Happy St. Patrick's Day

I was out too late tonight, and doing a proper post about Valerie Plame testifying over the House Committee on Government Oversight or the latest developments in the involvement of Alberto Gonzales and Karl Rove in the firing of the federal prosecutors would require too much Web surfing and sifting through various reports at this hour (although you can do your own Google News search on the former or the latter if you feel like it).

No, tonight, with St. Patrick's Day just a few hours away from breaking, I'm taking the easy route. Here are a couple of local St. Patrick's Day links that intrigued me today.

On Friday morning's Eight Forty-Eight on Chicago Public Radio, they had a segment about "Danny Boy." My Irish grandmother used to love that song--to the point of nearing cliche, I'm afraid to say--but as I've gotten older, I've come to gain a stronger appreciation of it--partly in memory of her, and partly on its own merits. This radio piece talks about the song's significance (although it seems that most of its significance is in how it's come to represent Ireland over the years more than what it's actually about), but it also includes snatches of various versions over the years. Der Bingle's classic take is here, as if one by Elvis Presley. The segment doesn't take the song too seriously, as the snippet of Tom Jones's version indicates. But the real revelation for me was Jackie Wilson's take. I'd never heard that before--I'd never even realized he'd covered it--but it's a truly moving version. You can click through to audio files of the segment at here, but you should listen rather than read the transcript, which this link also allows. The true strength of the material is in hearing the different versions. Without them, the transcript spends far too much time with the writer's own experience with the song.

And Friday's Chicago Tribune had a big story on corned beef being made at the Vienna Beef factory. I love corned beef, and I'll eat it whether it's St. Patrick's Day or not. Whether it's authentically Irish or not (scroll down), it's a worthy addition to any meal, whether you're serving cabbage or not.