Annotation:O'er the Dyke

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O'ER THE DYKE. English, Scottish; Reel. England, Northumberland. G Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AAB (Aird): AABBCC (Peacock). The title appears in Henry Robson's list of popular Northumbrian song and dance tunes ("The Northern Minstrel's Budget"), which he published c. 1800. Matt Seattle notes some passing resemblance in passages to William Vickers' similarly titled "Over the Dyke and at Her," and remarks that both titles probably have a sexual connotation. The phrase 'to let the pony o'er the dyke' means to lose one's virginity. However, 'o'er the dyke' has also been used as a phrase meaning 'to commit to', similarly to 'crossing the Rubicon'. The sexual connotation is more direct in Vickers' title.

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Aird (Selection of Scotch, English, Irish and Foreign Airs, vol. 5) [1], 1797; No. 119, p. 46. Peacock (Peacock's Tunes) [2], c. 1805; No. 45, p. 20.

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