Mrs. Mcgrath - Pete Seeger, Big Bill Broonzy

«Mrs.

McGrath,"the sergeant said,

«Would you like a soldier

Of your son, Ted?

With a scattered coat and a big cocked hat,

Mrs. McGrath wouldn you like that?»

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle- di-a,

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

Mrs. McGrath lived on the shore

For the space of seven long years or more

She spied a ship come in to the bay

With her son from far away

«Oh, Captain dear, where have ye been.

Ye been sailin' the Mediterranean'.

Have ye news of my son Ted.

Is he livin' or is he dead?»

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

There came Ted without any legs

And in their place two wooden pegs

She kissed him a dozen times or two

And said «My god, Ted, is it you?»

«Now were ye drunk or were ye blind

When ye left yer two fine legs behind?

Or was it the walking upon the sea

That tore your legs away?»

«No I wasn’t drunk and I wasn’t blind

When I left my two fine legs behind.

A cannon ball on the fifth of May

Tore my two fine legs away.»

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a,

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

«Now Teddy boy,"the widow cried

«Yer two fine legs were your mother’s pride stumps

of a tree won’t do at all

Why didn’t ye run from the cannon ball?»

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a,

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

With a too-ri-a, fo-diddle-di-a

Too-ri-o-ri-o-ri-a

«Now against all war, I do profrain

Between Don Juan and the King of Spain

And, by herrons, I’ll make 'em rue the time

When they swept the legs from a child of mine.»