Annotation:Oyster Wives Rant (The)
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OYSTER WIFE'S/WIVES' RANT. AKA - "The Oysterwives' Rant." AKA and see "Muileann Dubh." Scottish, English; Reel. England, Northumberland. A Dorian. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. Bayard (1981) identifies the melody as belonging to the same tune group as "Welcome Home (3)," "Haughs of Cromdale (The)," "(Fare Thee Well) Sweet Killaloe," "Hillside (2) (The)," and "Wate You How the Play Began." The members of this very old family, which he calls the "Welcome Home" group, appear in major, modal, duple-time, triple time, vocal and instrumental forms. John Glen (1891) finds the earliest appearance of the tune in print in Robert Bremner's 1757 collection. The title appears in Henry Robson's list of popular Northumbrian song and dance tunes ("The Northern Minstrel's Budget"), which he published c. 1800, and is one of the "missing tunes" from William Vickers' 1770 Northumbrian dance tune manuscript. Some see Irish cognates in the air "Óró 'sé do bheatha a bhaile/Óró Welcome Home" and the "Ballydesmond Polka (2)," but if in fact related they are distanced.
"Oyster Wives' Rant" appears in the music manuscript copybooks of Luther Kingsley (1795, Mansfield, Ct.) and Edward Murphey (1790, Newport, R.I.).
Source for notated version:
Printed sources: Aird (Selection of Scotch, English, Irish and Foreign Airs, vol. 1), 1782; No. 6, p. 3. Bremner (Scots Reels), 1757; p. 80. David Glen (Glen Collection of Highland Bagpipe Music, Book 5), No. 41, p. 21 [1]. Hardings All Round Collection, 1905; No. 32, p. 10. Kerr (Merry Melodies, vol. 2), c. 1880's; No. 65, p. 10. Peacock's Tunes, c. 1805; No. 31. MacDonald (The Skye Collection), 1887; p. 110. Stewart-Robertson (The Athole Collection), 1884; p. 53.
Recorded sources: Eilean Mòr Records, Eilean Mòr - "Left of the Sun" (2009).
See also listing at:
Alan Snyder's Cape Breton Fiddle Recordings Index [2]
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [3]