
    He quickly ran to her
    And found she was dead
    And there on her bosom
    Where he soaked, tears he shed
    He ran home to his father
    With his gun in his hand
    Saying, 'father, dear father
    I have shot Molly Ban"
    Her white apron wrapped around her
    He took her for a swan
    But a hush and a sigh
    'Twas his own Molly Ban
    He roamed near the place
    Where his true love was slain
    He wept bitter tears
    But his cries were in vain
    As he looked on the lake
    A swan glided by
    And the sun slowly sank
    In the grayed up sky

    F.... G....

    Frank Gehry I just love the Irish Pipes.

  7. B.... M....

    Sounds a bit like Oscar Pestorious

  8. S.... P....

    It's Ben Bulben in County Sligo in NW Ireland, a special place indeed, W.B. Yeats knew and wrote of it...<3

  9. P.... N....

    Juste magnifique !

  10. T.... T....

    Just about the saddest song I’ve ever heard.

    T.... T....

    Ireland was very troubled and so sad for so many years but when we lived there in the 1970's it was starting to smile again..remember the Irish are naturally very dramatic, I can say this for I am Irish..

    T.... T....

    If you want to listen want to listen to the saddest song ever created it is also sung by Allison Krauss, it’s called Jacob’s Dream. You will probably cry

  11. c.... ....

    To be OK with things, She's ours not yours.

  12. D.... O....

    Alison Krauss has a voice that can never be duplicated.
    Long may she sing!
    A friend of mine is a huge bluegrass fan and booked Alison for a number of the festivals he organized years ago.

  13. F.... N....

    The beautiful voice of Allison Krauss and the Chieftains is a Perfect Symphony...thanks for posting great Pictures....beautiful ..

  14. M.... C....

    ...for he has killed his only true love, as he took her for a swan...

  15. I.... F....

    Beautiful ever Alison so great with Cheiftains........great vid also thank you

  16. R.... C....

    Ban Breavheart, Molly's a con cock shun...

  17. J.... R....

    Good combination of talent

  18. m.... k....

    Excellent,

  19. E.... L....

    anyone want to continue traditions & inbreed rampantly-?

    E.... L....

    Erin Livan LOL!

  20. J.... B....

    If it was not for the music - the scenery here could take your breath away ! Magnificent !

  21. E.... m....

    Which place is the one that appears at 1:33 ?

  22. R.... C....

    Well Tackless, I reckon one of the pics, The Three Sisters, was shot in Glen Coe in Argyllshire, Scotland.

    R.... C....

    Wondered how those mtns got so tall... ;D

  23. J.... C....

    Que pasada mi saludo más afectuoso para esta gente

  24. R.... ....

    Timeless tune.

  25. S.... M....

    The live version is still on Daily Motion if you are quick :-)

  26. J.... D....

    Yes! That live version was the tops. Too bad it was taken down. No doubt t'was some record people fearing they were loosing a few pennies. Bunch of wankerzzzs. Windy City is out and probably another few Grammy's to be taken home for Alison. She's definitely the voice of an angel right here on planet Earth

  27. J.... D....

    You will find a live version on The Chieftains - "Down the Old Plank Road" DVD

    J.... D....

    ..the live version is better- imho....

  28. E.... A....

    Does anyone know if there's a link between this song and She Moved Through the Fair? They're so similar.

    E.... A....

    There are a lot of traditional ballads about dead sweethearts, some who were murdered by their significant others. The Old Irish Gaelic word for woman has many case forms which include "mna" and "bann, or, bean." I think Molly Ban/Bann refers to at least two of those forms.

    Also, there are many links with shape shifters who become swans or people who were condemned to live as swans.

    E.... A....

    Both are reckoned to be very ancient melodies, though SMTTF wasn't first "collected" until the 19th century while MB was recorded as being sung in various forms as far back as the 16th century. In musical terms they are of a group preserved in Irish culture which some musical historians claim show a legacy dating back to proto-Celtic, Indo-European roots, based mainly on their common amenability to being played with pedal point drone accompanying the main melody.

