Tugs at the Beard: The Chieftains and "An Poc Ar Buile (The Mad Puck Goat)"

Today's tune is by The Chieftains, an Irish ensemble formed in Dublin in 1962 and who developed their music primarily around the distinctive sound of the uileann pipes. They took their name from the title of a novel by Irish author John Montague. Besides releasing several critically acclaimed albums, they are just as well known for their collaborations with such artists as Van Morrison, The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Sinead O'Connor and Roger Daltry. They have released 44 albums. This song, "An Poc Ar Buile (The Mad Puck Goat)" is from their 1999 album Water from the Well. The song's lyrics are a humorous tale of a man who meets an angry goat that chases him. Somehow he ends up on the back of the goat, causing a priest to mistake the man for the Devil himself.