Merrily Kissed The Quaker slide

Apparently there are words to go with this song: I’m sure I remember hearing somebody sing "Merrily kissed the quaker’s wife and merrily kissed the quaker…" to the tune of the first few bars. If anybody knows more words to go with this tune, be sure to add them.

I’ve shown the first part of the tune with a little variation, turning the typical slide rhythm of the first couple of bars into a more jig-like rhythm for the next two bars.

I play this as a jig…hmmmmmm…

This is very close to the version which I know as a jig. Never seen it as a slide before, interesting…

I think the confusion is that this tune is one of those rare slides that are played kinda funny, some folks call them Single Jigs or Hop Jigs. These can also be played as regular jigs as well , they lend themselves to all sorts of different time signatures, but are normally notated in 12/8. They’re played a lot faster than a garden variety "slide", If you have the Michael Coleman 78’s he plays the "FoxHunters" as a single. I’m sure Zina could clarify the difference from a dancers perspective.

Here are words to the tune learned a good few years ago from Cathal McConnell

The Quaker’s wife she baked a scone
And Johnny danced while it was on
Merrily kiss the Quaker’s wife
And merrily kiss the Quaker

The Quaker’s wife sat down to bake
With all her bairns about her.
She made them all a sugar cake,
And the miller he wants his mouter (i.e. a fee for grinding flour).
Sugar and spice and all things nice,
And all things very good in it,
And then the Quaker sat down to play
A tune upon the spinet.
Merrily danced the Quaker’s wife,
And merrily danced the Quaker
Merrily danced the Quaker’s wife,
And merrily danced the Quaker.

Or Merrily Quak The Wife

Hi PP,

One of the first guest musicians to appear on a Chieftains album was lilter Pat Kilduff and he lilted the Quaker tune on the last track of Chieftains 3.

You can also check out this site if you are into the lilting thing:

http://www.ubu.com/ethno/soundings/celtic.html

I like the version of "Within a Mile to Dublin" that is on this site.

Greg

btw I’d be careful about saying "I diddled the Quaker’s Wife", as that has certain connotations in the S. Ontario dialect…

In the States, too. ;)

Here’s the version played on track 12 of The Chieftains 3. There are substantial differences in the second and third parts.

X: 1
T:Merrily Kiss the Quaker
M:12/8
L:1/8
R:Slide
K:G
GAB DED ~c2A BGE|GAB DED ~A2B AGE|GAB DED ~c2A BGE|GAB DED ~G3 G3:|
|:G2B ~d3 edB d2B|G2B d2B ~A3 AGE|~G2B ~d3 edB d2B|GAB ~D3 ~G3 G2D:|
|:~G2B d2d edB ~g2e|dBA GBd ~e2f g2g|ged BAB d2B AGE|GAB DED ~G3 G2D:|

Seamus Ennis played and transcribed this tune as a slide, and the same version too. Could be why its posted that why, even though many of you play it as a jig.

In the ‘70’s a reliable researcher told me that the earliest known manuscript appearance of this tune was in a tune-book found in Weardale in Co. Durham, England.
I don’t know the age of the MS, and of course no researcher can summon up for comparison all the tune-books that ever existed - even if appearance in one could date a tune, which is very often not the case.
But it’s nice to think there could just be an outside chance that this ITM standard started life in my patch of England (-after all, porter started off in England, as a brewery worker’s mistake!.).
I’ll check this column for refutations…

The info @ FC is a good read http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/MER_MIC.htm#MERRLIY_DANCED/KISSED_THE_QUAKER(‘S_WIFE)

The above website suggests the tune was generally known in England and Scotland by and after the mid c18, anyway.

Also known as "That tune about the duck." - Merrily Kissed the Quacker.
Boom boom !

on the chieftans "tears of stone" they slip this in at the end of deserted soldier. the version is as posted above by turophile.
they call it "the kerry slide" and they play it in F. I’d nearly consider it a different tune as the B and C parts are quite different to merrily…

"Music From Ireland, Volume One"
compiled by Dave Bulmer & Neil Sharpley, 1974
ISBN: 0-9503784-02

Page 30, tune #77: "Merrily Kiss the Quaker"

X: 77
T: Merrily Kiss the Quaker
M: 12/8
L: 1/8
R: slide
K: G Major
|: D |
GAB D3 BcA BGE | GAB DEG ABG AGE |
GAB D2 B c2 A BGE | GAB D2 E G3 G2 :|
|: A |
BGG AGG BGG AGE | GAB DEG ABA AGA |
BGG AGG BGG AGE | GAB D2 E G3 G2 :|
|: B/d/ |
gfg aga bge dBd | gfg gab a3 agf |
gag fgf ege dBA | GAB D2 E G3 G2 :|

NINE INCH WILL PLEASE A LADY
(Robert Burns)

Come rede me dame, come tell me dame,
My dame come tell me truly,
What length o’ graith when weel ca’d hame
Will sair a woman duly?"
The carlin clew her wanton tail,
Her wanton tail sae ready,
"l learn’d a sang in Annandale,
Nine inch will please a lady."

"But for a koontrie eejit like mine,
In sooth we’re not sae gentle;
We’ll tak tway thumb-bread to the nine,
And that is a sonsy pintle.
Oh, Leeze me on, my Charlie lad,
I’ll ne’er forget my Charlie,
Tway roaring handfuls and a daud
He nidged it in fu’ rarely."

But wear fa’ the laithron doup
And may it ne’er be thriving,
It’s not the length that makes me loup
But it’s the double drivin.
Come nidge me Tom, come nidge me Tom
Come nidge me, o’er the nyvel
Come lowse an lug your battering ram
And thrash him at my gyvel!

This is my rendition on soundlantern recorded today:

http://www.soundlantern.com/SoundPage.do?ToId=4212&Path=quakera.mp3

Was this ever a pipe tune, perhaps in D?
I only ask because I was recently reading Steele Rudd’s book of comic stories "The Poor Parson" (set in 19thC rural Australia) in which a central character "Duncan McClure" gets his pipes out at a dance and plays "The Quaker’s Wife" according to the author.
Given that Rudd’s transcription of Doric speech seems accurate enough, I’d guess that the tune detail is from real life observation.

When I learned that tune ages ago, from an old cassette, it was played with a fourth part :
D|G2B d2d|edB dBA|G2B dBG|ABA A2D|
G2B d2d|edB dBA|GAB D2E|GAG G2D|
but I don’t know much more… except no one around me seems to know anything about that fourth part…

And the cassette is long lost…

I’m used to play "Merrily kissed the Quaker’s wife" with a fourth part, but it seems, apart from one or two friends, no one else plays that 4th part. I posted it in the tunes’ section :
https://thesession.org/tunes/70/comments
I’d be glad to know if there actually is a version with a fourth part…
It would have been recorded in the 70es, it’s one of the first irish tune I learned…

Sorry, I put it in 6/8. here’s the "correct" ABC in 12/8 :

D |: G2B d2d edB dBA | G2B dBG ABA A2D |
| G2B d2d edB dBA | GAB D2E GAG G2D :|

I suspect the ‘ceili band’ influence. They needed it to fit the basic 32 bars for a dance and threw in the 4th part so that it added up to 64 bars, or 2 x 32, but of course, if you’re doing it in 12/8 that would be the equivalent of 32 bars of 12/8, 2 x 16… Ceili bands take liberties. That’s my guess. I’d be curious to hear the specifics if anyone can name a recording of this with 4-parts, and the band/musicians…

Damn, having said that, your 4th part is familiar. I’m going to have to check through my notes. I’ve a sneaking suspicion there may have been something like that in an old Armagh Pipers publication, which, unfortunately I haven’t on hand. It was three small booklets of tunes, I think for the whistle… I’ll see what I can dig up.

Here are 2 versions of the tune picked up from transcriptions of Danny O’Donnell in "The Northern Fiddler". The first has something of the 6/8 pipe march about it.

