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The Steamboat jig

Also known as The Steamboat March, Steamboat Quickstep, The Steamboat Quickstep, Uncle Jim’s.

There are 10 recordings of a tune by this name.

The Steamboat has been added to 42 tunebooks.

Download ABC

Two settings

X: 1
T: The Steamboat
R: jig
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Amaj
a2e c2A|Ace a2e|agf edc|Bed cBA|
a2e c2A|Ace a2e|agf edc|BcB A3:|
|:Ace ece|efe cBA|Ade f2f|fga e3|
Ace ece|efe cBA|agf edc|BcB A3:||
X: 2
T: The Steamboat
R: jig
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
K: Amaj
e|a2ec2A | Ace a2a | agf edc | Bcd cBA |
a2ec2A | Ace a2a | agf edc | edB A2:|
|:B|c2 e efe | efe c2A | d2 f fga | fga f2 e |
c2e efe | efe c2e | agf edc | edB A2:|

Seven comments

Found this lively jig in an old collection of New England fiddle music.
-m

This tune is played as a standard 6/8 march for pipe bands in the Royal Scottish Band Association tutor book volume one.

1083 ~ “New England Fiddler’s Repertoire”

Randy Miller & Jack Perron

Page 21: "Steamboat Quickstep"

http://www.randymillerprints.com/
http://www.randymillerprints.com/fiddletunebooks.htm

2003 Second Edition: "168 classic traditional contra dance melodies, from Batchelder’s Reel to Money Musk to Portland Fancy and beyond — the standard contra tunes in one source. The second edition of NEFR is produced with assistance from the Gadd/Merrill Fund of the Country Dance and Song Society. Edited by Robert Bley-Vroman and Randy Miller; introduction by Newt Tolman."

~ also their publication:
"Irish Traditional Fiddle Music"

The Steamboat Jig

There is an old Scottish song called "Tranent Wedding". A setting of the song was sung by Tony Cuffe on an LP called "Fergusson’s Auld Reekie" in 1981 under the name "Duncan McCallipin" - Cuffe set the lyrics to a version of The Steamboat:-

It was at a wedding near Tranent,
Where scores an’ scores on fun were bent.
An’ to ride the broose wi’ full intent.
Was either nine or ten, jo !

Chorus: Then aff they a’ set galloping, galloping.
Legs an’ arms a walloping, walloping.
Shame take the hindmost, quo’ Duncan MCallipin
Laird o’ Jelly Ben, jo.

The Steamboat, X:2

Taken from ‘A Fine Selection of Over 200 Irish Traditional Tunes for Sessions’, compiled by David Speers with a Forward by Matt Cranitch. A few different twists and turns in this setting. I’m not positive how you define a quickstep as opposed to a jig - both being in 6/8 - but one feature seems to be long runs up and down the scale. This tune certainly fits that pattern.

Re: The Steamboat

This tune was a song composed around 1809 by Marc-Antoine-Madeleine Désaugiers in his vaudeville "Le départ pour Saint-Malo". This song is known as "Bon voyage, Monsieur Dumollet !". The tune was famous enough to be played all over Europe. In France, it is still a children song and it is also played among the "Bandas" , popular brass bands of the South-West French Gascony.