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The Devil Take the Women Trivia Quiz

What would St. Patrick's Day, or any night at the pub, be without some Irish drinking songs? See if you recognize these oft-sung ballads and shanties.

A multiple-choice quiz by CmdrK. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
CmdrK

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
379,910

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
267

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. From which Irish song do these lyrics come?
"Then Peggy O'Connor took up the job. 'Biddy', she says, 'You're wrong I'm sure.' / Biddy then gave her a belt on the gob and left her sprawling on the floor". Hint

Finnegan's Wake

Come Out Ye Black and Tans

Seven Drunken Nights

Johnny at the Door

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. A lesson not learned and not learned again, this shanty speaks to the tippling way; what is its name?
"I'm sick in the head and I haven't been to bed, since first I came ashore from me slumber, / For I spent all me dough on the lassies, don't you know, far across the western ocean I must wander". Hint

All For Me Grog

Roll the Old Chariot Along

The Black Velvet Band

Jug of Punch

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. Is this a tale that grows in the telling? What is the song about a ship with 27 masts and an apparently huge cargo hold?
"We had three million sides of old blind horses hides, we had four million barrels of bones. / We had five million hogs, and six million dogs and seven million barrels of porter". Hint

Fairytale of New York

Health to the Company

The Irish Rover

Dicey Riley

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. It looks like we're fighting in Portugal, Spain and France in this song, or maybe just going to America. Which song is it?
"You're leading me astray, over hills and mountains and to Amerikay / You're sweetness from the Bleachner, and spunkier than tea". Hint

Johnny Jump Up

Seven Drunken Nights

The Orange and the Green

Whiskey, You're the Devil

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. Which song is this that tells you that it's after ten so don't procrastinate?
"At the pub on the crossroads I first went astray, there I drank enough drink for to fill Galway Bay. / Going up in the morning I wore out me shoes, going up to the cross for the best of good booze". Hint

Old Dun Cow

Drink It Up Men

Jug of Punch

The Holy Ground

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. A very old song is as popular as ever, maybe more so now. Do you recognize these lyrics?
"I counted out his money and it made a pretty penny. I put it in me pocket and brought it home to Jenny. / She sighed and she swore that she never would deceive me, but the devil take the women for they never can be easy". Hint

The Fields of Athenry

Johnny at the Door

Whiskey in the Jar

Dicey Riley

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. "Some go in for counting beads, more go in for chasing women. / The scholar stays at home and reads, give me the glass with porter in it".
That should put things in perspective! Which song is being sung here? Hint

The Holy Ground

The Real Old Mountain Dew

Water is Alright in Tay

Roll the Old Chariot Along

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. It's always good to give someone well deserved praise. Do you know the name of this song about Mr. Mopps?
"He must have been an admiral, a sultan or a king, and to his praises we shall always sing. / Look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer! Lord bless Charlie Mopps..." Hint

Beer, Beer, Beer

Old Dun Cow

The Craic & Porter Black

Seven Drunken Nights

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. This one is allegedly a temperance song although it's one of the most popular Irish drinking songs. Do you recognize it?
"And out of me pocket I took sovereigns bright, and the landlady's eyes opened wide with delight. / She said 'I have whiskey and wines of the best, and the words that I said to you were only in jest'." Hint

Rattlin' Bog

Health to the Company

Wild Rover

The Real Old Mountain Dew

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. It's time to slow the tempo and sing a tear-jerker. Which song is this?
"But since it fell into my lot, that I should rise and you should not. / I'll gently rise and softly call, 'Good night and joy be to you all'." Hint

Dicey Riley

The Parting Glass

Jug of Punch

The Holy Ground

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. From which Irish song do these lyrics come? "Then Peggy O'Connor took up the job. 'Biddy', she says, 'You're wrong I'm sure.' / Biddy then gave her a belt on the gob and left her sprawling on the floor".

Answer: Finnegan's Wake

"Finnegan's Wake" is a song about poor Tim Finnegan, a laborer who fell from a ladder and broke his skull. During his funeral wake at home a big fight began. Some liquor splashed on Tim, miraculously bringing him back to life. "Isn't it the truth, I tell ya, lots of fun at Finnegan's wake!"

2. A lesson not learned and not learned again, this shanty speaks to the tippling way; what is its name? "I'm sick in the head and I haven't been to bed, since first I came ashore from me slumber, / For I spent all me dough on the lassies, don't you know, far across the western ocean I must wander".

