Robert Burns Medley

Happy Birthday Robert Burns

January 25, 1759
I put together a quick medley of SEVERAL of  his better known  songs, tunes only, no singing. With the exception of the first song in the medley "Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation", I have been playing the other songs for several years so I play them from memory and have no tablature written for them.
My YouTube video ROBERT BURNS MEDLEY

Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation

.. the original Scots dialect.....

Fareweel to a' our Scottish fame,
Fareweel our ancient glory
Fareweel ev'n to the Scottish name,
Sae famed in martial story
Now Sark rins over Solway sands
An Tweed rins to the ocean
To mark where England's province stands -
Sic a parcel o rogues in a nation!

What force or guile could not subdue
Through many warlike ages
Is wrought now by a coward few
For hireling traitor's wages
The English steel we could disdain
Secure in valour's station
But English gold has been our bane -
Sic a parcel o rogues in a nation!

O would, or I had seen the day
That Treason thus could sell us,
My auld grey head had lien in clay
Wi Bruce and loyal Wallace!
But pith and power, till my last hour
I'll mak this declaration
We're bought and sold for English gold -
Sic a parcel o rogues in a nation!

My PDF file of "rudimentary" tab for this song
Such a Parcel of Rogues (simple tab)

Analysis of the key phrase in the song

http://brl17.umwblogs.org/2017/03/22/ryans-key-passage-analysis-on-robert-burns-such-a-parcel-of-rogues-in-a-nation/

Some historical information on the subject of the song

https://www.scotslanguage.com/articles/node/id/450

A beautiful acapella rendition
Fiona Forbes sings Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation

A stunning harmony version

Steeleye Span sings Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation

MacPherson's Lament

(true story)

Farewell ye dungeons dark and strong
Farewell, farewell to thee
McPherson's life will no be long
On yonder gallows tree

Chorus:
Sae rantingly, sae wantingly and sae dauntingly gaed he
He played a tune and he danced around below the gallows tree

Take off these bands from off my hands
And give to me a sword
For there's not a man in all Scotland
But I'd brave him at his word

There's some come here for to see me hung
And some to buy my fiddle
But before that I do part with her
I'll break her through the middle

He took his fiddle in both of his hands
And he broke it o'er a stone
Saying "There's nae ither hand shall play on thee
When I am dead and gone"

The reprieve was coming o'er the Brigg of Banff
For to set McPherson free
But they put the clock a quarter before
And they hanged him from a tree

 

Mirk, Mirk, the Midnight Hour (Dark, dark, the Midnight Hour)

This "situation" of Lord Gregory and his dismissed lover, mother of his child, has been memorialized in many songs.  I sing this song, as well as another version of the story, "Lord Gregory" on my YouTube Channel

Lord Gregory on dulcimer

Mirk, Mirk the Midnight Hour, sung and played on dulcimer

Lyrics:

O MIRK, mirk is this midnight hour
And loud the tempest’s roar;
A waefu’ wanderer seeks thy tower
Lord Gregory, ope thy door
An exile frae her father’s ha’
And a’ for loving thee;
At least some pity on me shaw
If love it may na be

Lord Gregory, mind’st thou not the grove
By bonie Irwine side
Where first I own’d that virgin love
I lang, lang had denied
How aften didst thou pledge and vow
Thou wad for aye be mine!
And my fond heart, itsel’ sae true
It ne’er mistrusted thine

Hard is thy heart, Lord Gregory
And flinty is thy breast:
Thou bolt of Heaven that flashest byO, wilt thou bring me rest!
Ye mustering thunders from above
Your willing victim see;
But spare and pardon my fause Love
His wrangs to Heaven and me

Comin' Thro the Rye

Comin thro' the rye, poor body,

     Comin thro' the rye,
She draigl't a' her petticoatie
     Comin thro' the rye

 

[CHORUS.]

     Oh Jenny 's a' weet poor body
               Jenny 's seldom dry,
 She draigl't a' her petticoatie
               Comin thro' the rye.

Gin a body meet a body

     Comin thro' the rye,

Gin a body kiss a body —

     Need a body cry.

[CHORUS.]

Gin a body meet a body

     Comin thro' the glen;

Gin a body kiss a body —

     Need the warld ken!

         [CHORUS.]

Gin a body meet a body, comin thro' the rye,
Gin a body kiss a body, need a body cry;
Ilka body has a body, ne'er a ane hae I;
But a' the lads they loe me, and what the waur am I.

Gin a body meet a body, comin frae the well,
Gin a body kiss a body, need a body tell;
Ilka body has a body, ne'er a ane hae I,
But a the lads they loe me, and what the waur am I.
Gin a body meet a body, comin frae the town,

Gin a body kiss a body, need a body gloom;
Ilka Jenny has her Jockey, ne'er a ane hae I,
But a' the lads they loe me, and what the waur am I

 

Westlin Winds

Link to Analysis and Interpretation

Link to a popular version of the song  Dick Gaughan singing Westlin Winds

Now westlin winds and slaughtering guns
Bring autumn's pleasant weather
The moorcock springs on whirring wings
Among the blooming heather
Now waving grain, wild o'er the plain
Delights the weary farmer
And the moon shines bright as I rove at night
To muse upon my charmer

The partridge loves the fruitful fells
The plover loves the mountain
The woodcock haunts the lonely dells
The soaring hern the fountain
Through lofty groves the cushat roves
The path of man to shun it
The hazel bush o'erhangs the thrush
The spreading thorn the linnet

Thus every kind their pleasure find
The savage and the tender
Some social join and leagues combine
Some solitary wander
Avaunt! Away! the cruel sway,
Tyrannic man's dominion
The sportsman's joy, the murdering cry
The fluttering, gory pinion

But Peggy dear the evening's clear
Thick flies the skimming swallow
The sky is blue, the fields in view
All fading green and yellow
Come let us stray our gladsome way
And view the charms of nature
The rustling corn, the fruited thorn
And every happy creature

We'll gently walk and sweetly talk
Till the silent moon shines clearly
I'll grasp thy waist and, fondly pressed,
Swear how I love thee dearly
Not vernal showers to budding flowers
Not autumn to the farmer
So dear can be as thou to me
My fair, my lovely charmer

 

Wexford Carol

History of the traditional Irish carol "Wexford Carol"

Taken from this website where the full description can be found at:  Your Irish Traditions

"Thought to have originated in Co. Wexford, hence its name, many traditions have arisen around the poem and song for example it was said that only men should sing it and this seems to have been the way for many years for example it has been sung by the likes of Tom Jones and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir although since regaining popularity in the 1990’s it has been sung by women like Alison Krauss and Julie Andrews.

Putting an exact date on the origin of this Carol is difficult as although it is also sung in Irish the words seem to be translated from the English version and it seems unlikely that an Irish worded Carol would originate from English speaking Co. Wexford.
The Wexford Carol is also known as the Enniscorthy Carol, this is due to Dr. William Henry Grattan Flood (1857 – 1928) who was the organist and music director at St. Aiden’s Cathedral, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford.

He was said to have transcribed it from a local singer and had it published in the year of his death in 1928.
After publication it was quickly included in Carol collections all around the world, giving it, its popularity today.

The Wexford Carol has often been associated too with Bishop Luke Waddings of Ferns and his collection of Carols, The Kilmore Carols first published in 1684, long before Dr. Grattan Flood’s translation.

Bishop Waddings, whose family came from Ballycogley Castle Co. Wexford, was the Roman Catholic Bishop of Ferns from 1683 – 1692 and lived in Wexford town whilst he was a bishop, possibly where he first heard The Wexford Carol.

Whether it was published in 1648 or 1928 it is undoubtedly a beautiful Carol and today is still widely sung as part of a traditional Irish Christmas."

 

Beautiful version sung by Alison Krauss accompanied by Yoyo Ma

Wexford Carol

My dulcimer version video Janene Millen - Wexford Carol

My song sheet  Wexford Carol PDF SONG SHEET

My "version" of tablature is minimal and it helps if you are already familiar with the melody because I don't use musical notation.  The melody is documented with the chords hi-lighted in yellow...which is primarily all I play while singing.  I play fingerpicked melody for musical breaks.  I've split the song into PART A melody, and PART B melody to indicate what I am using for the brief breaks between verses.  I play the entire song, instrumental only...after the 3rd verse and to finish the song.

