“Danny Boy“ is a ballad written by English songwriter Frederic Weatherly in 1913….which was set to the traditional Irish melody of “Londonderry Air”…..when in Bath, Somerset in 1910, Weatherly initially wrote the words to “Danny Boy” to a tune other than “Londonderry Air”…..after his Irish-born sister-in-law Margaret in the United States sent him a copy of “Londonderry Air” in 1913….then Weatherly modified the lyrics of “Danny Boy” to fit the rhyme and meter of “Londonderry Air”…..as he gave the song to the vocalist Elsie Griffin…..who made it one of the most popular songs in the new century. In 1915, Ernestine Schumann-Heink produced the first recording of “Danny Boy”…..which has become an unofficial signature song and anthem to Irish all over the world….and particularly by Irish Americans and Irish Canadians…..and is today the Anthem of Northern Ireland…..as seen in this video herewith…. when WBA Featherweight Champ Barry McGuigan’s father Patrick sings “Danny Boy” prior to his son’s defense of his title in 1986 against Benard Taylor.
