Irish traditional song lyrics — collected by Beer Belly Band.
May the Lord upon high who rules the sky, look down on our pubs and bars
And the women and men all seated within, neglecting there pints and there jars
The crack it is bad the atmosphere bad, very man has a face like mule
For all he can do is to grab an oul cue and start playing that game called pool
Now when I was a boy it was always me joy to go to the pub each night
There were arguments, scraps and killings perhaps and everyone though he was right
There was badgers and dogs and men from the bogs and young fellas acting the tool
But now there’s no crack for every man jack has his arse in the air playing pool
To the local ale house after milking the cows every customer made his way
And there he would dwell and drink till he fell while the fiddles and pipes they did play
The jigs and the reels, the rattling of heels, polkas and slides were the rule
But now there’s no chance for a tune or a dance, for everyone’s playing the old pool
Now pool you will find is a game designed for foolish, illiterate louts
You put in four bob and pull an old knob and a big shower of balls they come out
They’re placed on the table and then if your able to knock them all in to a hole
More money goes in, you start over again and you lose every bob of your dole
Now in the Irish Free State all the people are beat from watching and playing this game
In their necks they have cricks which no doctor can fix & their backs and their shoulders are maimed
Their arses protrude in a manner most lewd from being hoisted aloft in the air
Their eye balls are sore and dripping with gore and they in a manner most quare
So if you meet a young man whose face it is wane and his eyes have a vacant stare
His jawbone is slack and his head is thrown back and he can’t tell a cob from a mare
His nostrils dilated, his brow corrugated, his manners like those of a fool
On your shirt you can bet that you have just met, a man’s that’s gone plain mad for pool