Songs of the Troubles, redivivus

Earlier I got some stick for suggesting that Zombie by The Cranberries might have been included in any top ten of the best songs to come out of Northern Ireland’s Troubles. To attempt a slight apologia, what I actually said was there was a line in the (otherwise very sparse) lyric that made it worth considering. In retrospect, the lines that actually caught my ear were: When the violence causes silence, We must be mistaken. But there were lots of others which may have a prior claim:In no particular order:

– The town I loved so well – The Dubliners

– Invisible Sun – The Police

– Belfast – Boney M

– Give Ireland Back to the Irish – Wings (can’t find a passable performance on video)

– Oliver’s Army – Elvis Costello (also David Vance‘s favourite of all time)

– Through the Barricades – Spandau Ballet

– Forgotten Sons – Marillion

– The Island – Paul Brady

– Whatever you say, say nothing – Colm Sands (can’t find a video)

– Belfast Befast – Clubsound (can’t find video)

– Ether – The Gang of Four (can’t find video)

– Give my head peace – Saw Doctors (can’t find a video)

– The Saints are coming – U2 and Greenday (see earlier thread for link)

Added: There were Roses – Cara Dillon

Mick Fealty

Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty