Finnegan's Wake

Tim Finnegan lived on Walker Street A gentleman, Irish, mighty odd; He had a brogue both rich and sweet And to rise in the world he carried a hod. Now Tim had a sort of the tipplin' way With a love of the whiskey he was born And to help him on with his work each day He'd a "drop of the cray-thur" every morn.

One mornin' Tim was feelin' full His head was heavy which made him shake; He fell from the ladder and broke his skull And they carried him home his corpse to wake. They rolled him up in a nice clean sheet And laid him out upon the bed, With a gallon of whiskey at his feet And a barrel of porter at his head.

His friends assembled at the wake And Mrs. Finnegan called for lunch, First they brought in tea and cake Then pipes, tobacco and whiskey punch. Biddy O'Brien began to bawl "Such a nice clean corpse, did you ever see? "Aye Tim, mavourneen, why did you die?" "Arragh, hold your gob" said Paddy McGee!

Then Maggie O'Connor took up the job "O Biddy," says she, "You're wrong, I'm sure" Biddy she gave her a belt in the gob And left her sprawlin' on the floor. And then the war did soon engage 'Twas woman to woman and man to man, Shillelagh law was all the rage And a row and eruption soon began.

Then Mickey Maloney ducked his head When a noggin of whiskey flew at him, It missed, and fallin' on the bed The liquor scattered over Tim! The corpse revives! See how he raises! Timothy rising from the bed, ays, "Whirl your whiskey around like blazes Thanum an Dhul! Did you think I'm dead?"