Dublin in the Rare Oul Times

Pete St. John is a Dublin-born balladeer whose compositions have become legendary and timeless classics; so much so that people are often surprised to discover that the author of is still living.

He is probably best known for The Fields of Athenry but has also produced a repertoire of songs about his native Dublin; a city he returned to in the late 1970s following an interesting and varied career, living and working in Canada, Alaska, Central America and the West Indies. [See his website for a biography]

It is said that finding the face of his city greatly changed upon his return, influenced him in his songwriting that produced critical and commercial successes such as The Rare Ould Times, The Ferryman and so many others.

The song is unashamedly nostalgic - much like this website - so who better to perform it than The Dubliners and Ronnie Drew whose distinctive voice contains echoes of Dublin?