The Frost Is All Over jig

This is also the tune of a song called The Praties Are Dug And The Frost Is All Over.

Now that you mention it, I’m remembering some words to go with this tune.

Here’s what I can recall:

“Oh, what’ll you do if the kettle boils over?
What’ll you do, only fill it again?
And what’ll you do if the cow ate the clover?
What’ll you do, only set it again?”

Where did I hear this? It’s definitely on a recording somewhere.

Did Planxty do this one with words? Maybe that’s where I heard it.

Well, I know the Clancy Bros. recorded it as What Would You Do If You Married a Soldier. Their version has a chorus of nonsense lilting. Henrik gives the words on his website as:

1. What would you do if the kettle boiled over?
What would I do? Only fill it again.
And what would you do if the cow ate the clover?
What would I do only set it again.

2. The praties are dug and the frost is all over
Kitty lie over close to the wall.
How would you like to be married to a soldier?
Kitty lie over close to the wall.

3. The praties all boil and the herring’s a roasting
Kitty lie over close to the wall.
You to be drunk and me to be sober
Kitty lie over close to the wall.

4. What would you do if you married a soldier
what would you do would you follow his gun?
And what would you do if he drowned in the ocean
what would you do would you marry again?

I first heard this lovely tune at a session in Fermoy, Co.Cork. It was a very lively tune and it kept wandering in my head for several days. Then I listened to a Paul McGrattan’s record I have bought some days before and the tune was there! Paul plays a more laid back version and the first part is slightly different, but it’s definetily that tune. He calls it The Frost is all Over (which is the name given to the album, BTW). Paul plays Willie Coleman’s and the Rambling Pitchfork after that, and boy, he makes a terrific set.
I posted the version I play, which is nearer to the Fermoy version.
Enjoy.

This tune is almost identical to “The Frost is All Over” which was the first jig given to me by a music teacher in County Leitrim nearly 50 years ago!

This tune is also known in a slightly different version as “The American Dwarf”, as follows

K:Dmaj
A|def fed|BdB AFD|DFA B2A|cee e2A|
def fed|BdB AFD|DFA B2A|Add d2:|
|:e|fga agf|gab bag|fga agf|gfg e2g|
fga agf|gab bag|fga efg|fdd d2:||

trevor

This jig, slightly different, is one of the first tunes in Kevin Burke’s
6-tape learn to play the Irish fiddle set.

This tune is taught by Kevin Bourke on his teaching 6 set of
tapes which came out some years ago - he calls it the Frost is
All Over

I take back that last comment - the tune he teaches is the one known as the Mist of Clonmel or The Frost is All Over. But the Mist tune is the one that goes with the words given above sung by the Clancy Brothers.

Seamus Ennis plays this/sings it on the Forty Years of Piping CD/Casette.

X: 1
T: Kitty Lie Over
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Gmaj
d2B | AFD DFA | Add B2A | ABA ~F3 | GFG EFG |
AFD DFA | Add B2A | ABA F2E |1 EDD :|2 EDD D2||
e | fdd ede | fdd d2e | fdd def | g2e efg |
afd B2A | AdF G2B | ABA F2E | EDD D2 :|

Is it just me, or would anyone else consider this as a variant of Father O’Flynn (or the reverse…)?

Not me.

It’s like Fr O’ Flynn, but I wouldn’t say it’s close enough to be a variant.
We play a set: The Frost is All Over + Tripping Up the Stairs + Fr O’ Flynn

Correction to the above. The set is actually four tunes:
Frost is All Over + Out on The Ocean + Tripping Up The Stairs + Fr. O’ Flynn

I was playing this tune last night and realized that I’m finally starting to get inside the feel of it. I think I have it down well enough to start playing it in a set… but what to put with it… my repertoire is still so small…

So if you play The Frost Is All Over, what are some of the tunes you put into sets with it?

Saddle the Pony into Frost is pretty nice. I taught those to my students…

I learned Frost is All Over from Planxty’s set into Hare in the Corn. Or was it the other way around?

