Annotation:Merry Girls of Epsom
X:1 T:Merry Girls, The T:Merry Girls of Epsom M:6/8 L:1/8 R:Jig or Country Dance Tune B:John Hinton - Universal Magazine of Knowledge and Pleasure, B:February, 1750, p. 82 Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion K:Bb B|FDF F2B FDE F2B|cec BdB|cAF TF2B| FDE F2B|FDE F2 f/e/|dcB FBA|BFD B,2:| |:f|fdB fg_a| {_a}b3-b2 Tb|g=ec egb|{b}a3-a2g| fbf dfd|ege cfc|dcB FBA|BFD B,2:|
MERRY GIRLS OF EPSOM. AKA - "Merry Girls (The)." AKA and see "l'Albertine." English, Jig (6/8 time). B Flat Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. The melody was first printed in John Hinton's periodical The Universal Magazine of Knowledge and Pleasure (Feb., 1750, p. 82) as "The Merry Girls." It soon acquired the appended title "Merry Girls of Epsom" and was published by the rival London music publishers; John Johnson in Choice Collection of 200 Country Dances, vol. 6 (London, 1751), David Rutherford in Compleat Collection of 200 of the Most Celebrated Country Dances (London, 1756), and Charles and Samuel Thompson in Compleat Collection vol. 1 (London, 1757). The melody was printed in the 1757 country dance collection of French dancing master Robert Daubat, under the title "l'Albertine."
The title honors the female inhabitants of Epsom in Surrey, England, south east of London. The town was famous as a spa resort in the 18th century, known for a race course and assembly rooms that attracted many of the city gentry to visit the country.
