Presumably similar words were sung to this as to Jocky Said To Jenny - 'Gin Ye Winna Take Me Ye May Let Me Be'. The tunes are quite different though, this one being unknown elsewhere. This tune forms part of the The William Vickers' manuscript, dated 1770. The Index to the manuscript shows that part of the book is now missing, but the very substantial surviving part contains 580 tunes, or 'Country Dances' as the author calls them. It is not easy to pinpoint Vickers's location as his name is not uncommon, but he may be the William Vickers who shows up in genealogical records as an 'Officer of Exise' [sic] in Newcastle. It is fairly safe to assume that the collection was made in North East England because although it contains a lot of Scottish and English tunes it has local material which is not found in other sources. |
