Folk & Traditional Song Lyrics www.traditionalmusic.co.uk Mick Sullivan's Mad Clock 
Mick Sullivan's Mad Clock 
This clock of Mick Sullivan's down in the bog It gave up keeping time when he started on grog It took to carousing and drinking strong wine And it often struck eight when it should have struck nine! 
CHO: Radly fol de lol lol, Radly fol del lal aye 
It often struck nine when it should have struck eight And it often struck twelve when it wasn't so late It started up once in the middle of the night And kept hammering away till the broad morning light 
When it went to the devil Mick took it down And he yoked up the pony to take it to town He wanted it fixed by a man in Tralee But that very same day he was off on the spree 
He then got it fixed by a man in Pound Lane And on the way home sure the clock went insane It struck every one on the road that it met And I heard that it struck Micky Arthur to death 
When Micky got it home sure he stood it up straight And he oiled up the springs so the hammers could bate He dusted it down and adjusted the gongs And he tightened the screws with the paws of the tongs 
Still it stopped one fine day in the month of July And those that were watching they couldn't say why From the nail on the wall it suddenly dropped To the the flag of the fire and twas there sure she stopped 
He then hung it up on a sixpenny nail And he sent for a weapon, they call it a flail When I went to stop him he told me "Watch out!" He said "I will smash it without any doubt" 
Then he called out for Tommy for to go and to run And go and tell Paddy to bring down the gun Paddy came down and he opened it out He said "It gets too much old knocking about!" 
Then he went to the door and he shouted aloud To call in the neighbours or some kind of crowd And those that had weapons bring arms or sticks And those that had nothing could rain it with kicks 
The neighbours came round with stick and with club The houses were empty and so was the pub They all gathered round it with stick and with rock And they soon put an end to Mick Sullivan's mad clock. 
MR apr97