Almost a year on from the uproar the popular anthem Celtic Symphony caused, The Wolfe Tones have come out to explain exactly why it’s not a rebel song.
The chant of ‘Ooh-aah Up The Ra’ caused all sorts of controversy last year after the Ireland Women’s international team celebrated qualifying for the World Cup after defeating Scotland in the qualifiers.
For those that need reminding, this is what the British media found offensive:
Celtic Symphony is not a rebel song
Speaking to The 2 Johnnies Podcast, The Wolfe Tones members Brian Warfield and Tommy Byrne said that people who were offended by the song need to listen to the words.
Have a watch of this:
When asked what he thought of the Irish ladies soccer team singing the song, Tommy said, “Fantastic. The only disappointing thing about it was it took the shine off their fantastic win.
“Brian wrote the song. It’s not a rebel song. The chorus is ‘Ooh-Aah Up The Ra’ but the song is about Glasgow Celtic.”
Brian continued, “When I was walking through Glasgow, seeing the graffiti on the wall, which you do, and it said, ‘Up The Celts, we’re magic, we’re magic’, and ‘Ooh-Aah Up The Ra’.
“So I’m explaining what it’s like in Glasgow. The Glasgow Irish have been very loyal to Ireland over the years. They supported every effort for either civil rights in the north and freedom in Ireland.
“Because they had to leave Ireland because of economic reasons. They got no help when they got there, they were looked down upon, and they had to fight their way up and they’re still fighting their way up.
“And so that needed to be explained in the song as well.”
And when asked what they say to the people who criticise it and say we’re supposed to be promoting peace Brian said, “They don’t understand.”
And Tommy continued, “Listen to the words. No, but listen to the words. So I mean people that that give out about the song on radio or in newspapers, they haven’t listened to the song.”
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