One such song is 'Kilkelly', by Peter Jones. What makes the song distinctive is that it was inspired by a set of letters that the composer discovered, written to his great grandfather who had emigrated from Kilkelly, Co. Mayo, in the 1850s.

The themes of the song reflect the experience of emigration. The song has five verses, in the form of letters dated from 1860. Four letters are from the father at home to 'my dear and loving son John', written for him by "your good friend the Schoolmaster Pat McNamara". They tell of family news, events and situations at home - marriages, births, poor harvests, and so on - and expressing good wishes to the son far away. The verse ends with a message from John's mother urging him not to work on the railroad and hoping for his return home soon.

The second verse (dated 1870) greets the son who has by now married:
"Hello to your missus and to your four children, may they healthy and strong."
The letter also refers to the brother, Michael, who has "got in a wee bit of trouble". The third verse (1880) is addressed to both sons, reflecting the fact that emigration often was undertaken by family members in serial, chain form. The letter gives the sad news of the death of their mother, and expresses joy that Michael is planning to return home. Exile seems to have enabled him to succeed economically so that- "with money he's sure to buy land". Ironically, this contrasts with the problems of those selling their land who, because the harvest has been poor must sell for "any price that they can". Ten years later, the song goes, father writes again. He believes he is "close on eighty". The remittances that John has sent have enabled the father to remain living in the family home, now on his own.

The final verse changes register. The letter, dated 1892, is written by the brother Michael. It give the sad news that "father has gone"; but the sad news is tinged by the celebration that "he was cheerful and healthy right up the end" - "Ah you should have seen him playing with the grandchildren of Pat McNamara your friend". The final two lines strongly evoke key aspects of the experience of migration:
"It's funny the way he kept talking about you, he called for you in the end.
Ah why don't you think about coming to visit, we'd all love to see you again."

See lyrics to 'Kilkelly';

Hear online version, song by Sean Keane

Kilkelly online

online article about Pat McNamara

Letters sent by Pat McNamara

Working on the railroad: - online resources about the Navvies

Poor harvests :-
Potato famine

coffin ships

From Songs of Irish migration and diaspora

My feet are here on Broadway
This blessed harvest morn,
But oh! the ache that´s in my heart
For the spot where I was born.

from The Bog Road (Teresa Brayton)

And when ye come and all the flowers are dying If I am dead, as dead I well may be You'll come and find the place where I am lying And kneel and say an Ave there for me

from from Danny Boy

from From Clare to here (Ralph McTell)

My suitcase is lifted and stowed on the train
And a thousand regrets whirl around in my brain
The ache in my heart is a black sea of pain
I'm leaving my Nancy, oh

from Leaving Nancy (Eric Bogle)

We sailed three days, we were all seasick
And no-one on board was free,
We were all confined unto our bunks
With no one to pity poor me,
No fond mother dear, no father kind
To comfort my head went to sore
This made me think more on the wee girl I left
On Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore.

from Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore

from Paddy's Lamentation