Paddy Wise

In 2012 when the financial crisis in Greece was fairly new, I wrote this song. The chorus is based on a Dutch saying “when the drink is in the man, the wisdom is in the can” (Als de drank is in de man, is de wijsheid in de kan) . I did a little research to get the correct age order of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. The latter reportedly had a less known Irish brother, Paddy Wise, or in old Greek: Paddistotle, featuring in this song. Unfortunately, 3 years later, the crisis still isn’t over and, as far as I can see, the bankers didn’t pay much of a decent price. A happy song about a sad reality. Isn’t that Irish?

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Source both original pictures Wikimedia Commons

Here’s my home recording, not meant to be perfect.

      

 

Lyrics

  1. A couple of thousand years ago
    In the Mediterranean snow
    On a hilltop in a temple made of stone
    Far from famine and disaster
    There was Plato, my wise master
    And old Socrates, his wisdom was well-known

    Chorus:
    O my name is Paddistotle
    I’ve got wisdom in my bottle
    And I take it with me ev’rywhere I go
    So now don’t you be pound foolish
    Let me treat you with advice
    Get a drink for me and call me Paddy Wise

  2. I was bright in Mathematics
    Writing, Greek and Numismatics
    I examined all the olives in the trees
    I’ve been working on charism
    Called it Paddistotelianism
    Wrote philosophy of the flowers and the bees

    Chorus

  3. Now that Greece is in a crisis
    I will gather with the wisest
    And the presidents will queue up for advice
    Every penny over time
    Will lead to multi billion crimes
    Fill the glasses, let the bankers pay the price!

    Chorus (x2)

P.S. Here’s a more recent recording on SoundCloud with Bart van Beveren and Brady van der Ruit:
https://soundcloud.com/bart-van-beveren/paddy-wise-simon-oak-bart-van

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