Dear Old Donegal - Connie Francis

It seems like only yesterday

I sailed from out of Cork

A wanderer from Erin’s isle

I landed in New York

There wasn’t a soul to greet me there

A stranger on your shore

But Irish luck was with me here

And riches came galore

And now that I’m going back again

To dear old Erin’s isle

My friends will meet me on the pier

And greet me with a smile

Their faces, sure, I’ve almost forgot

I’ve been so long away

But me mother will introduce them all

And this to me will say

Shake hands with your Uncle Mike, me boy

And here is your sister, Kate

And there’s the girl you used to swing

Down by the garden gate

Shake hands with all of the neighbours

And kiss the colleens all

You’re as welcome as the flowers in May

To dear old Donnegal

They’ll give a party when I go home

They’ll come from near and far

They’ll line the roads for miles and miles

With Irish jauntin' cars

The spirits’ll flow and we’ll be gay

We’ll fill your hearts with joy

The piper’ll play an Irish reel

To greet the Yankee boy

We’ll dance and sing the whole night long

Such fun as never seen

The lads’ll be decked in corduroy

The colleens wearin' green

There’ll be thousands there that I never saw

I’ve been so long away

But me mother will introduce them all

And this to me will say

Shake hands with your Uncle Mike, me boy

And here is your sister, Kate

And there’s the girl you used to swing

Down by the garden gate

Shake hands with all of the neighbours

And kiss the colleens all

You’re as welcome as the flowers in May

To dear old Donnegal

Meet Branigan, Fannigan, Milligan, Gilligan

Duffy, McCuffy, Malachy, Mahone

Rafferty, Lafferty, Donnelly, Connelly

Dooley, O’Hooley, Muldowney, Malone

Madigan, Cadigan, Lanihan, Flanihan

Fagan, O’Hagan, O’Hoolihan, Flynn

Shanihan, Manihan, Fogarty, Hogarty

Kelly, O’Kelly, McGuinness, McGuinn

Shake hands with your Uncle Mike, me boy

And here is your sister, Kate

And there’s the girl you used to swing

Down by the garden gate

Shake hands with all of the neighbours

And kiss the colleens all

You’re as welcome as the flowers in May

To dear old Donnegal