I am basically strumming or 3 finger plucking the chords with occasional linking notes while singing.  I try to not play the melody underneath the singing....PLUS, it's easier!

I like to make a "map" of the song (on the song sheets) when I'm singing it, to help me remember what I settled on, as a final version.  V1 = verse 1, V2 = verse 2, instrumental breaks etc.

 

 

 

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

According to Wikipedia:
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. In 2007, ASCAP ranked it the third most performed Christmas song during the preceding five years that had been written.......

This is one of the first 5 songs or so, that I worked out a singing accompaniment for the dulcimer.
It has an instrumental break, a little intro, and I ended it with part of another (traditional) Christmas song.
I now think in terms of chords when working out a simple accompaniment, but at that time, I thought in terms of including melody notes (to keep me on key) with fillers, and tag endings to link phrases.  I was thinking of piano accompaniments of recorded versions of the song. My head just filled in the gaps between lyric phrasings.

It is played and sung in D-A-D tuning and doesn't require a 1+ fret.  It is being played on a mahogany, teardrop dulcimer which may account for a slightly "different" tone than what you're used to. Jack Larwa is the luthier and you can't see it in the video; it was custom made with a beautiful carved greyhound's head, and celtic knot sound holes. 


You can hear me play and sing the song on my YouTube Channel (Janene M).  You will hear dogs milling around, pet birds clucking.  Sorry for the quality.
YouTube Video "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"

I also made a "teaching" video of the song, with the simple tablature (my version of tab) displayed line by line, and my demonstrating each line with and without singing.
YouTube Video (Teaching Version) "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"

I have the song sheet uploaded as a PDF but doesn't stand well on its own.  I haven't modified it for public consumption.  I understand my own documentation for remembering the song as I arranged it.  It never occurred to me to share it as such, the 9 years ago I did it and am not interested in putting in the time to modify it to make it more understandable to others.   If you follow the "teaching video" it will make more sense.
PDF song sheet for "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"

Bold Riley

My influences for learning this song were FIRST and foremost, hearing it sung and played by Aubrey Atwater on dulcimer, at the Dutchland Dulcimer workshop in Lancaster, PA, summer of 2018. It was a workshop on sea songs/shanties.  I loved the melody and when I went home, I discovered I had two other versions of the song on CDs.  I have Kate Rusby's version, and the Wailin' Jennys version.  I also like the full harmony version sung by The Teacups.  I also discovered the meaning behind some of the lyrics which is always so interesting. I know nothing about sea culture.

I've included a link to the Atwater-Donnelly CD which features this song.

The World is Old Tonight
Atwater-Donnelly Trio 2016   https://www.atwater-donnelly.com/shop.htm



"White stocking day" explained on BEFORE THE MAST Facebook Page

White-Stocking Day as mentioned in Bold Riley:

During the 19th Century in Liverpool, ladies of quality and fashion wore white cotton stockings. On White-Stocking Day, women were required to draw their 'allotment' which was the half pay of their sailor husband or son away at sea. These wives and mothers wore white stockings on that day, considering themselves 'ladies', if only for a day !

 

"bending" according to Darcy Lever: The Young Sea Officers Sheet Anchor: A Dictionary of Sea Terms  "Get bending lads, it's a hell-of-a-way"

bend.

A kind of Knot - as a Sheet Bend, &c. - or a Seizing - such as the Bends of the Cable.

To Bend.

To make fast - as to bend the Sails, the Cable, &c.

 

A very detailed account of the origins, many recordings etc. of Bold Riley can be seen at this website

https://mainlynorfolk.info/lloyd/songs/boldriley.html

Link to more lyrics http://www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/sea-shanty/Bold_Riley.htm

Link to MY Song Sheet PDF of Bold Riley https://docdro.id/Po7k0Ws
I indicate a C-G-C tuning which I have since lowered 1/2 step for my own voice.