Hey Fiddlemouse, if you are looking for tunes to go with tunes, as well as asking contributors to the board, why not go to the tunes section of this site. Then you can find the “frost is all over”, and it’ll give you a list of submitted recordings it is on. If you look at those recordings, it will show you the sets that your tune is played with on those recordings.
Though you may already have done this….
Mark

I have followed it with The Tenpenny Bit (or Three Drummers?)as well. I learned the two in the early days and paired them.

Hills of Glenorchy (aka Over the Hills) into The Lough Gill (aka The Mill Pond) into The Frost Is All Over.

frost is all over, kitty lie over, gander in the pratie hole

Rambling Pitchfork
Frost is all Over
(key change to G)
The Battering Ram

I have a lovely recording of the frost followed by Lark of the morning (Johnny Wilmot)

Frost is All Over, Eavesdropper (in key of “G”) and Sixpenny Money.

… you could folllow it with The Connaughtman’s Rambles - one of my favourite sets of jigs - there’s so much rhythm in those two tunes 🙂

Oh, yeah, I could — and I’m partway through learning Connaughtman’s Rambles, too, so it won’t take forever to get there. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel! (With luck, *not* an oncoming train, though….) ;)
(happy mouse dance!)
Thank you all for your suggestions, I’m delighted to see so many possibilities. Mark (Ottery), thanks, I’m doing that too but I also wanted feedback from Sessionistas. I respect y’all’s judgment!

“Uilleannpipes” you’ve confused 2 completely different tunes.

This really old jig is probably English in origin. It appears in a few old manuscripts, and most often in the key of C. It’s nice in C - give it a try:

X: 1
T: Hey To The Camp
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: Jig
S: Playford (1688); Henry Atkinson MS (1694-5)
Z:Dow
K:Cmaj
c/d/ec dBG|A/B/cE D2C|E/F/GE G2G|c/d/ec d2d|
c/d/ec dBG|A/B/cE D2C|E/F/GG A/B/cc|e/f/ge c3:|
|:e/f/ge gec|f/g/af a2a|e/f/ge gec|dGd d3|
e/f/ge gec|f/g/af agf|e/f/ge dBG|A/B/cE C3:|

X: 1
T: Hey To The Camp
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: Jig
S: William Vickers MS (1770)
Z: Dow
K: Cmaj
cec dBG|AcE D2C|EGG G2G|cec d2d|
cec dBG|AcE D2C|EGG egf|e2d c3:|
|:ege gec|faf afd|ege gec|B/c/dB G2G|
ege gec|faf afd|edc BAB|cGE C3:|

X: 1
T: The Frost Is All Over
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: Jig
S: Me
Z: Dow
K: Cmaj
|:G|cec dBG|AcE D2C|EGG GEG|cec d2G|
cec dBG|AcE D2C|EGG egf|ecB c2:|
|:d|ege gec|faf afd|ege gec|~f3 d2f|
ege gec|faf afd|ege dcd|ecB c2:|

Nice simple little jig, played after Banish Misfortune.

I believe this is “The Frost is All Over”: https://thesession.org/tunes/448

Submitted on December 19th 2001 by Toni Ribas.
https://thesession.org/tunes/448

Submitted on September 19th 2002 by Toni Ribas.
https://thesession.org/tunes/977

“Young Tim Murphy”
Key signature: Dmajor
Submitted on March 17th 2005 by JACKB.
https://thesession.org/tunes/4322

Not so sure about your take 3, ‘c’…

Kitty Lie Over/Paddy’s Return is a different tune

Yes, but the same lyrics are sometimes sung to it, so the title sometimes carrys over too… That’s why the ‘?’ You’re just not doing enough singing Dow…

“The Praties are Dug” and “The Frost is All Over”
“Kitty Lie Over” next to the wall ~

But, I do understand ~ this tune, the one given on this page of the site is not the one the lyrics are sung too, not to the best of my knowledge and experience. I suppose you could force toe lyrics to fit? So, adding the link does tend to perpetuate the length of all these mis-placed comments, whether or not there’s a sharing of titles…

