Martin Milner wrote:
Excellent info, Brad, thanks! Avanutria been learning a tune called The Battle of Aughrim recently too, off a CD.
Okay, but now we can go back to talking about sex.
Oh wait, but before we do, if you're interested in the Battle of Aughrim there's an excellent summary (including photos of the sites today, though sadly St. Ruth's Bush is not shown) here:
I can't help but think someone's been smoking the shrubbery. Its the only explanation for questions like, "Is there SEX in Irish music?" What? Are you kidding me? Those softly undulating pulses are what make Irish music stand out against the mechanical banging of Scottish music. And how is it that no-one has mentioned An Phis Fliuch yet?
djm
I'd rather be atop the foothills than beneath them.
The great thing about An Phis Fluich isn't just the direct translation (The Wet Pussy) but all the other translations or names for it such as:
The Choice Wife (hmm? What's the criteria for a choice wife? You don't say? I'll have to get her to change that...)
O'Farrell's Welcome to Limerick (well, I guess they do say that absense makes the heart grow fonder)
And of course, my personal favorite:
The Poor Little Kitty that Fell in the Bog
Other great tune sets: "I buried my wife and danced on her grave" followed by "Will you come home with me?"
Behind the Haystack, Merrily Kissed the Quaker's Wife (which is often shortened to Merrily Kiss the Quaker...), Maid on the Green (think about it...) and of course Kid On the Mountain.
I have heard it as Merrily Danced the Quaker's Wife which is sorta strange as they don't or didn't dance much, compared to other sects. Not big on kissin' either.
The Weekenders wrote:I have heard it as Merrily Danced the Quaker's Wife which is sorta strange as they don't or didn't dance much, compared to other sects. Not big on kissin' either.
When there are lyrics to a tune, the tune then often tends to take on various names from different lines within the lyric. I have heard words to the effect of "Merrily kiss the Quaker's wife, and merrily kiss the Quaker". Here's another version:
The Quaker's Wife
The Quaker's wife got up to bake
With all her children round her
She gave them each a slice of cake
And there the baker found her
He chased her up and down the town
As fast as he could make her
And merrily danced the Quaker's wife
And merrily danced the Quaker
The Quaker's wife came to my door
To borrow a market penny
But I'd been had that way before
And said I hadn't any.
And oh she sighed and oh she cried
Then went up the street O
But the wind it blew her cloak a-side
And there was the butcher's meat O!
My Aunty died a week ago
And left me all her money
A little black hen a pig in a pen
And twenty jars of honey
The hen and pig they danced a jig
And knocked against the door O,
The honey it came trickling down
And stuck their feet to the floor!
Collected by Ruth Tongue. [No when, precise where, or who from, typical of Ruth Tongue's editing.]
[From 'The Quaker's Wife and other Sommerset Folk Songs', by Ruth Tongue and Felton Rapley, Chappell & Co., London, 1965.]
Another enticing tune title - Pull the Knife and Stick it Again
djm
I'd rather be atop the foothills than beneath them.
)