"Bonny Portmore" by Loreena McKennitt

Since it's St. Patrick's Day (more on that later) I feel compelled by a serious case of Anglo guilt to highlight the cultural accomplishments of the Irish on this fine, green day. Despite centuries of Papist oppression and almost constant drunkenness they've managed to crank out quite a quaint little culture for themselves. (What else can I say? Once an English bastard, always an English bastard.) Plus they kind of saved Western Civilization during the Middle Ages, which was pretty cool of them all things considered...

This song, though, has long been one of my favourites; I first heard it in 1992, when Loreena McKennitt's album The Visit (on which it appears) was released. Bonny Portmore describes the rape of Ireland by the British, who decimated the oaken forests of Ireland so as to build ships with which to set about conquering the world. Which, need I remind you, they very nearly did, or at any rate did better than anyone before them until American capitalism beat them at their own game.

What was I talking about?

Oh yeah... Great song... Have a listen...
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