Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
Here’s a song that Andy Conners sang for me yesterday in his home in Drumgoold in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. He calls it 'There Was A Lady In Her Daddy's Garden', though it’s also known as 'The Lady In Her Father’s Garden' and 'There Was A Maid In Her Father's Garden'. In fact, some of you may know it from the singing of the late and great Dolores Keane.
In Andy’s case, he learned the song from his mother, the late Bridget Connors (nee Cash). Andy is 91 years of age, and I first recorded him singing back in 2010. It was a real delight to meet him again 16 years later and find that he’s still singing just as finely and expressively as he was then.
It’s worth emphasizing — this man is 91, and through him, you can catch a glimpse of something much older and true. With a song like this, passed down from mouth to ear, you could easily find yourself stepping back into the 18th and 19th centuries via within a few breaths.
I’ve always loved the way Andy talks about songs. After singing, he often recaps the story, and I think that’s a big part of what draws him to them—the storytelling itself. In this case, it’s the tale of a man returning after seven years to meet his lover.
If you have the time, have a listen. Enjoy the song — but also watch Andy’s physical connection to it, and the way he expresses it through his whole body.
I’ll be sharing more from the conversation I recorded in the coming days but the meantime, enjoy this.
Text: Michael Fortune
Support: Wexford County Council through the Sláintecare Healthy Communities Programme.
Here’s a song that Andy Conners sang for me yesterday in his home in Drumgoold in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. He calls it 'There Was A Lady In Her Daddy's Garden', though it’s also known as 'The Lady In Her Father’s Garden' and 'There Was A Maid In Her Father's Garden'. In fact, some of you may know it from the singing of the late and great Dolores Keane.
In Andy’s case, he learned the song from his mother, the late Bridget Connors (nee Cash). Andy is 91 years of age, and I first recorded him singing back in 2010. It was a real delight to meet him again 16 years later and find that he’s still singing just as finely and expressively as he was then.
It’s worth emphasizing — this man is 91, and through him, you can catch a glimpse of something much older and true. With a song like this, passed down from mouth to ear, you could easily find yourself stepping back into the 18th and 19th centuries via within a few breaths.
I’ve always loved the way Andy talks about songs. After singing, he often recaps the story, and I think that’s a big part of what draws him to them—the storytelling itself. In this case, it’s the tale of a man returning after seven years to meet his lover.
If you have the time, have a listen. Enjoy the song — but also watch Andy’s physical connection to it, and the way he expresses it through his whole body.
I’ll be sharing more from the conversation I recorded in the coming days but the meantime, enjoy this.
Text: Michael Fortune
Support: Wexford County Council through the Sláintecare Healthy Communities Programme.