    E.... A....

    SilightlySusan: I think "Bán" (as it should really have been spelled in the title) refers to Molly's very fair hair, what we would now call a "platinum blonde". It simply means "white". In Irish when people are referred to as black, brown, or white it always refers to their hair colour. One notable exception which also bemuses many modern readers of ancient Irish history is the "na fir ghorma" (the blue men) which was the reference of choice for dark-skinned Africans, "blue" being the characteristic sheen of sunlight on very pigmented skin.

    E.... A....

    Etch. A Sketch this ones better

  29. M.... J....

    Instant home-sickness! Beautiful arrangement. :-)

  30. M.... ....

    Yes i just tried to play the live version but it was gone.

  31. S.... ....

    There was a live version of this that was removed. Shame. It was one of my favorites.

    S.... ....

    check daily motion.  it's there.

    S.... ....

    I believe it was a transatlantic session with Sarah Jarosz for back up vocals.

    S.... ....

    Alison Krauss...I myself have noticed it was taken down. Pissed off I was.

    S.... ....

    nice version by the way

  32. J.... W....

    This is quite moving. On par with Jackie Evancho's Danny Boy. Search for it.

  33. N.... P....

    Fantastic, really ....magic¡¡

    N.... P....

    Nieves Palacios Penalba i

  34. F.... K....

    Ever heard an angel sing?

    F.... K....

    I have now.

  35. M.... C....

    Just Gorgeous & Marvelous, I Love Irish Country & Celtic sounds, like Jazz & Blues (4 Legends)

    M.... C....

    its Irish music not Celtic, take everything away from the Irish. Its Irish traditional music, there are many Celtic nations apparently and this music come from Ireland

    M.... C....

    The Celtic culture within Irish is what raises interests represented in the song. I am afraid it is more Celtic than Irish.

  36. b.... ....

    How could you mistake someone for a swan? Dude deserved to live with his fate for being that dense.

    b.... ....

    She hid behind a bush, wearing a white shroud, during a storm. The shroud wrapped around her and the hunter {seemingly now half blind} shot without thinking.

    b.... ....

    Loyalist troll alert

    b.... ....

    There is also the possibility that he suffered from poor eyesight.

    b.... ....

    Aha! - the old done-in-by-denseness just deserts... but in his defense there is the {unspoken} analogy of Molly's resemblance to a swan in what he sees as her grace, fairness, beauty and way of moving, all more or less exemplifed by that pesky white apron.

    If you're thinking, "woah, *that's* a stretch," well... Sometimes to create something beautiful - a painting so evocative people can't take their eyes off of it, a song so achingly perfect it hits them in the solar plexus, a poem or story that makes grown men cry - both the creator and the audience must, to some degree, engage in the suspension of reality.

    Or, if you'll pardon the terrible allusion to Things Swanlike, it calls for us to engage in flights of fancy. (-;

    b.... ....

    Swans can actually get pretty big... and she was all curled up trying to fit under that bush. So he saw a white oval shape in a bush where he didn't expect a woman, and his mind identified it as a swan instead... should have had a dog with him!

  37. L.... D....

    I just wanna walk bare foot with an old timey summer dress on through an enchanted forest during the dawn of morning when I listen to this song... be sure not to get shot though. :/

    L.... D....

    Funny stuff!

    L.... D....

    I share your sentiment about not being shot. Shall we exclude Dick Cheney on the outing?

    L.... D....

    Also beware the unexpected hedgehog ;-) but i completely share your sentiment...

  38. t.... ....

    Beautiful! was most of this shot in the northwest, Galway Mayo Donegal ,counties? I'm heading there this fall. I can't wait. My last trip was the West, and southwest. When I fly into Shannon before the plane even lands I feel that I am home.

    t.... ....

    Some of my ancestors were from those parts of Ireland. Would love to go there some day before I die and visit their home land.
    Beautiful country

    t.... ....

    sligo ben bulben is first shot

  39. c.... ....

    How lovely! Thank you for uploading this.