Isle of Innisfree

In a chapter entitled "Richard Farrelly and The Isle of Innisfree" of his book Picture The Quiet Man, Professor Des MacHale wrote: "It is one of the finest and most beautiful melodies ever written, ranking in the opinion of many, right beside Danny Boy and no greater praise is possible.

But it is the sheer unanswerable beauty of the melody of Richard Farrelly's The Isle of Innisfree that makes the greatest impact and dwells so deeply in the memory.

Here is music dripping with emotion, lush texture, brimming with nostalgia, and fitting so perfectly into the action of The Quiet Man that it could have been written with the movie in mind.

[1]The first public performance of the song was at a social event in the St. Vincent De Paul Hall in Kells, Co. Meath on St. Patrick's Night 1950.

In May 2012 they performed the "Isle of Innisfree" and other Dick Farrelly songs for President Michael D. Higgins at the George Bernard Shaw International Conference which took place in the National Gallery of Ireland.

1950s sheet music front cover of "The Isle of Innisfree". This edition was released to coincide with the song's use as the main theme music of the film The Quiet Man .