The Night That Paddy Murphy Died

The night that Paddy Murphy died I never shall forget
The whole damn crew got stinking drunk and some ain't sober yet;
The only thing we did that night that filled my heart with fear
We took the ice from off the corpse and put it in the beer

Chorus:
And that's how we showed our respect for Paddy Murphy
That's how we showed our honor and our pride;
That's how we showed our respect for Paddy Murphy
Our respect for Paddy Murphy on the night that Paddy died.

The night that Paddy Murphy died I never shall forget
The whole damn crew got stinking drunk and some ain't sober yet;
The other thing we did that night that filled our hearts with fear
We took the coins from off his eyes, and spent it all on beer.

ANOTHER VERSION*

The Night Pat Murphy Died

Oh the night that Paddy Murphy died, is a night I'll never forget
Some of the boys got loaded drunk, and they ain't got sober yet;
As long as a bottle was passed around every man was feelin' gay
O'Leary came with the bagpipes, some music for to play

Chorus:
That's how they showed their respect for Paddy Murphy
That's how they showed their honour and their pride;
They said it was a sin and shame and they winked at one another
And every drink in the place was full the night Pat Murphy died

As Mrs. Murphy sat in the corner pouring out her grief
Kelly and his gang came tearing down the street
They went into an empty room and a bottle of whiskey stole
They put the bottle with the corpse to keep that whiskey cold

Chorus

About two o'clock in the morning after empty'ing the jug
Doyle rolls up the ice box lid to see poor Paddy's mug
We stopped the clock so Mrs. Murphy couldn't tell the time
And at a quarter after two we argued it was nine

Chorus

They stopped the hearse on George Street outside Sundance Saloon
They all went in at half past eight and staggered out at noon
They went up to the graveyard, so holy and sublime
Found out when they got there, they'd left the corpse behind!

Chorus

Oh the night that Paddy Murphy died, is a night I'll never forget
Some of the boys got loaded drunk and they ain't been sober yet;
As long as a bottle was passed around every man was feelin' gay
O'Leary came with the bagpipes, some music for to play

Chorus

*This version is by a band called Great Big Sea.

Go here to hear their version