OT, but (I hope) relevant. Some people have told me that since most modern music (especially the electric kind, like rock) is bad for our culture and society, we should be listening to only "higher" forms of music like classical. What do you think of that viewpoint?
@SR - In principle, I agree we must control exposure, else be overwhelmed. In general, the more recent the worse. And this applies equally to classical music. I suppose the proper answer is to practice and use discernment - monitor what music is doing in us, with us; and act accordingly.
19 November 2019 at 06:16
Now Delaney had a donkey that everyone admired Temporarily lazy and permanently tired A leg at every corner balancing his head And a tail to let you know which end he wanted to be fed Riley slyly said we've underrated it, why not train it, then they took a rag They rubbed it, scrubbed it, they oiled and embrocated it Got it at the post and when the starter dropped the flag There was Riley pushin' it, shovin' it, shushin' it Hogan, Logan and everyone in town Lined up, attackin' it and shovin' it and smackin' it They might as well have tried to push the Town Hall down The donkey was eyein' them, openly defyin' them Winkin', blinkin' and twistin' out of place Riley reversin' it, everybody cursin' it The day Delaney's donkey ran the halfmile race The muscles of the mighty never known to flinch They couldn't move the donkey a quarter of an inch Delaney lay exhausted, hangin' round his throat With a grip just like a Scotsman on the five pound note Starter, Carter, he lined up with the rest of them When it saw them, it was willin' then It raced up, braced up, ready for the best of them They started off to cheer it but it changed its mind again And there was Riley pushin' it, shovin' it, shushin' it Hogan, Logan and Mary Ann Macgraw She started pokin' it an' grabbin' it an' chokin' it It kicked her in the bustle and it laughed hee-hah The whigs and conservatives, the radical superlatives Liberals and tories, they hurried to the place Stood there in unity, helpin' the community The day Delaney's donkey ran the halfmile race The crowd began to cheer it, then Rafferty, the judge He came up to assist them, but still it wouldn't budge And the jockey who was ridin' it, little John McGee Was so thoroughly disgusted that he went and had his tea Hagan, Fagan were students of psychology Swore they'd shift him with some dynamite They bought it, brought it, and without apology The donkey gave a sneeze and blew the whole lot out of sight There was Riley pushin' it, shovin' it, shushin' it Hogan, Logan and all the bally crew Police, and auxiliary, the Garrison Artillery The Second Enniskillen's and the Life Guards too They seized it and harried it, they picked it up and carried it Cheered it, steered it to the winnin' place Then the bookmakers drew aside and they all committed suicide The day Delaney's donkey won the half - mile - race
I am a great admirer of this account of an event in Old Ireland - but even as a young child I was troubled by what seems like a plot hole - and one that indeed casts doubt on the authenticity of the whole narrative.
I refer to the way in which the song begins by informing us about the day Delaney's donkey 'ran' the half mile race, but by the end the donkey is described as having 'won' it - despite the large measure of unfair assistance the beast received.
What clinches it for me, is that the bookmakers are said to have 'committed suicide' as a consequence of this result. But I find it inconceivable that the bookmakers would have agreed to pay-out when it is candidly acknowledged that the donkey was picked up and carried over the line.
As I say, this has bothered me since I was a kid. I know that Val Doonican was regarded as being a thoroughly decent chap (unusually among major showbiz stars) - but I think that with Delaney's Donkey (his first and 'breakthough' hit recording) he may have been guilty of a significant degree of dishonesty - perhaps driven to it by many preceding years of obscurity?
"A plot hole in Delaney's Donkey"
4 Comments -
I could never recall, when singing this song to my self, if it was "ran" or "won". You have revealed all.
18 November 2019 at 07:53
M in M - You're welcome...
18 November 2019 at 08:22
OT, but (I hope) relevant. Some people have told me that since most modern music (especially the electric kind, like rock) is bad for our culture and society, we should be listening to only "higher" forms of music like classical. What do you think of that viewpoint?
18 November 2019 at 23:14
@SR - In principle, I agree we must control exposure, else be overwhelmed. In general, the more recent the worse. And this applies equally to classical music. I suppose the proper answer is to practice and use discernment - monitor what music is doing in us, with us; and act accordingly.
19 November 2019 at 06:16