"The Men Behind the Wire" is a song written and composed by Paddy McGuigan of the Barleycorn folk group in the aftermath of Operation Demetrius. The song describes police raids in Northern Ireland by British security forces during the Troubles, and the "men behind the wire" refers to those interned without trial at HM Prison Maze, HM Prison Magilligan and onboard HMS Maidstone.[1][2][3]
The song was recorded by the Barleycorn in Belfast (produced by Billy McBurney) and pressed in Dublin by Release Records in December 1971.[4] After its release on 14 December the song shot into the Irish charts, selling far more copies than any other single until then released in Ireland, and remained in the charts for months.[5] It reached #1 position in the Irish charts on 22 January 1972, where it remained for three weeks. After a gap of one week it returned to #1 for two weeks on 15 February. Royalties from the recording were donated to families of the internees.[6]
The song was subsequently recorded by many singers and bands in Ireland and abroad, including the Wolfe Tones, Liam Clancy and the Flying Column. British singer/songwriter Dido in her song "Let's Do the Things We Normally Do" from the album Safe Trip Home used a few lines from this song. This included the lyrics "Armoured cars and tanks and guns, came to take away our sons. But every man must stand behind, the men behind the wire."[7]
^"A History of Ireland in Song: Internment". ireland.dyndns.org. Archived from the original on 24 March 2013.
^Chapter 8 Archived 2008-05-09 at the Wayback Machine, Internment, McGuffin G.
^"Irish History: Internment". www.triskelle.eu. Archived from the original on 14 August 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2008.
^15 January 1972 issue of Spotlight magazine
^"The Barleycorn in America 1973 - Rex Records Stereo LP 798". Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
^"Barleycorn". www.irish-showbands.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2010. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
^Lindo, Natalie (11 December 2008). "Dido slammed for republican riff". BBC News. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
and 20 Related for: The Men Behind the Wire information
"TheMenBehindtheWire" is a song written and composed by Paddy McGuigan of the Barleycorn folk group in the aftermath of Operation Demetrius. The song...
years with The Barleycorn folk group. He wrote a number of well-known Irish rebel songs, including "TheMenBehindtheWire", "The Boys of the Old Brigade"...
Join the British Army My Little Armalite TheMenBehindtheWire Roll of Honour Sunday Bloody Sunday (by John Lennon and Yoko Ono — the U2 song of the same...
TheWire is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by American author and former police reporter David Simon. The series...
Other musicians joined over the years, while some of the original members left. Their first recording was "TheMenBehindtheWire", produced by Billy McBurney...
Outside theWire is a 2021 American science fiction action film directed by Mikael Håfström. It stars Anthony Mackie (who also produced) as an android...
Alongside Simon, many of the creative team behindTheWire are alumni of Homicide and Emmy-winning miniseries The Corner. The Corner veteran, Robert F...
The fifth and final season of the television series TheWire commenced airing in the United States on January 6, 2008, and concluded on March 9, 2008;...
around us And so I said, "The mountain glen I'll seek next morning early And join the brave United Men!" While soft winds shook the barley While sad I kissed...
The Baltimore Police Department plays an integral part in TheWire. The department is led by a Police Commissioner assisted by Deputy Commissioners of...
The second season of the television series TheWire of 12 episodes first aired in the United States on HBO in 2003 from June 1 to August 24. It introduces...
Movie Since 2004". IndieWire. May 28, 2013. Archived from the original on June 8, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2013. "Behindthe Candelabra (2013)". Box Office...
with "our fetters rent in twain". The lyrics exhort Irish people to stand up and fight for their land: "And righteous men must make our land a nation once...
heard by one and all And from the glen came brave young men To answer Ireland’s call 'T wasn’t long ago we faced a foe The old brigade and me And by my...
Tonge dubbed Bryson "The Man BehindtheWire", a humorous reference to the republican protest song, TheMenBehindtheWire. Bryson is an amateur footballer...
whose vision less vain Than the old men who paid for the patriot game Like Behan, Bob Dylan used the melody of "The Merry Month of May" for his own song...
Wire in the Blood is a British crime drama television series, created and produced by Coastal Productions with Tyne Tees Television and broadcast on ITV...
8 IRA men at Loughgall in 1987 "TheMenBehindtheWire" – 1970s song about internment in Northern Ireland, composed by Paddy McGuigan of the Barleycorn...
ripens in the hearts of young menthe seeds sown by the young men of a former generation. And the seeds sown by the young men of '65 and '67 are coming to...
the lyric exist, the best-known being by Dion Boucicault. The song proclaims that "they are hanging men and women for the wearing of the green". The revolutionary...