The song goes HIGH in parts so after a lot of experimenting, I decided to attempt it with a LOW B-F#-B tuning, which my Simerman dulcimer can handle. This tuning was reached after first attempting it in D-A-D and continuing to tune it down a half step several times. My voice sounded too SHRILL in the higher keys, so I settled on the lower tuning. I have Baritone dulcimers as well, but just stuck with the same dulcimer which I like for fingerpicking, as it is a loud dulcimer, and my bare-fingered fingerpicking can be very faint.

Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies

There are so many versions of this song out there.  I found this version and deleted one of the verses because it was too difficult for me to phrase it while singing.  So if it won't be missed, I just drop a verse.  I usually try to keep the recordings short.  This one was fun to just strum the melody so I think I do it 3 times without deviating at all....unusual for me.  Getting the rhythm for the strum is difficult so you'd have to play around with it to get comfortable.  I've heard it done much slower than this, and also fingerpicked or might sound good with a banjammer or comparable dulcimer.

I listened to several versions to learn the song, by the following artists:
Amelia Hogan, Paul Siebel and Tony Markellis, Psaltrio (instrumental), Joan Baez, and Robin  Greenstein.  I think I liked Robin's version the best.

Here is a link to the version of the song I've posted on the DISCOVERING DULICIMERS and EVERYTHING DULCIMERS Facebook pages, as well as on my YouTube Channel

YouTube Video of Come All Ye Fair.....  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gu4gHfg9OsQ

Link to PDF of the song sheet (lyrics and chords) https://www.docdroid.net/kUHujsE/come-all-you-fair-and-tender.pdf

A discussion of the song on the MUDCAT website:
https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=19342


According to Wikipedia:
"Come All You Fair and Tender Ladies" (a.k.a. "Tiny Sparrow" or "Little Sparrow") (Roud #451) is an American folk music ballad, originating from the Appalachian region.^[1] It has been recorded under either of its two title variations by numerous artists, including The Carter Family, Pete Seeger, Joan Baez, Odetta, Peter, Paul and Mary, The Kingston Trio, Leon Bibb, Makem and Clancy, Emmylou Harris, Bob Dylan, Dave Van Ronk, The Rankin Family, The Country Gentlemen, Murray Head, Dolly Parton, and Gene Clark and Carla Olson.^[2][3][4][5] The title of the song varies from recording to recording, and prior to the 1960s the song was usually known as "Tiny Sparrow" or "Little Sparrow". Some versions substituted "Sparrow" with "Swallow", another species of bird.^[6] In more recent times, the song's title sometimes finds "Maidens" substituted for "Ladies", and "Come All Ye" or "Come All You" sometimes omitted.^[7]

In 2010, Marideth Sisco performed a portion of the song in the film Winter's Bone.^[8]

 

 

 

Paddy's Lamentation

Irish - Traditional
Believed to be written within 10 years of the end of the American Civil War

Beautiful study of this song gleaned from a discussion thread at Mudcat.org database >>>>

[19??:] This song I like very much on account of its honest expression. There are many ballads from this time dealing with emigration to America away from the hunger and deprivation of the famine that devastated Ireland in the 1840's. All of them extoll the praises of the 'Land of Liberty' where there was food and work for all and the 'tyrant landlords' did not exist. This is one of the few ballads that made its way back to Ireland telling a different story from the peace and prosperity which is talked about in other songs. The General Meagher referred to was General Thomas Francis Meagher otherwise known as 'Meagher of the sword' who led the 69th regiment in the American Civil War. The regiment so distinguished itself on the various battlefields that it earned the name of the 'Fighting 69th'. It was all but wiped out at the battle of Gettysburg, and its losses are commemorated by a Celtic cross on the actual battlefield.The title of the song is a corruption of an Irish phrase 'Bí i do thost' or 'be quiet' which in fact is translated in the first line of the song...By the hush me boys and that's to make no noise. (Frank Harte, notes 'Daybreak and a Candle-End')

