Paddy McGinty's Goat

Album: The Very Best of Val Doonican (1964)
Play Video
  • Now Patrick McGinty, an Irishman of note
    Fell in for a fortune, and he bought himself a goat
    Say's he, "sure, of goat's milk I'm going to have me fill"
    But when he brought the nanny home, he found it was a bill

    All the young ladies who live in Killaloo
    They're all wearing bustles like their mothers used to do
    They each wear a bolster beneath the petticoat
    And leave the rest to providence and Paddy McGinty's goat

    Mrs Burke to her daughter said, "listen, Mary Jane
    Who was the lad you were cuddling in the lane?
    He'd long wiry whiskers a' hanging from his chin"
    "'T was only Pat McGinty's goat," she answer'd with a grin

    Then she went away from the village in disgrace
    She came back with powder and paint upon her face
    She'd rings on her fingers, and she wore a sable coat
    And I'll bet your life she didn't get those from Paddy McGinty's goat

    Now Norah McCarthy the knot was going to tie
    She washed out her trousseau and hung it out to dry
    Along came the goat and he saw the bits of white
    And chewed up all her falderals, and on her wedding night

    "Oh turn out the light quick!" she shouted out to Pat
    For though l'm your bride, sure l'm not worth looking at
    I had two of everything, I told you when I wrote
    But now I've won another naught through Paddy McGinty's goat

    Mickey Riley he went to the races t'other day
    He won twenty dollars and shouted, "hip hooray"
    He held up the note, shouting "look at what I've got"
    The goat came up and grabbed at it and swallowed all the lot

    "He's eaten me banknote," said Mickey, with the hump
    They went for the doctor and they got a stomach pump
    They pumped and they pumped for that twenty dollar note
    But all they got was ninepence out of Paddy McGinty's goat

    Now old Paddy's goat had a wonderous appetite
    And one day for breakfast he ate some dynamite
    A big box of matches he swallowed all serene
    And out he went and swallowed up a quarter paraffin

    He sat by the fireside, he didn't give a hang
    He swallowed a spark and exploded with a bang
    So if you go to heaven you can bet a dollar note
    That the angel with the whiskers on is Paddy McGinty's goat Writer/s: BERT LEE, R P WESTON
    Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Little Richard

Little RichardFact or Fiction

Was Long Tall Sally a cross-dresser? Did he really set his piano on fire? See if you know the real stories about one of rock's greatest innovators.

Pete Anderson

Pete AndersonSongwriter Interviews

Pete produced Dwight Yoakam, Michelle Shocked, Meat Puppets, and a very memorable track for Roy Orbison.

80s Video Director Jay Dubin

80s Video Director Jay DubinSong Writing

Billy Joel and Hall & Oates hated making videos, so they chose a director with similar contempt for the medium. That was Jay Dubin, and he has a lot to say on the subject.

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Muhammad Ali: His Musical Legacy and the Songs he Inspired

Muhammad Ali: His Musical Legacy and the Songs he InspiredSong Writing

Before he was the champ, Ali released an album called I Am The Greatest!, but his musical influence is best heard in the songs he inspired.

Daniel Lanois

Daniel LanoisSongwriter Interviews

Daniel Lanois on his album Heavy Sun, and the inside stories of songs he produced for U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan.