Song Clearance Sheet
5 sources citedDanny Boy
Ballad1910sPictured: Original sheet music cover (public domain) · source
UnconfirmedBPM
UnconfirmedKey
The verdict
Public Domain
In the public domain — but check the Rights Status below; a specific host's copy can carry its own caveat.
Used by independents?
Yes — it’s in the public domain — free for any independent artist to use, with no clearance needed.
Lyricist
Frederic Weatherly, an English lawyer and prolific lyricist (roughly 3,000 songs in his lifetime), originally set the words to a different tune in 1910
The melody
'Londonderry Air' was transcribed around 1851 by Jane Ross of Limavady, Ireland, from a traveling fiddler she encountered on the street — his name was never recorded and remains unknown
A genuine unresolved detail
Accounts agree Weatherly's sister-in-law introduced him to the melody, but differ on whether she sent him sheet music (1913) or sang it to him directly (1912) — presented as a real discrepancy, not a settled fact
Publication & first performances
Published by Boosey & Co. in 1913; first popularized by opera singer Elsie Griffin, notably for British troops in France during WWI; first recorded by Ernestine Schumann-Heink in 1915
Rights Status
Licenses explained →Public domain is not one blanket badge — each source can carry its own caveat
The compositionPublic domain
The early recordingPublic domain
Cultural Impact
Documented covers, adaptations, and cultural echoes — each with a real, dated source
Played at the funerals of Elvis Presley, Princess Diana, and President Kennedy
Elvis Presley called the song 'written by angels' and it was performed at his own funeral; hymn versions of the melody were also sung at the funeral services for both Princess Diana and JFK.
Corymbus · read it →
Gave comfort to 9/11 first responders
A 2013 BBC documentary covers how the song gave solace to New York firefighters mourning colleagues killed on September 11, many of whom were Irish-American.
Corymbus · read it →
Helped unify opposing sides during a real conflict
Boxer Barry McGuigan used the song as a unifying gesture between conflicting communities during the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
Galaxy Music Notes · read it →
A real international crossover, and a real institutional restriction
Bertolt Brecht wrote entirely different German lyrics to the melody in 1920. Separately, the National Catholic Reporter stated in 2001 that the song 'cannot be played during [Catholic] Mass' — a documented restriction worth noting alongside its wide informal use at funerals.
Wikipedia · read it →
Covered across nearly every genre
Recorded by Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash (1965), Conway Twitty, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and The Muppets, among many others.
Inside Irish Music · read it →
Can You Use It for Free?
How to check PD →Is it public domain?Yes — free to use without clearance
References
Every source cited on this page — 5 in total
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Page history · 2 updates
Jul 2026Page created (draft — pending verification)
Jul 2026Release year shown as 1913 (Boosey & Co. publication); lyrics were written 1910 and set to the 'Londonderry Air' melody in 1912 or 1913 — accounts genuinely differ, presented as an unresolved detail rather than picking one