K:Dmaj
|:A|def AFA|BGB ~A3|def A2g|f2a gfe|
|def AFA|BGB ~A3|fed faf|~e3 d2:|
|:A|def f2a|f2a fed|def faf|efe ecA|
|def f2a|f2a fed|fed faf|~e3 d2:|

K:Dmaj
|:A|def A2f|g2f ~e3|def AFA|BAB d2A|
|def A2f|agf ~e3|def ecA|1 ~G3 d2:|2 B3 d2||
|:A|def a2f|a2f a2f|def a2g|~f3 a2f|
|def a2f|b2f a2f|def ecA|~B3 d2A|
|def a2f|b2f a2f|def a2g|~f3 a3|
|b2g efg|a2f d2A|def ecA|~B3 d2|

X: 3
T: Merrily Kiss the Quaker
B: "Music From Ireland, Volume One", Bulmer & Sharpley, 1974, Page 30, tune #77
M: 12/8
L: 1/8
R: slide
K: G Major
|: D |\
GAB D3 BcA BGE | GAB DEG ABG AGE |
GAB D2 B c2 A BGE | GAB D2 E G3 G2 :|
|: A |\
BGG AGG BGG AGE | GAB DEG ABA AGA |
BGG AGG BGG AGE | GAB D2 E G3 G2 :|
|: B/d/ |\
gfg aga bge dBd | gfg gab a3 agf |
gag fgf ege dBA | GAB D2 E G3 G2 :|

X: 4 ~ a curious 4th part courtesy of Nikita Pfister

X: 5
T: Merrily Kissed The Quaker’s Wife
B: "The Northern Fiddler", Feldman & O’Doherty, page 183
S: Danny O’Donnell
N: 1st version
Z: Allen Feldman
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig, single
K: DMaj
|: A |\
def A2 f | g2 f e3 | def A2 A | B3 d3 |
d>ef A2 f | a>gf e2 c | d>ef ({f/}e)cA |[1 G3 d2 :|[2 B3 d2 ||
|: A |\
def a2 f | a2 f a2 f | def a2 g | f3 a2 f |
def a2 f | b2 f a2 f | def ecA | B3 d3 |
def a2 f | b2 f a2 f | def a2 g | f3 a2 a |
b2 g efg | a2 f d2 A | def ({f/}[A2e2]) A | B3 d2 |]

X: 6
T: Merrily Kissed The Quaker’s Wife
B: "The Northern Fiddler", Feldman & O’Doherty, page 183
S: Danny O’Donnell
N: 2nd version
Z: Allen Feldman
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig, single
K: DMaj
|: A |\
def A2 A | BGB A2 A | def A2 g | f2 a gfe |
def A2 A | BGB A2 A | ({f/g/}f)ed faf | e3 d2 :|
|: A |\
de[df] [d2f2] a | f2 a fed | def faf | efe ecA |
def [d2f2] a | f2 a f>ed | fed faf | e3 d2 :|

See those above:
# Posted on January 30th 2011 by LongNote

From Bill Ochs’ tin whistle book:

X: 7
T: Quaker’s Wife, The
:
S: Bill Ochs
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Gmaj
|: GAB D2 B | c2 B A3 | GAB D2 D | E3 G3 :|
GAB d2 B | e2 B d3 | GAB d2 B | c3 d3 |
e2 c ABc | d2 B G3 | GAB D2 D | E3 G3 |]

# Posted on October 29th 2012 by megapop


"The Clark Tin Whistle Book" - Bill Ochs
http://www.pennywhistle.com/
http://www.pennywhistle.com/bio.html

Bill Ochs: The Chiff & Fipple Interview
http://www.chiffandfipple.com/billochs.htm

Sorry I haven’t given a bit more specific information on this, but I can’t find my copy of the Ochs book amongst our library of method books. I might have given it away to an aspiring whistle player.

B: "Music From Ireland, Volume One", Bulmer & Sharpley, 1974, Page 30, tune #77
# Posted by ceolachan - August 3rd, 2007

B: "Dances of Donegal", collected by Grace Orpen, D.M. Wilkie, London, 1931
The first few pages of this book, and its first tune & dance:
"The Fairy Dance" - https://thesession.org/tunes/424

ITMA: Irish Traditional Music Archive/Taisce Cheol DÚchais Éireann
http://www.itma.ie/
Grace Orpen’s Local Donegal Dances, 1931
http://www.itma.ie/digitallibrary/print-collection/donegal-dances-1931
"Dances of Donegal" collected and edited by Grace Orpen, 1931
Click on ‘32 Pages’ to view them, with Grace Orpen’s ‘Figures’/illustrations…
http://www.itma.ie/digitallibrary/book/dances-of-donegal

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
page 16 - music notation / page 17 - dance description
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Dance: A Trip to the Cottage
Tune: The Quaker’s Wife (6/8 - 12/8 = AABBCC)

Four Dancers: 2 Men and 2 Women.

