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about
Killone is a civil parish between Clarecastle and Ballyea in Clare. Every schoolchild in the area knows the myth of the mermaid of Killone who resides in the nearby Newhall Lake.
One version of the myth contained in a poem entitled "The Legend of the Baron of Killone" tells us the Baron's store of wine depleting over time. One night, he goes down to the cellar of Newhall House and finds a mermaid helping herself to his collection. He promptly draws his gun and kills her.
The legend goes that before dying, the mermaid put a curse on the Baron that he would never bear a son. It's said that Newhall Lake turns red with the mermaid's blood every seven years or to foretell a change of occupants in Newhall.
The aforementioned poem was given to Seán by Clarecastle historian Eric Shaw in 2019 and the song is loosely-based on that account of the myth.
lyrics
The Baron’s wine was in decline as any servant could see
Port of old like drops of gold from far off Burgundy
And though he had a heavy hand when pouring out a glass
He knew a thief has sought relief in the cellar of Newhall House
“Who would steal the Baron’s wine?”, the aged man did roar
Wondering how a thief got into his well-guarded store
He heard a howl and kicked his loyal hound who whined for bread
He said “as I live, I’ll make sure that the thief will lose his head”
Late one night a starry light engulfed all County Clare
The Baron was awoken by a step upon the stair
And though he hoped to find the thief behind the cellar door
All he found were drops of red wine dotted on the floor
With his dog and gun, the Baron did run across the moonlit fields
Hoping that by morning light the thief’s fate would be sealed
But when he reached the Newhall banks, no trace he had yet found
As seamews’ laughter, loud and long, around him did resound
The Baron was demented, vengeance foremost in his mind
But with no culprit in his grasp, one evening he reclined
He went into a slumber from which nothing could him wake
Not even the sweet song sung by the lady of the lake
In Newhall Lake there lived a lady, a sea maiden fair
Her eyes were turquoise like the lake and dark brown was her hair
Every night she’d plunder one of the Baron’s wine kegs
But it’s easy to get legless when you don’t have any legs
One such night the sea maiden swam up from Newhall Lake
And under cover of the night her journey she did make
When she reached the cellar, the wine she began to consume
Not seeing a grim shadow in the corner of the room
The Baron drew his pistol and without haste he did fire
And the sea maiden, she scarcely heard the power spark expire
A canopy of misery descended on the room
The Baron was alarmed to hear a seamew’s scream of doom
He caught of glimpse of snow-white arms plunging into the stream
And that’s the last of the sea maiden that ever was seen
The Baron bragged of slaying a sea maiden, young and fair
And if you don’t believe me, ask the folks of County Clare
credits
released August 18, 2023
Music and lyrics by Seán Lyons
Arranged and performed by Seán Lyons, Aisling Lyons and Dermot Sheedy
Recorded, mixed, mastered and produced by Ben Wanders at Wanderland Studios, Limerick
Merfolk is the musical union of Aisling Lyons, Seán Lyons and Dermot Sheedy. Through soulful musicianship, thoughtful
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