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Broadside ballads entitled 'Lads That Were Reared Amang the Heather', 'Lothian Hairst', 'The Banks of Inverurie', and ''Twas in the Month of Sweet July' |
CommentaryThe first ballad begins: 'Our famed British regiments are faithful and brave, / And never were known to have ears'. The second ballad begins: 'On August twall frae Aiberdeen, / We sailed on board the Prince'. The third ballad begins: 'One day as I was walking, and as I did pass, / On the banks of Inverurie I met a bonnie lass'. The fourth ballad begins: ''Twas in the month of sweet July, / Before the sun had pierced the sky'. This sheet was published and distributed by the Poet's Box of the Overgate, Dundee. There was sometimes an attempt by publishers, with broadsides that featured more than one ballad, to group similar songs together. This particular sheet, however, covers a vast array of themes. The first song touches on the heroic actions of Scottish soldiers at Lucknow, during the Indian Mutiny (1857-8), whilst the 'Lothian Hairst' revolves around a group of seasonal workers. The last two songs featured both touch upon the familiar themes of love and elopement. It is not clear what the connection between the different Poet?s Boxes were. They almost certainly sold each other?s sheets. It is known that John Sanderson in Edinburgh often wrote to the Leitches in Glasgow for songs and that later his brother Charles obtained copies of songs from the Dundee Poet?s Box. There was also a Poet?s Box in Belfast from 1846 to 1856 at the address of the printer James Moore, and one at Paisley in the early 1850s, owned by William Anderson. Early ballads were dramatic or humorous narrative songs derived from folk culture that predated printing. Originally perpetuated by word of mouth, many ballads survive because they were recorded on broadsides. Musical notation was rarely printed, as tunes were usually established favourites. The term 'ballad' eventually applied more broadly to any kind of topical or popular verse.
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Probable period of publication:
1880-1900 shelfmark: RB.m.143(122)
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