When Erich first showed us his template for The Plight, I thought it sounded like a fun drinking song, and that's basically what it is. As such, when writing fiddle for it, my goal was to keep it simple, catchy, and dance-worthy. To me, the combination of fiddle, banjo, and whistle playing off each other in an upbeat tune like this is one that encourages levity, positivity, and a good time. The idea of the a cappella singing in the intro was suggested because it invokes the spirit of the song: a bunch of working class friends and strangers meeting up for drinks and singing songs about their troubles, though still with a smile on their faces. The bodhran seemed like a natural addition to accompany that.  -Gary

I'm just a regular American guy who didn't bump into the magic of Celtic culture until middle age. Since the first show I played I've loved every part of this crazy world, but it's only been four or five years. So when it came time to write a song I didn't have much experience to draw on. Mostly the festival life and the after-parties at local dive bars, and Brendan talking my ear off in the van. Over the last handful of years I've picked up on a distinct love for drinking, a sense of duty to the community and a colorful drunken rowdiness underneath it all. So that's the sort of atmosphere I tried to put into the lyrics of "The Plight", while I wanted the melody to be the sing-songiest stupidest catchiest Irish drinking song ever. I just knew it had to have lots of drinking and lots of pauses where everyone yells "Hey!". At the end of the day, I have to say this is my favorite song on the album, and I dream of someday hearing other bands cover it. And if you listen very closely, you can hear Brendan's assessment of his own vocal performance in the background. Personally, I thought he was too kind. -Erich

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What I will remember most about this song is getting together to record the gang vocals. All music was finished (minus the bodhran), and we just got to hang out, have some fun and sing some songs together. We got some great sounds and made the 7 of us sound like a much bigger crew. -Rich