• [1989:] Exile songs seem to me to have been wrung from the very souls of their creators; the yearning of the exile for his homeland being perhaps the very essence of the emotion of sadness. Happily for the emigrant, he may not only have left behind his native land, but also the hunger and persecution that forced him overseas.
  In By the Hush the unfortunate man sells up and leaves his farm in famine-torn Ireland for a new life in America, only to find on arrival that he has been drafted into the army of President Lincoln, to fight in the Civil War. In one of the battles that follows, he is severely wounded and thus the song's chorus carries a chilling warning to anyone contemplating emigration to America. The song ends with [a] powerfully simple line. (Notes Andy M. Stewart, 'By the Hush')
  [1995:] [A] stinging comment on emigration [that] reflected many Irish emigrants experiences in America when they arrived as the Civil War [1861-65] was in progress and were conscripted into the Army. (John O'Regan, Rock 'n' Reel 22, p 33)
• [2000:] According to The Sailor's Magazine, the monthly publication of the American Seamen's Friend Society, 32,217 Irish and 27,740 German immigrants were landed at Port New York in 1863. During the Civil War, at Castle Gardens, New York, recruiting agents would offer the new arrivals cash bounties to sign up for the Northern effort. In this song our generic "Paddy" complains that he was not given the opportunity to accept or reject the recruiter's offer but in fact was pressed in to "Lincoln's army". This "out of the frying pan and into the fire" circumstance left poor Paddy with the desire to return to his depressed homeland - dear old Erin. [Ian Robb] collected it from Edith Fowke's book 'Traditional Songs and Singers from Ontario' (Folklore Associates, Hatboro, PA, 1965). (Notes Forebitter, 'Voyages')
• [2000:] "Indian corn" was a type of Famine relief food shipped to Ireland from Amerikay which often caused more trouble than it seemed to be worth. People didn't know how it was to be cooked, and received no instructions with it. It was often served undercooked, which wreaked havoc on decimated human digestive systems already in severe crisis from malnourishment, disease, exposure, etc. So my guess is the line might be saying the singer thought it might have been a better plight to have stayed on in Ireland, even if it meant having to eat Indian corn to survive, than having been forced to "serve" in the American Civil War at gunpoint, just off the boat. (Janet Ryan, rec.music.folk, 28 Sep)

Probably rolled indian feed maize, 'hot' relative of sweetcorn - exactly the same as you will find today in animal feeds. It's dangerous stuff to use even with animals (sheep and goats mainly) because if you feed it neat, instead of with at least a 5:1 mixture of other foods, its overheats the digestive system - don't know exactly what this means or implies, but the result is a seriously swollen up animal. [...] It would need to be softened by overnight soaking rather like hard dried pulses, and cooked for a very long time. You probably need to soak it with lye, or vinegar, or something to help break it down. (David Kilpatrick, rec.music.folk, 28 Sep)

I've always interpreted [the reference to 'Indian buck'] as a nostalgia for Ireland, not for an American food. I think he's saying, in effect, "I'd count myself lucky to be back in Ireland even if I had to eat Indian buck." According to my beloved 10-volume "American Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia" of 1889, "buck" has been used in many, many, ways; one of them is a Cornish word for a fungus attacking stored corn (maize). "Indian" itself, as an adjective, was also used in many ways, one of them a shorthand reference to any food made with maize, which is, of course, an American vegetable. "Indian corn" was thus another name for maize, to distinguish it from the British "corn", which was wheat. So I've always thought of "Indian buck" as cornmeal mush, which was probably fed to General Meagher's "Irish Brigade", and "Indian buck" may have been a pretty local locution. (Sam Hinton, rec.music.folk, 2 Oct)

After the Civil War, veterans had difficulty in getting pensions. In fact, the special status of veterans in the U.S. dates to a movement which was started after the War by vets to get what they had been promised. In reading the song, I assume that By The Hush was written sometime within 10 years of the end of the War. (Dan Milner, www.mudcat.org, 13 Oct)  http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=4988

 Article and photographs of
Gettysburg Irish Brigade Monument

Paddy's Lamentation SONGSHEET PDF
lyrics I used in my video, along with chords.  C-G-C tuning (any 1-5-8 tuning will do depending on your voice)

 Paddy's Lamentation YouTube video