Remembering that some twenty years ago Finbar Furey claimed in an interview with a German folk mag he'd brought about the Irish folk revival single-handed, I feel that man would claim anything. I also remember Eric Bogle telling us on stage at the Tonder Festival about a fellow artist (can't remember the name now) who had flown out to the States particularly to ask him about some of the lyrics in a song of Eric's he was about to record, and then muttering under his breath, 'I wish the Fureys had done the same!' I think it is unlikely he actually said what Finbar heard him say according to Bugsy's posting!

I prefer June Tabor's version and the nicely understated one - sorry for riding my hobby-horse again - by Iain MacKintosh. I'm sorry to hear he is giving up touring this year.

As to the song's history - I haven't found it yet, but George H. told me (correct me if I'm wrong) that in an interview in the Sunday Times around the time of the election of the Labour government in Britain Tony Blair mentioned as his favourite war poem 'No Man's Land', by Eric Bogle, a young poet who died in the First World War ... - Susanne