Auld Orange Flute chords by The Dubliners

Chords with lyrics

Tuning: EADGBE

Intro:

C majorC FF C majorC G+G


Verse 1:
    C majorC            G+G     C majorC
In the County Tyrone, near the town of Dungannon,
        A minorAm     G+G
Where many the ructions meself had a hand in.
  C majorC          FF     C majorC
Bob Williamson lived, a weaver by trade,
       G+G             C majorC
And all of us thought him a stout Orange blade,
          E minorEm    FF
On the Twelfth of July as it yearly did come,
  C majorC              G7G7
Bob played with his flute to the sound of a drum.
    C majorC            FF    C majorC
You may talk of your harp, your piano or lute,
               G+G     C majorC
But none can compare with the Old Orange Flute.

Verse 2:
C majorC           G+G      C majorC
Bob, the deceiver, he took us all in;
       A minorAm      G+G
He married a Papist named Bridget McGinn.
    C majorC           FF      C majorC
Turned Papist himself and forsook the old cause
         G+G           C majorC
That gave us our freedom, religion and laws.
         E minorEm      FF
Now, boys of the townland made some noise upon it,
  C majorC           G7G7
And Bob had to fly to the province of Connaught.
  C majorC             FF     C majorC
He fled with his wife and his fixings to boot,
               G+G     C majorC
And along with the latter his Old Orange Flute.


Verse 3:
    C majorC          G+G       C majorC
At the chapel on Sunday to atone for past deeds,
          A minorAm    G+G
He'd say Pater and Aves and counted his brown beads.
   C majorC            FF      C majorC
'Til after some time, at the priest's own desire
                G+G      C majorC
He went with that old flute to play in the choir.
           E minorEm      FF
He went with that old flute for to play for the Mass,
    C majorC            G7G7
But the instrument shivered and sighed, oh, alas,
  C majorC               FF      C majorC
And try though he would, though it made a great noise,
                G+G     C majorC
The flute would play only "The Protestant Boys."

Verse 4:
  C majorC            G+G    C majorC
Bob jumped and he stared and got in a flutter
       A minorAm        G+G
And threw the old flute in the blessed holy water.
  C majorC                  FF     C majorC
He thought that this charm would bring some other Sound;
                  G+G      C majorC
When he tried it again, it played "Croppies Lie Down."
           E minorEm     FF
Now, for all he could whistle and finger and blow,
  C majorC          G7G7
To play Papish music he found it no go.
     C majorC               FF      C majorC
"Kick the Pope" and "The Boyne Water" it freely would Sound,
              G+G      C majorC
But one Papish squeak in it couldn't be found.


Verse 5:
    C majorC              G+G       C majorC
At the council of priests that was held the next day
        A minorAm     G+G
They decided to banish the old flute away.
   C majorC           FF      C majorC
They couldn't knock heresy out of it's head,
           G+G            C majorC
So they bought Bob a new one to play in it's stead.
            E minorEm       FF
Now, the old flute was doomed, and its fate was pathetic
   C majorC             G7G7
'Twas fastened and burned at the stake as a heretic.
    C majorC               FF        C majorC
As the flames soared around it, they heard a strange Noise;
                     G+G     C majorC
'Twas the old flute still whistling "The Protestant Boys."


Outro:
    FF     C majorC
"Toora lu, toora lay,
                 G+G   C majorC
Oh, it's six miles from Bangor to Donnahadee."