Friday, 18 August 2023

Mussels

 

Mussels


                        All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Last night’s supper was moules. I don’t know why we always call them moules, but by so doing we avoid misunderstanding in any young humans who might be listening.

 Anyway, the furry friends were more than usually interested so the empty shells had to be secreted far away from them. If we were ‘proper’ gardeners, we would have dried, crushed and powdered them or composted them. The journey from empty shell to gardener’s ally is too fraught with potential hazards for our liking so into the collectable, recyclable food waste bin they were deposited. The bin is locked so it should prove impossible for passing foxes to purloin the contents.

Meanwhile, in the back of my mind, where so much rubbish is located, came the haunting refrain of ‘Molly Malone’, a song I learnt in my long-distant childhood and whose words I remember still. To be fair, the words are remarkably easy to learn, and fit well with the simple, lilting melody.

Who was the legendary Molly Malone? Some say she is based on a woman who died in 1699 in Dublin, but this has never been proved. The story claims that she was a beautiful young woman who lived and died in Dublin. By day, she was a fishmonger, selling her wares in the street. By night, she supplemented her earnings by selling her favours. She is sometimes referred to as ‘the tart with the cart’ or ‘the trollop with the scallops’.

When the charming fishmonger died, of a fever of unknown provenance, but perhaps not unconnected with her occupation as a lady of the night, she was said to haunt the streets of the city and continues to do so to this day. The legend was kept alive through Molly Malone Day, which had been observed annually on 13th June with a parade, live music and street entertainment. I can find no information on whether the day is still acknowledged.

In 1988 a bronze sculpture of Molly Malone was unveiled during Dublin’s Millennium celebrations. The statue, created by Jeanne Rynhart, is a notable tourist attraction and the song associated with it is known as the unofficial anthem of Dublin.     

In Dublin’s fair city,

Where the girls are so pretty,

I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone,

As she wheeled her wheelbarrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive, alive o!

 

Chorus: Alive, alive o! Alive, alive o!

Crying cockles and mussels, alive, alive o!

 

She was a fishmonger

But sure, ‘twas no wonder

For so were her father and mother before

And they each wheeled their barrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive, alive o!

Chorus:

She died of a fever

And no-one could save her

And that was the end of sweet Molly Malone

But her ghost wheels her barrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockle and mussels alive, alive o!

Chorus:

 

 

 

 

                         

20 comments:

  1. I've always loved that song. xx

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  2. Ah! Now your talking my kind of food language...!
    Shellfish and crustacea...Love it! Love it! Love it! :).
    I buy a pack of mussels, at the supermarket most
    weeks, they do need extra herbs, onions etc...
    That with garlic bread..is to die for...! :). And glass
    of vino calapso, maybe two...HeHe! Job done..! :).

    And as far as Molly is concerned, l like to leave things
    as they are...and admire her so called mystery life....
    Don't really need to know the facts, lets stick to the
    legend...!
    After all...I'm a Sicilian, and raised on legends, even
    old wives tales...far more interesting than the real thing!

    And did you know that the 'breasts' of Molly Malones
    bronze statue are quite discoloured...Why?
    Because people touch and kiss them..for good luck,
    they say..HaHa! I'm off to Dublin then...Ciao! Ciao! :O).
    🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟 🐟

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    Replies
    1. I did notice but didn't know the reason. A different take on the Blarney stone, maybe.
      I agree - legends, folk tales, old wives' tales are all so interesting and give colour to our lives.

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    2. I thought l'd just make a clean 'breast' of things...! :O).

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  3. Hi Janice - lovely ... mussels are a great dish to eat - love them. Remembering Molly Malone - funny how some songs stick from childhood to today. Also thank you for including Sinead's take on the song ... she was an amazing musician. Cheers Hilary

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  4. Her voice was haunting and pure.
    I can't eat mussels, but the moth likes them.

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  5. You eat moules because they are moules and not mussels. Moules frites is the national dish of Belgium. Somebody from your family had French origins probably. In Italian they are called "cozze" and in German "Muscheln" . So it's normal that you eat moules and not mussels ! I didn't know the song of Sinead O'Connor. It's lovely. A pity that she died so young.



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    1. And of course your lovely name..Gattina..in Italian..
      means the name for a small cat..a kitten...! :)

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    2. French on my side, German on Barry's, but both so far back as to be lost in the mists of time.

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  6. I love mussels. If you buy them fresh from a wharf, they can be so cheap here, like £2.50 for a kilo. That would be 2.2 lbs in your money.
    I am familiar with the song, but not O'Connor's recording. I will listen in bed in an hour or two.

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  7. That sounds like a bargain. Fresh seafood is always preferable to shop-bought . . . well, fresh anything, really.

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  8. I love mussels, we last had some last week. Well, mussels and fries (Belgian, not French!) are a classic Belgian dish!
    Thank you for sharing Sinead O'Connor's version of Molly Malone, which I hadn't heard before. xxx

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    Replies
    1. I've only just learnt that moules and frites are the classic Belgian dish.

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  9. I have never heard of Molly Malone or the song, have never eaten mussels either.

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  10. Mussels are an acquired taste, though not by me. I went off all such things when I looked too closely at a cockle when I was younger.

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  11. I'd heard the song but had no idea of the story behind it. And, wow, the dress on the statue is low cut! I tend to avoid seafood of all kinds as I don't enjoy the flavour unless it's smothered in cream :) My son turned out to have a shellfish allergy when he grew up, and I'm a little afraid I might react the same someday so I rarely eat it anyway.

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  12. I don't eat shellfish as it upsets me. I eat fish but don't always like the 'sticky' sensation it gives - after all, isn't glue made from fish bones?

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  13. Thank you setting me off singing, Alive, alive oh! , all the afternoon. What jolly fun. :-)

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