Answer: All For Me Grog

This song is about a sailor who sold or pawned everything he had to buy grog, beer and tobacco. Never learning his lesson, he was cursed to stay at sea to earn more shillings to buy more grog...

3. Is this a tale that grows in the telling? What is the song about a ship with 27 masts and an apparently huge cargo hold? "We had three million sides of old blind horses hides, we had four million barrels of bones. / We had five million hogs, and six million dogs and seven million barrels of porter".

Answer: The Irish Rover

The Irish Rover had to be a huge ship to carry all that cargo, plus a load of bricks for the grand city hall in New York. On its seven year voyage from Cork it hit a rock in the fog, got caught in a whirlpool and sank with only one survivor.

4. It looks like we're fighting in Portugal, Spain and France in this song, or maybe just going to America. Which song is it? "You're leading me astray, over hills and mountains and to Amerikay / You're sweetness from the Bleachner, and spunkier than tea".

Answer: Whiskey, You're the Devil

This song is very hard to pin down. It appears it may have started as a ballad around the turn of the 19th century and was then added to or used as the basis for another song in 1873. Or we can just enjoy singing it and forget the history.

5. Which song is this that tells you that it's after ten so don't procrastinate? "At the pub on the crossroads I first went astray, there I drank enough drink for to fill Galway Bay. / Going up in the morning I wore out me shoes, going up to the cross for the best of good booze".

Answer: Drink It Up Men

The song praises drinking stout over beer, wine or other intoxicants. And since it's after ten o'clock there's no time to waste!

6. A very old song is as popular as ever, maybe more so now. Do you recognize these lyrics? "I counted out his money and it made a pretty penny. I put it in me pocket and brought it home to Jenny. / She sighed and she swore that she never would deceive me, but the devil take the women for they never can be easy".

Answer: Whiskey in the Jar

Yes, the title of our quiz came from this song. Dating back to the 17th century, or maybe even earlier, during the 1960s folk music revival it was also known as "Kilgary Mountain", "Darlin' Sporting Jenny" or "Captain Farrell"; "Whiskey in the Jar" seems to be the title that has survived the longest. A rollicking song, it has been recorded by dozens of groups and individual singers.

7. "Some go in for counting beads, more go in for chasing women. / The scholar stays at home and reads, give me the glass with porter in it". That should put things in perspective! Which song is being sung here?

Answer: Water is Alright in Tay

Although it sounds like an old song, "Water is Alright in Tay" is a modern song, written by Seamus McGrath, a cousin of the Clancy Brothers, who brought many Irish songs to America when they emigrated in the late 1950s. Water is alright in tay (tea) and "for fish and things that swim in rivers".

8. It's always good to give someone well deserved praise. Do you know the name of this song about Mr. Mopps? "He must have been an admiral, a sultan or a king, and to his praises we shall always sing. / Look what he has done for us, he's filled us up with cheer! Lord bless Charlie Mopps..."

Answer: Beer, Beer, Beer

"...Charlie Mopps, the man who invented beer". The origin of this song is uncertain; it may have originated in Irish pubs or British music halls, sometime during the 1800s. About the only thing we're sure of is that beer was not invented by Charlie Mopps, but why spoil a good story? Plus, the name of the song is easy to remember.

9. This one is allegedly a temperance song although it's one of the most popular Irish drinking songs. Do you recognize it? "And out of me pocket I took sovereigns bright, and the landlady's eyes opened wide with delight. / She said 'I have whiskey and wines of the best, and the words that I said to you were only in jest'."

Answer: Wild Rover

The song seems to be about 500 years old, a prodigal son type of story of a man who goes away for years and returns with "gold in great store". The owner of a pub refuses him credit until she sees his gold sovereigns. He vows to return to his family's home and roam no more.

10. It's time to slow the tempo and sing a tear-jerker. Which song is this? "But since it fell into my lot, that I should rise and you should not. / I'll gently rise and softly call, 'Good night and joy be to you all'."

Answer: The Parting Glass

A sort of a melancholy song, but an old, traditional song in Ireland and Scotland. The singer reminisces a bit over his life as he prepares to leave the pub and wishes well to all his friends. Bob Dylan shamelessly plagiarized this song when he wrote "Restless Farewell".

Source: Author CmdrK

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