The Old Way and the Firebrand
Performed by Siobhán Ní Mháille
The Old Way and the Firebrand – DOWNLOAD
(Verse 1: Traditionalist)
[female Traditionalist]
Steady, with solemn pride
“Gun seann bheachdan,” you speak with scorn,
Yet our past gave breath to a land reborn.
Gun seann chultar – you’d cast it away,
But it’s kept us whole through the darkened days.
“Gun seann chleachdaidhean,” traditions cast wide,
But you trample the gifts of a people’s pride.
Gun droch chleachdaidhean, you’d sever our ties –
Tell me, who are we if our past just dies?
(Verse 2: Marxist)
[the Male Marxist voice]
Brazenly, with fierce resolve
No dead notions, no dusty ways,
This is our chance for a brighter day.
No stale carry-on, no old baggage here –
We’re forging Ireland, strong and clear.
Old songs and symbols, they anchor us still;
I’ll break the chains, bend the land to our will.
The flags of the old? Let them drift and decay,
Our future demands we clear the way.
(Chorus: Together)
[Traditionalist & Marxist]
In a clashing harmony
Old and new, in a storm they rise,
One calls for roots, one for severed ties.
The winds of change blow fierce and long –
What will stand when the land is gone?
(Verse 3: Traditionalist)
[female Traditionalist]
With conviction, holding firm
This land’s no blank page, no place for a plan,
Its soil tells tales of each woman and man.
Your call for a fight, a clean slate bold –
But where’s the soul when the story’s sold?
We bled for this soil, in struggle and song,
You burn it all – it’s here you go wrong.
Our kin survived on their customs and creed,
A heritage planted like ancient seed.
(Verse 4: Marxist)
[male Marxist]
Defiant and unyielding
Yes, I’m the usurper, I’ll make it plain –
For a land unbound, I’d bear the stain.
Tradition, pride – call it what you will;
It holds us back, stands against our will.
The past was pain, the scars won’t heal,
A people bound by a backward wheel.
If freedom means that we break a few chains,
Then break we shall – let glory reign.
(Final Chorus: Together)
[Traditionalist & Marxist]
In tense refrain, echoing like church bells
Old and new, in clash and claim,
One stands proud, the other shames.
What’s the price of a brand-new dawn –
When all our history is gone?
(Outro: Traditionalist)
[Traditionalist]
With unwavering sorrow and strength
Ah, gun seann bheachdan, you make your stand,
But freedom is hollow without a land.
And who are we, stripped of our past –
A people with roots pulled up too fast.
Lyrics and Music by Alan Nafzger
Last Updated on October 14, 2026 by Alan Nafzger