This version as Gaeilge is translated from PJ McCall's great Carlow marching song, said to be to the melody of Fiach's pipers as they marched. It should be at the normal marching tempo, rather than the usual very fast tempo of the English version.
The roll is called, Big Jim is gone, his voice we’ll hear no more,
But his name is etched forever on the pages of folklore.
For those who knew this gentle giant, he was an easy friend to love
And on Good Friday evening Jim was called to Heaven…
Twas a Saturday in October in 1983
Just another Saturday or so it seemed to be;
But that day has made history which was very sad:
It was the day that Mickey Rice blew in the plastic bag.
It was down in Ballinabranna that we all worked hard all…
Dave (Blue) Kinsella rembers and records the shock, sorrow and anger when the Sugar Factory was closed, bringing to an end the local industry that provided work for generations of Carlovians in farming, transporting and manufacturing the sugar.
May the peace of ten thousand Christmases
Be with you this crazy year
With a season free from worry
And a mind that holds no fear.
May you follow every dream
And never need a star,
May the lights dispel the darkness,
So…