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Annotation:Merrily Kiss the Quaker
X:1 T:Merrily Kiss the Quaker L:1/8 M:6/8 K:G D|\ GAB D2B|c2A BAG|GAB DEG|A3 A2D| GAB D2B|c2A BAG|GAB D2F|G3 G2:|* |:A|\ BGG AGG|BGG AGG|GAB DEG|A3 A2A| BGG AGG|BGG AGG|GAB D2E|G3 G2:|* |:d|\ g3 aga|bge dBG|g2d gab|a3 a2f| gag fgf|efe dBA|GAB D2E|G3 G2:|
MERRILY KISS(ED) THE QUAKER. AKA and see "Humors of Last Night (The)," "Merrily Kissed the Quaker's Wife," "Merrily Kiss the Crater." Irish, Slide (12/8 time). Ireland, West Kerry. G Major (most versions): A Major (Deloughery): D Major (Feldman & O'Doherty). Standard tuning (fiddle). AA'B (Feldman & O'Doherty/O'Donnell #1): AABB (Deloughery, Feldman & O'Doherty/O'Donnell #2): AABBCC (most versions). The tune, most likely of Scottish origin, can be traced to Dublin publishers John and William Neal(e), who printed a version as "Ye Ragg" in their A Choice Collection of Country Dances (1724), a collection of tunes of mixed English, Scottish and Irish provenance. O'Farrell's version is essentially the one printed by the Neals. The first Scottish collection to contain the tune is Robert Bremner's Collection of Scots Reels or Country Dances (1760). The jig-like dance for the Irish slide is mainly done in the south west of Ireland, esp. west Clare and Cork, and County Kerry, according to the Boys of the Lough. The word 'crater' in the alternate title means whiskey. As "Humors of Last Night (The)" the melody can be found in O'Neill's collection of 1787 and piper O'Farrell's second collection (1st decade of the 19th century), set in four parts (reprinted in Stanford/Petrie, No. 477). Scots versions parallel and predate Irish versions; for the former, see Annotation:Merrily Danced the Quaker. The titles in both genres vary between 'Kiss/Kissed/Dance/Danced' and 'Quaker/Quaker's Wife'. See also Glasgow music publisher James Aird's derivative tunes "Wilke's Wrigle" or "Deil's Awa with the Exciseman", printed in Selection of Scotch, English, Irish and Foreign Airs, vol. 1 (c. 1782, No. 145).