Steps - - - - - - - - - Description - - - - - - - - - Bars (& see ITMA link for figure/illustration 2)

- - - Introduction. - - - 8

1 - - - Advance and retire. Repeat. - - - 8

2 - - - "Women’s Chain."
- - - Women link right arms and turn each other, then link left arms with own partner and turn him. (4)
- - - Repeat - - - 8

3 - - - "Men’s chain." - - - 8

4 - - - Partners swing.

5 - - - Partners join inside hands. All advance and cross over to opposite side of dance, 1st couple passing under an arch made by 2nd couple. - - - 4
- - - Dance in place. - - - 4
- - - Repeat back to place, 2nd couple passing under arch (made by 1st couple). - - - 4
- - - Dance in place. - - - 4

6 - - - Partners swing. - - - 8



Fig. I - O = man / X = woman

2nd couple
X-O

O-X
1st couple
_________
music-stage


<[ NOTES: This is another I danced and collected in Donegal in the 70s, though collected with a little bit more to it, danced to and fitting perfectly 3-part jigs. Curiously, ‘not’ danced to the jig of the same name, which has only 2 parts. I’ve also taught this as a longways improper set, with a minor progression, two facing couples finishing by exchanging places up and down to face and dance with a new couple, those reaching the foot/bottom or head/top of the set changing sides and waiting out once through the dance. As the movements are all equal in the version I know, it can also be danced as a ‘Sicilian circle’, all around the hall, one set of couples facing ACW and progressing ACW / the couples facing CW and progressing CW. I taught it as "Donegal Trip to the Cottage". Someday we’d love to have just that, a cottage/home in Donegal, or in nearby Fermanagh. 😉 ]>

X:9 is much the same as in Kerr’s Merry Melodies and as in many of the ms transcribed at www.village-music-project.org.uk, some of which have the rhythm of the A part written the same way.

Were these two part tunes likely to have been played as single jigs and is the three-part tune as in X:1 always played as a slide ?

A Piping Version

Settings 7 and 9 posted here both should be under The Gates Of Derry https://thesession.org/tunes/8247

On reflection, so should settings 5 and 6.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHG81uPqh1I

play video

Version from Ted McGraw’s 80 Years album: first part doesn’t repeat, so it seems related to settings 5 and 6 from Ceolachan and LongNote.

Similar in structure to Hemp Dressers, Over the Water to Charlie and The Deil’s Awa wi’ the Exciseman. As Wilke’s Riggle, used for a 1777 electioneering song in Bod. John Wilkes,1727-1797 stood as MP for Newcastle. From Bod:
There are several song versions..

The Quaker’s wife sat down to bake, With all her bairns about her.
She made them all a sugar cake, And the miller he wants his mouter
Sugar and spice and all things nice, And all things very good in it,
And then the Quaker sat down to play, A tune upon the spinet.
Merrily danced the Quaker’s wife, And merrily danced the Quaker

Another version from Somerset, mid 1700s
The Quaker’s wife got up to bake, With all her children round her
She gave them each a slice of cake, And there the baker found her
He chased her up and down the town, As fast as he could make her
And merrily danced the Quaker’s wife, And merrily danced the Quaker
The Quaker’s wife came to my door, To borrow a market penny
But I’d been had that way before, And said I hadn’t any.
And oh she sighed and oh she cried, Then went up the street O
But the wind it blew her cloak a-side,
And there was the butcher’s meat O!
My Aunty died a week ago, And left me all her money
A little black hen a pig in a pen, And twenty jars of honey
The hen and pig they danced a jig, And knocked against the door O
The honey it came trickling down, And stuck their feet to the

Versions in print
Rutherford. Choice Collection of 60 Country Dances. London, 1750. Robert Bremner. Collection of Scots Reels, 1757
As Wilke’s Wriggle in Aird vol.1. JB 1779
as So Merrily Danced The Quakers. WC 1770, Ca 1812, MB 1815

Hello everyone,

Here’s an arrangement I made of this tune. You could play along with me if you want.

Instruments : Tenor guitar, Banjo tenor, Tin Whistle, Mandolin and Bodhran.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UsVR9gQZbE

play video