Annotation:Drummer (1) (The)
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DRUMMER, THE. AKA - "The Drummers." AKA and see "Good Morning to Your Night Cap [2]," "Jack the brisk young drummer," "Jack the drummer," "The Piper o' Dundee," "Taylor." Scottish, English; Reel. A Dorian/Minor. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Surenne): AAB (Athole, Gow/Repository, Honeyman, Kennedy, Kerr, Skye & Raven): AABB (Gow/Carlin). "Very old" notes Gow in his Repository (1802) and MacDonald in The Skye Collection (1887). Glen's (1891) found that the earliest printing occurs in Neil Stewart's 1761 collection, although many English publications have earlier appearance dates, such as Walsh's Caledonian Country Dances, vol. 3 (c. 1740, p. 21), and Walsh's Compleat Country Dancing Master, Fourth Book (c. 1747, p. 182). The popular melody also appears in Stewart's Collection of the Newest and Best Reels or Country Dances (Edinburgh, c. 1775). Manuscript versions appear in Thomas Hammersley's copybook (London, c. 1790), and fluter John Simpson's c. 1750 music manuscript pages (bound with a printed flute tutor).
A similar tune, although in a different key, is "Wearying on the Gill Stoup," a pipe tune contained in the Edinburgh Collection, Book 11 (c. 1910). Barry Shears, in his Gathering of the Clans Collection, vol. 1 (1986), prints an untitled pipe reel (p. 54) that appears to be a version. In addition, says Shears, he has heard a Gaelic song called "Seallaibh curaigh, Eohainn" sung in Nova Scotia by Mrs. Annie Arnett for the School for Scottish Studies, that "bears a striking resemblance to this tune." The late indexer Bruce Olson suggested this tune was the original of John O'Keefe's "Good Morrow to Your Night Cap," a song written for his farce The Good Soldier.
Source for notated version:
Printed sources: Aird (Selection of Scotch, English, Irish and Foreign Airs, vol. 1), 1782; p. 45. Anderson (Anderson's Budget of Strathspeys, Reels & Country Dances), c. 1820; p. 21. Carlin (Master Collection), 1984; p. 90, No. 150. Carlin (The Gow Collection), 1986; No. 481. Gow (Complete Repository), Part 2, 1802; p. 23. Honeyman (Strathspey, Reel and Hornpipe Tutor), 1898; p. 17. Kennedy (Fiddlers Tune Book), vol. 2, 1954; p. 14. Kerr (Merry Melodies), vol. 1; Set 9, No. 6, p, 8. MacDonald (The Skye Collection), 1887; p. 111. Raven (English Country Dance Tunes), 1984; p. 164. Stewart-Robertson (The Athole Collection), 1884; p. 43. Surenne (Dance Music of Scotland), 1852; p. 17.
Recorded sources: "Fiddlers Three Plus Two."
See also listing at: Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index [1]
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