Parting Glass

Not to be confused with the similarly-themed Here's a Health to the Company, this traditional song has been performed by numerous folk singers, but was popularized most handily by the Clancy Brothers from their 1959 album Come Fill Your Glass With Us. Though commonly thought to be of Irish origin, a recognizable form can be traced back to 18th century Scotland, with roots dating back a century further.

The Longest Johns recorded a version of the song as a collaboration with Natalie Holmes, released on YouTube in May 2020.

Factoids[]

The earliest known precursor to this song is a Scottish tune first printed in the 1620s or 30s, titled "Good Night And God Be With You". Although it includes no lyrics and is not the same as the modern melody, a variant dating to 1700 contains phrases that are beginning to resemble the modern tune.

The text, meanwhile, descends from a poem titled "Neighbours Farewel to his Friends", first published in London in the mid-17th century; though significantly different from the modern lyrics, it includes one couplet that has survived almost completely intact: "What I have done, for want of wit, / To Memory I'll not recall"; it also ends each verse with, "Good Night, and GOD be with you all."

The first written evidence of the song recognizable as a variant of the modern version is found in a Scottish chapbook dating from 1815-1822. It then migrated to England, appearing as a London broadside in the 1820s, and to its modern "home" of Ireland, where it first surfaces as a broadside in Cork, likely from the 1830s.

A comprehensive and well-researched history of the song's origin can be found here.

Lyrics[]

These lyrics are based on the version performed by the Longest Johns in various livestreams.

Of all the money that e'er I had
I spent it in good company
And all the harm that e'er I've done
Alas, it was to none but me
And all I've done for want of wit
To memory now I can't recall

{Chorus}
So fill to me the parting glass
Good night, and joy be with you all

If I had money enough to spend
And leisure time to sit awhile
There is a fair maid in this town
That surely has my heart beguiled
Her rosy cheeks and ruby lips
I own she has my heart in thrall

{Chorus}

Of all the comrades that e'er I had
They're sorry for my going away
And all the sweethearts that e'er I had
They'd wish me one more day to stay
But since it falls unto my lot
That I should rise and you should not

{Chorus x2}

Parting Glass

Contents

Factoids[]

Lyrics[]

Recordings[]

Streaming/Purchase[]

YouTube Videos[]

Full Band Streams[]

Chill Streams[]

Gaming Streams[]