I Will Always Go Beside You, You Will Always Understand: Dolores O'Riordan

Something has left my life
And I don't know where it went to
Somebody caused me strife
And it's not what I was seeking.
Didn't you see me, didn't you hear me
Didn't you see me standing there
Why did you turn out the lights
Did you know that I was sleeping
Say a prayer for me
Help me to feel the strength I did
My identity has been taken
Is my heart breaking on me
All my plans fell though my hands
They fell
Though my hands on me
All my dreams, it suddenly seems
Empty

 

Like many, there is utter shock at the news of Dolores O'Riordan's sudden passing at such a young age. While grunge was on heavy rotation, the voice of an Irish muse began to infiltrate the airwaves.  The Cranberries Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We gave us so many classic Cranberry songs like Linger and Dreams.  Her voice, poetic and versatile, gave us Ireland in the mainstream again. With their second album, No Need to Argue, her hair pixie short and blonde, we got a heavier dose of her potency. 

Zombie, one of their few political songs, painted perfectly the political feel  at the time, the endless cycle of violence in The Troubles. It's pure emotion. It's the frustration, the denial, and the sadness.

It's the same old theme
Since nineteen-sixteen
In your head, in your head, they're still fighting
With their tanks, and their bombs
And their bombs, and their guns
In your head, in your head, they are dying

PCarlson 2001 Belfast

 And while they may not have stayed in the mainstream, their fan base continued to follow them until their break in 2003. However, it was Dolores that inspired me to shave my hair and buy they Doc Martens. She was a tiny powerhouse and she was my muse. Ireland has a special place in my heart and, to me, she was the continuation of a long tradition of Irish bards and poets who painted their history and religion in beautiful words. 

As a final note, Dolores had a deep regard for her religion and for Pope John Paul II and was able to play the Vatican Christmas concert several times by Pope Benedict. The church " influenced a lot of her development as an artist, as a musician." 

Chuid eile i síocháin  Dolores Mary Eileen O'Riordan

September 6th 1971 - January 15th 2018

        Rain on Rahoon falls softly, softly falling,
 Where my dark lover lies.
 Sad is his voice that calls me, sadly calling,
 At grey moonrise.

 Love, hear thou
 How soft, how sad his voice is ever calling,
 Ever unanswered, and the dark rain falling,
 Then as now.

 Dark too our hearts, O love, shall lie and cold
 As his sad heart has lain
 Under the moongrey nettles, the black mould
 And muttering rain.

~James Joyce