Marking Time

Will you meet me on Clare Island
Summer stars are in the sky
We’ll get the ferry out from Roonagh
And wave all our cares goodbye
And we’ll go dancing at the ceili
We’ll go kissing on the strand
Take our clothes of in the moonlight
Skinny-dipping hand in hand
And we’ll start drinking in the twilight
Keep it up until the dawn
In both the bars
Because there’s no guards
To take our names and send us home.

The Saw Doctors, Clare Island

Ah yes, the Saw Doctors. You either love them or loathe them. They are lauded by their supporters for the authenticity and depth of their insights into the minutae of life in a small town in Ireland and savaged by their critics for the fakeness and shallowness of their insights into the minutae of life in that self-same small town in Ireland. The truth as usual lies somewhere in between.

There is no question that the songs of Saw Doctors accurately capture their experiences growing up in Shamtown and for their critics to deny that is to deny the very existence of small town Irish life. Perhaps that’s what they are trying to do in a vain attempt to remake the image of Ireland as more ’sophisticated’ and ‘cosmopolitan’ than they feel it is.

Having said that, it is hard to see much that is unique or insightful in the lyrics of the Saw Doctors. Their idolisers give them too much credit in this regard, seeing things that are not really there, and reading all sorts of deep social meanings into the lyrics. In many cases the fans’ judgement is coloured by the baggage they themselves bring to the songs, which often document events they would have experienced themselves. So while you could argue that N 17 is a more authentic description of Irish emigration than Philip Chevron’s Thousands are Sailing it is difficult to argue that it offers the same artistic richness and intellectual insight. Removed from it’s local context N 17 loses much of its power.

The Saw Doctors sing it as they see it and that in itself is probably enough to make them unique. There are few other bands mining their source.

Anyway, all that’s just an excuse to throw up a few photos of Clare Island…

The Pirate queen ferry from Roonagh to Clare Island

The pier at Clare Island

Looking across Clew Bay to Croagh Patrick from Clare Island.

Seagulls scavenging.

Seagulls with Croagh Patrick in the background. Can we ever get enough of Croagh Patrick? No? Ok, here’s one more taken on an April morning…

Mark Waters marked time at 7:43 pm on April 28th, 2005 .

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