Those were the days - Piaras Ó Lorcáin (written by Barry Ker)

 Piaras Ó Lorcáin is definitely one of the upcoming new voices in Irish Folk. I posted about him some time ago (look here).

This is a video of a live performance for TG4. He sings a song composed by Barry Kerr, who is an acclaimed Irish composer, singer-songwriter, and visual artist from Co. Armagh now based in Connemara. A touring musician for over two decades, he has collaborated with some of Irelands most renowned artists and was the recipient of the inaugural Liam O'Flynn Award from the National Concert Hall.

This is the Original Version by Barry Kerr:

Here are the chords: Piaras has the capo on 1st fret!

{t:Those Were The Days}

{st:Berry Kerr}

{soh}Piaras Ó Lorcáin{eoh}

{soc}

Oh, I [G]Wish I Was Singing With [D]Mickie And Margies Girls

[G]Down In Wood[D]lawn 

Where The [G]Songs From Home

Turned [D]Way Up Loud

And The [Bm]Football And Hurling [A]On

Those We're The [G]Days

And The [D]Nights

The [G]Laughter And The [D]Fights

The [G]Phone Call Home When [D]Feeling Alone

[Bm]Somehow Made It Seem [A]Right

Those We're The [G]Days 

And The [D]Nights

{eoc}

 

[A]

I Was Making The [G]Money Doing [D]Well

But I [G]Lost It And I [D]Fell 

Oh I [G]Backed The Wrong Horse

And [D]Out Of My Cost

And [Bm]Serving My Penance In [A]Hell

 

{soc}

Those We're The [G]Days

And The [D]Nights

The [G]Laughter And The [D] Fights

The [G]Phone Call Home When [D]Feeling Alone

[Bm]Somehow Made It Seem [A]Right

Those We're The [G]Days pause

And The [D]Nights

{eoc}

 

{soc}

I [G]Wish I Was Singing With [D]Mickie And Margies Girls

[G]Down In Wood[D]lawn 

Where The [G]Songs From Home

Turned [D]Way Up Loud

And The [Bm]Football And Hurling [A]On

Those We're The [G]Days

And The [D]Nights

The [G]Laughter And The [D] Fights

The [G]Phone Call Home When [D]Feeling Alone

[Bm]Somehow Made It Seem [A]Right

Those We're The [G]Days pause

And The [D]Nights

{eoc}

[G]Come All You Bar Stool [D]Heroes

Oh, [G]Sing out Your Favourite [D]Songs

Some [G]Whiskey For The [D]Courage

Ah, We'll [Bm]Sing And Right The [A]Wrongs

Oh, We [G]Are The Music [D]Makers

We [G]Are The Dreamers Of [D]Dreams

Oh, [G]Chasing The Ad[D]venture 

And What[Bm]ever It May [A]Bring

 

{soc}

I [G]Wish I Was Singing With [D]Mickie And Margies Girls

[G]Down In Wood[D]lawn 

Where The [G]Songs From Home

Turned [D]Way Up Loud

And The [Bm]Football And Hurling [A]On

Those We're The [G]Days

And The [D]Nights

The [G]Laughter And The [D] Fights

The [G]Phone Call Home When [D]Feeling Alone

[Bm]Somehow Made It Seem [A]Right

Those We're The [G]Days pause

And The [D]Nights

{eoc}

This is what chatgpt found out about the song:

“Those Were the Days” — Barry Kerr

Barry Kerr’s “Those Were the Days” is a reflective song, written and recorded on tour in the USA, often in hotel rooms or at gig venues. The song tells the story of an Irishman who is “down on his luck,” thinking back with nostalgia to happier times — particularly longing to be back in New York, enjoying the liveliness (“the craic”) of Bronx bars. 

In doing so, Kerr explores themes of homesickness, regret, and the pull of places and memories that once felt alive. The setting — being on the road, in between performances — adds a dimension of longing and transience: the contrast between the current difficult circumstances and the vibrant life once had. 

Source: Berry Kerr on Bandcamp

Interpretation & deeper reading

Putting together what is stated plus what can reasonably be inferred, here is a more in-depth reading:

1. Longing and nostalgia
   The central emotional core of the song is nostalgia — longing for better times, for places and moments that felt full of life. The narrator is “down on his luck,” so the past is not just memory but a contrast to present hardship.

2. Exile, displacement, and homesickness
   The setting includes being on tour in the U.S., away from home. The protagonist is Irish, longing to be back in New York (in the Bronx) where he once felt close to the pulse of social life, “having the craic” (i.e. enjoying good conversation, music, dance, community). The distance and dislocation amplify the emotional weight of memory.

3. Communal restoration / music as solace
   In the opening lines, the idea of “barstool heroes” gathering, singing their favorite songs, and issuing “some whiskey for the courage” suggests that community and music are the means by which the narrator (and those around him) cope with regret or loss. It is as though in singing together, they seek to “right the wrongs” — heal or reinterpret the past, or find strength in shared memory.

4. Regret, missed opportunities, and reflection
   The contrast between past and present suggests that certain choices, chances, or relationships may have been lost or mismanaged. The tone is not triumphant; it is tinged with sadness, but also with a kind of hopeful reckoning — through remembering, through gathering, one might reclaim something or find solace.

5. Temporal tension
   Because the song was literally composed on the road, in transient spaces (hotel rooms, venues), that sense of impermanence seeps into the song. The present is unstable; the past, though unreachable, feels more stable by comparison. This heightens the emotional urgency of the nostalgia.