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Updated 11/15/2019

 


Cliffs of Doneen
Lyrics by
Jack McAuliffe
 

Cliffs of Dooneen is a traditional Irish ballad made famous by the group Planxty. 

The late Liam Buckley who was born in the cottage immediately adjacent to the Cliffs of Dooneen has stated the poem was penned by Jack McAuliffe who had travelled from Lixnaw to Beale to visit his sister. Jack had spent time with locals in the fields above and shore below the cliffs. He then visited Bill and Nell Buckley's cottage, known as "99" a few hundred metres away - for tea and scones. Liam was told by his mother (Jack's host) that the poem was written at the kitchen window of the cottage. Liam says the poem was put to music years later by a local musician. Liam did not know the date the poem was written but he remembers it from the 1930s.

The mention of the west coast of County Clare and the towns of Kilkee and Kilrush have made the song a County Clare anthem, with the words "Cliffs of Dooneen" often changed to "Hills of Moveen", a location a few miles west of Kilkee. This has led to confusion over the location of the cliffs which some assume to be in Clare rather than in Kerry.

Dooneen Point is clearly marked on the historic Ordnance Survey of Ireland map. The cliffs themselves can also be seen from satellite photos.

 


Lyrics by Jack McAuliffe

You may travel far far from your own native home
Far away o'er the mountains, far away o'er the foam
But of all the fine places that I've ever seen
There's none to compare with the cliffs of Dooneen
 

Take a view o'er the mountains, fine sights you'll see there
You'll see the high rocky mountains on the west coast of Clare
The towns of Kilkee and Kilrush can be seen
From the high Rocky slopes of the cliffs of Dooneen

Fare thee well to Dooneen, fare thee well for a while
And to all the fine people I'm leaving behind
To the streams and the meadows where late I have been
And the high rocky slopes of the cliffs of Dooneen
 

You may travel for far from your own native home
Far away o'er the mountains, far away o'er the foam
But of all the fine places that I've ever seen
There's none to compare with the cliffs of Dooneen