"Banshee (The Tale Of Fergal McKee)" lyrics
In Killywood Cross, there lived a fox of a man
Who had the whole world eating from the palm of his hand
He was dashing and charming, deadly quick with a lie
He always got his way without a hint of a try
He was pompous and proud, and he was loved by the crowd
But even for the cunning, luck will always run out
And for him, it did, for at the end of one day
None other than a banshee came a-knocking to say
"Fergal McKee, you haven't lived very long
But these things happen sometimes to both the saint and the con"
"Whoa, wait just a moment", Foxy Fergal replied
"I'm thriving; this cannot be the day that I die"
She said, "Your karma's overdue
The Dullahan, he waits for you"
Then Fergal brushed her hair aside
And whispered to her:
Does it ever get old, creeping out in the cold, crying out in the dark?
Does it ever get old being out on the road? Does it ever get hard?
You could call it a night; we could dance till it's light; I'll let you blame it on me
This once, this once, could you let it slide? You could let it slide this once
The banshee said nothing, not a word, not a sound
Just stayed in the doorway with her feet off the ground
To Fergal, the silence was like a hole in the floor
So he did what he does; he kept talking some more
Well, you know what they say, with dire forces at play
A fox in a snare is gonna chew his leg away
And by leg, I mean neighbors; Fergal had all the names
Of every sullied sinner from here to the bay
"Now, there's Paddy the publican who waters the stout
Father Flynn's got a family the parish don't know about
There's Magistrate Boyle, takes your coin and your cow
And Seamus McCabe owes me money right now"
She said, "Your karma's overdue
The Dullahan, he waits for you"
But Foxy tried to stay alive
And whispered to her:
Does it ever get old, creeping out in the cold, crying out in the dark?
Does it ever get old being out on the road? Does it ever get hard?
You could call it a night; we could dance till it's light; I'll let you blame it on me
This once, this once, could you let it slide? You could let it slide this once
She looked in his eyes and then said with a smile:
"The night is still young; perhaps I might stay awhile
Maybe I'll dance, maybe I'll drink,"
And Fergal thought maybe he'd sneak out when she blinked
So he poured her a glass of his cheapest champagne
And while she was dancing, he slipped out in the rain
He ran to the road, and he looked for a ride
And he leapt in a coach that was idling by
"Fly, you fool," cried the desperate fox
And with the crack of the whip, the carriage took off
Like a bat outta hell, he was making his break
Too blind to notice he'd made a fatal mistake
The coach left the ground, and it climbed to the sky
A horrified Fergal hanging on for dear life
He leaned out the window as the sky caught on fire
And a bolt of lightning showed there was no head on the driver
It always catches up to you
And Fergal is the dying proof
The banshee raised a glass
And whispered into the night:
No, it never gets old, creeping out in the cold, crying out in the dark?
No, it never gets old being out on the road, no, it never gets hard
Time to call it a night; you really put up a fight; I'll let you blame it on me
It's not my call, I couldn't let it slide, couldn't let it slide this once
Who had the whole world eating from the palm of his hand
He was dashing and charming, deadly quick with a lie
He always got his way without a hint of a try
He was pompous and proud, and he was loved by the crowd
But even for the cunning, luck will always run out
And for him, it did, for at the end of one day
None other than a banshee came a-knocking to say
"Fergal McKee, you haven't lived very long
But these things happen sometimes to both the saint and the con"
"Whoa, wait just a moment", Foxy Fergal replied
"I'm thriving; this cannot be the day that I die"
She said, "Your karma's overdue
The Dullahan, he waits for you"
Then Fergal brushed her hair aside
And whispered to her:
Does it ever get old, creeping out in the cold, crying out in the dark?
Does it ever get old being out on the road? Does it ever get hard?
You could call it a night; we could dance till it's light; I'll let you blame it on me
This once, this once, could you let it slide? You could let it slide this once
The banshee said nothing, not a word, not a sound
Just stayed in the doorway with her feet off the ground
To Fergal, the silence was like a hole in the floor
So he did what he does; he kept talking some more
Well, you know what they say, with dire forces at play
A fox in a snare is gonna chew his leg away
And by leg, I mean neighbors; Fergal had all the names
Of every sullied sinner from here to the bay
"Now, there's Paddy the publican who waters the stout
Father Flynn's got a family the parish don't know about
There's Magistrate Boyle, takes your coin and your cow
And Seamus McCabe owes me money right now"
She said, "Your karma's overdue
The Dullahan, he waits for you"
But Foxy tried to stay alive
And whispered to her:
Does it ever get old, creeping out in the cold, crying out in the dark?
Does it ever get old being out on the road? Does it ever get hard?
You could call it a night; we could dance till it's light; I'll let you blame it on me
This once, this once, could you let it slide? You could let it slide this once
She looked in his eyes and then said with a smile:
"The night is still young; perhaps I might stay awhile
Maybe I'll dance, maybe I'll drink,"
And Fergal thought maybe he'd sneak out when she blinked
So he poured her a glass of his cheapest champagne
And while she was dancing, he slipped out in the rain
He ran to the road, and he looked for a ride
And he leapt in a coach that was idling by
"Fly, you fool," cried the desperate fox
And with the crack of the whip, the carriage took off
Like a bat outta hell, he was making his break
Too blind to notice he'd made a fatal mistake
The coach left the ground, and it climbed to the sky
A horrified Fergal hanging on for dear life
He leaned out the window as the sky caught on fire
And a bolt of lightning showed there was no head on the driver
It always catches up to you
And Fergal is the dying proof
The banshee raised a glass
And whispered into the night:
No, it never gets old, creeping out in the cold, crying out in the dark?
No, it never gets old being out on the road, no, it never gets hard
Time to call it a night; you really put up a fight; I'll let you blame it on me
It's not my call, I couldn't let it slide, couldn't let it slide this once
