Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen will never be the same again. This song will stick in your head – if you are from Lewis. This is the audio-only version – the atmospheric in-vision version is on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jThyzRVIdI.
It is by the AGOFR (Avante Gaelic Obscurist Folk Rock) supergroup which is made up from members of The Guireans, Dun Ringles, The Iain MacKinnon Experience, Memphis Louie and the Rockin’ Firebird of Death, the Calum Kennedy Band and Lynyrd Skynyrd … it says here.
Airidhbhruach
I’ve heard there was a secret cearrd
Beyond the turning for Garyvard
But you just don’t care for South Lochs, do ya?
So keep going thus past Brown Owl’s bus
Give Eishken, Seaforth Head a miss
And you will find yourself in Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
The language purists don’t approve
It’s Airidh a’ bhruaich, ya townie pooves
Pronounce it right or we will fleekeen do ya
We’ll use a blunted tairsgear
To jab your toinn and cut your hair
Until you start pronouncing “Airidhbhrua-ich”
It’s Airidh a’ bhrua-ich, Airidh a’ bhrua-ich
Airidh a’ bhrua-ich, Airidh a’ bhrua-ich
If you have been there before
You probably won’t go back no more
Especially if you’re a deer because they’ll stew you
Martins and Montgomerys-es
Conspire to put you in the freezer
It’s cold in there in fleekeen Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
They do their messages at the van
Cos there’s no shops it’s the only place they can
Get stuff like tins of beans and marag dubh, yeah
And once a year they go to Woolies
But from next week that will be foolish
Cos Woolies will be closed and everybody in it
Will be on the burroo-ya
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
They’re half-Hearach and half-South Lochs
And half-Balallan, o mo chreach
That combination sends a shiver through ya
They don’t like to read or write
They’d rather shoot at things at night
And net some bradan before they get the curam
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
And some of them are APCs
And one or two more are Wee Frees
And three or four have joined the Continue-ya (ing)
So when their ammunition’s spent
They go to church for a good precent
Especially when it is the comm-i-yoonians
In Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
Airidhbhruach, Airidhbhruach
