Annotation:Carle an' the King come

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CARLE AN' THE KING COME. Scottish, Air (4/4 time). G Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB (McGibbon): AA'BB' (Gow). This melody appears in Allan Ramsay's ballad opera The Gentle Shepherd, published 1725. Although it predates Gay's famous Beggar's Opera (1729) it was not performed until after Gay's work became a hit in London. In the Shetland Islands the tune is known as "Carle as da King Come." A 'carle' in Scottish usage is a 'bloke', or common man, but the song itself (of which there are many versions) is an old Jacobean air, a pean to the house Stuart.

Carle, an the king come--
Carle, an the king come,
Thou shalt dance, and I will sing,
Carle, an the king come.
An somebody were come again,
Then somebody maun cross the main;
And ev'ry man shall hae his ain,
Carle, an the king come. ....... (Cunningham, Songs of Scotland, 1825)

Poet Robert Burns 'improved' the song.

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Gow (Complete Repository), Part 4, 1817; p. 20. McGibbon (Scots Tunes, book III), 1762; p. 53. Oswald (Caledonian Pocket Companion, Book 6), 1760; p. 15.

Recorded sources:

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