Hmmm? ~ I can sing it to the two links given…

Here’s yet another submission https://thesession.org/tunes/5199

K: D Major
|: A |
def edB | AFD E2 D | DFA AFA | Bee edc |
dd/e/f edB | AFD E2 F | D2 A AFA | Bdc d2 :|
|: e |
fef afd | gfg bag | f2 f agf | g2 g e2 g |
1 f3 afd | g3 bag | ff/g/a efg | fdc d2 :|
2 f/g/af gfe | fdB AFA | Bcd efg | fg/a/f e2 ||

alternate ending &/or first lead ~ | fg/a/f gf ||: e |

K: G Major
|: B |
AFD DFA | Add B2 A | ABA F2 E | FEE E2 B |
AFD DF/G/A | Add B2 A | ABA F2 E | FDD D2 :|
|: e |
fdd dcd | fdd d2 e | f^ef d=ef | g2 f efg |
ff/e/d B2 d | Add F2 G | ABA F2 E | FDD D2 :|

Here’s a 3 part setting, fairly close to the one played by Patrick Street on ‘Street Life’

X: 1
T: The Frost is All Over
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Dmaj
A|:def edB|AFD {EF}E2D|DFA AFA|Bee edB|
def edB|AFD {EF}E2D|DFA AFA|1 Bdc d2A:|2 Bdc d2e||
|:faa afd|gbb bge|faa afd|gfg efg|
faa afd|gbb bge|fdd efg|1 fdc d2e:|2 fdc d2B||
|:AFF dFF|AFF EFE|DFA AFA|Bee e2d|
AFF dFF|AFF EFE|DFA AFA|1 Bdc d2B:|2 Bdd d2A||

Tim

I know someone who developped a whole theory about the Ancient Irish eating herons on account of that one line:
‘The pratties all boil and the herring’s a roasting’ !! 🙂
Who’ll have seconds?

Damn, a favourite and my salivary glands are going ~ sgadan a’ tatties…

planxty’s version switches verses 3 and 4 in zina’s lyrics:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAYW5dwZJRA&mode=related&search=

play video

The tune here is a bit *cough* different than the one Seamus Ennis does on Fourty Years of Irish piping. Same time however. Reason?

Sorry that’s same TUNE however… ^^

My brain is wired backwards… Probably why I play whistle and pipes lefthanded even though I’m right handed. Anyways, for the 3rd try, I meant to say in my original post, same title however.

The tune “Frost is all over” as recorded by Planxty (1974) shows up as “Kitty Lie Over/Paddy’s Return” on this website and as Paddy’s Return in Sullivan’s “Irish Traditional Music Book 2. However, like Planxty, other artists appear to have recorded that same tune as “Frost is all over”. A different tune is “Frost is all Over (American Dwarf)” and is listed in Michale Raven’s (1984) One Thousand English Country Dances. That tune has been recorded as Frost is All Over by a number of artists including Le Ceoltoiri Culturlainne (2004). The tune is actually English and from an 18th century circus act (lazyhound, personal communication, 2007) where, I believe, a dwarf would ride standing up on a horseback.
The tune posted here is neither Frost is All Over (American Dwarf), nor is it Kitty Lie Over/Paddy’s Return. The A-part appears to be a hybrid between Father O’Flynn and Kitty Lie Over while the B-part is a simplfied B-part of Frost is all over.

Actually, I just realized I was mistaken about the dwarf on a horse bit, that story is associated with the tune Astley’s Ride.

