Dancing In Kyle waltz

I remember this from spending time in the Scottish Borders (Berwickshire) in the 70s: though not a very exciting tune (!), it was a staple of local dance bands and the village pub accordionist. There is a song to it.

I’ve left it undotted, but crotchets could probably be lengthened or shortened to flavour things here and there. I can’t remember what key it would normally have in Scotland, but have put it here in D as that’s a whistle-friendly key.

The words are (as sung by Andy Stewart and others):

When the sun has gone down on the dark western islands
Our work is all done for a while
Then we gather together whatever the weather
And drive to the dancing in Kyle
Now there’s Marie and Duncan and Morag and Callum
Fiona and Kenna and Don
And we’re driving from Dornie, Glenelg and Killilan
And laughing as we race along

Now Rory will sing of the beauties of Islay
And Seamus of Stornaway’s isle
And the finest of dancers will show us the lancers
When we go to the dancing in Kyle
There’s the swirl o the kilt and the skirl o the pipes
And Ken Mason’s accordion band
And it’s oh for the eightsome and ah for the jig
And the dashing white sergeant is grand

Soon the dawn will be showing the great mountains glowing
And we must drive many a mile
But we’ll leave Inverinate and Ardelve and Dornie
Next time that there’s dancing in Kyle
And we’ll arm and we’ll swing and we’ll hueoch and we’ll sing
And we’ll set to our partners in style
For there’s nothing so grand in the whole of the land
As to go to the dancing in Kyle

More usually to this tune:

X: 47
T: Dancing in Kyle
M: 3/4
L: 1/4
Q: 1/4=144
K: D
F/G/ | ADD | dAA | Bcd | AFF/G/ | ADD | dAF | E3- | E2F/G/ |
ADD | dAA | Bcd | AFF/G/ | Add | cBc | d3- | d2d/e/ |
fdd | Add | fdd | Add | Bcd | AFD | E3- | E2F/G/ |
ADD | dAA | Bcd | AFF/G/ | Add | cBc | d3- | d2 |]

Thanks, Donald! Certainly, for the version of the tune you give. It’s a very long time since I’ve actually heard it, but I heard it enough times then for at least a version of it to be permanently lodged in my brain.

From late summer ‘76 to the same time in ’77 I spent a year working on a farm (Mersington) outside a tiny village called Leitholm, north of Coldstream. A chap called Dod Paterson played accordion once a week in the Leitholm pub, and very occasionally I got to a local dance or the Kelso Accordion Club. Except maybe in the latter, the music was fairly stodgy on the whole - something like Planxty was what I was (then) looking for, Dancing In Kyle on accordion(s) was what one got!

This tune has been in my brain for a long time also. It was on the first record I ever got - an Andy Stewart EP (which I still have) - when I was five or so. I remember being a bit miffed at the time though as my twin brother got The Little Red Engine EP which was much better!
My recording dates from 1960. I’ve never been able to find out who wrote Dancing in Kyle but the Andy Stewart version was arranged by Annie Shand Scott.
The only person I know from Leitholm is Coby. The name Dod Paterson sounds familiar but then it is a very common Border name.

“I’ve never been able to find out who wrote Dancing in Kyle ”

Published by Chappell & Co, 1959. Words by Judy Pritchard, music by Evelyn Duguid.

The main dancing had mostly moved to the Dornie Hall in my time, but there’s been many times I’ve sung that song en route to the dancing in Kyle myself.

Of the people mentioned in the first verse of the song, the ones known to me personally are the parents of my good pals, the mother of whom I can report; is still alive and well 🙂

The way I know it close to DonaldK’s version, but at the start of the B part I play:

| fdd | Add | fdd | BAA |

Subtle, I know. I can’t remember when or where I picked the tune up, but I still use it in for dance sets.

sorry!