Here is a version that Paul O’Shaughnessy learned from Con Cassidy as played on “The Fiddle Music of Donegal Vol.1”. Notice the unusal melodic run that closes the second part and re-introduces the 1st part.
T:Frost is All Over, The
R:jig
D:Paul O’Shaughnessy: Fiddle Music of Donegal Vol 1.
S: Con Cassidy
M:6/8
K:D
A|:dgf edc|dAF BGE|DFA {d}BA^G|Agf ecA|
dgf edc|dAF BGE|DFA {d}BA^G|1 ABc d2(A:|2 ABc dge||
|:fdf {b}afd|{ga}gfg bag|fdf {b}afd|{g}fe^d efg|
fdf {b}afd|~g3 bag|fga efg|1fdc dge:|2fdc def||
|{ga}g2(e f)dc|

Hello all,

I’m wondering if anyone has the lyrics for this great tune in Irish? I recently heard a version that contained both the English and the Irish lyrics and would love to find out what they are. Thanks!

What will we do if the kettle boils over
What will we do only fill it again
What will we do if the cow eats the clover
What will we do only set it again
The preaties are dug
And the frost is all over
Kitty lie over close to the wall
How would you like to be married to a solider
Kitty lie over close to the wall

What would you do if you married a solider
What would you do only follow his gun
What would you do if he died in the ocean
What would you do only marry again
The preaties are dug
And the herrings are roasted
Kitty lie over close to the wall
You to be drunk and me to be sober
Kitty lie over close to the wall

What will we do if the kettle boils over
What will we do only fill it again
What will we do if the cow eats the clover
What will we do only set it again
The preaties are dug
And the frost is all over
Kitty lie over close to the wall
How would you like to be married to a solider
Kitty lie over close to the wall

Kitty lie o’ / Paddy’s return:
https://thesession.org/tunes/948

def edB|AFD EFE|DFA AFA|Bcd ecA|def edB|AFD EFE|DFA AFA|Bdc D3:|
f3 afd|g3 bag|f3 afd|gfg e2g|f3 afd|g3 bag|fga efg|fdc d3|

What would you do if you married a soldier?
N’ What did I do but to follow the gun?
And what would you do if he died in the ocean?
What did I do but to marry again.

(Lilting lyrics for a turn)

What did you do if the kittle boiled over?
What did I do but to fill it again.
What did you do if the cows ate the clover?
What did I do but to set it again.

[Lilting again]

The praties are dug and the frost is all over.
Kitty lie over close to the wall.
The herrings are boiling the praties are roasting.
Kitty lie over close to the wall.

(Lilting)

Here’s a G version of the tune.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40d6wTnIXqA

play video

I don’t know how to do this, but there is a weird overlap with two jigs that should be cleaned up here. One of the tunes is apparently called “The Frost Is All Over,” and also appears elsewhere as “The Kilfenora Jig,” and is the tune recorded by Planxty shown in the youtube clip up there. It’s also found here: https://thesession.org/tunes/948

The other is possibly also called “The Frost Is All Over,” and I have it as such in a John Doonan recording (his version is most similar to buailteoir’s setting), but it sounds like a completely different tune. Since the Planxty et al. one already has a page under “The Kilfenora Jig,” is there a way to move the settings, recordings, and comments on that tune to that page, leaving only the other tune (Toni, Trevor, et al.’s “Frost Is All Over”) here? It may get very confusing for someone trying to learn one or the other to figure what goes where… Again, not sure how to do this technically.

X:12 from Michael Coleman via Martin Mullvihill’s collection. This was from Coleman’s first record, when the chance arises I’ll add the other tune from his medley, the Rambles of Kitty, he had a wonderful and equally distinct setting of that, too.

An ear worm transcribed from the playing of this tune by “The Heather Breeze Céilí Band”, jotted down for a friend after dancing to it. 😉

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YycwajPrcOY

play video

This rendition is from the stellar album “An Mileoidean Scaoilte” by Johnny Connolly and Charlie Lennon, played after Lennon’s original “Emmet the Piper.” This set distinguishes itself on the album by tracking in Lennon’s fiddle over his ever-tasty piano backing.

Source: Paudie O’Connor & Aoife Ní Chaoimh
Transcription: Gian Marco Pietrasanta

That three-part version that gian marco has added (X:16) is how it’s played at our local session.

Initially I wasn’t sure about that middle part, but now I quite like it. 🙂

https://youtu.be/P3Z6QVAvMuo

play video