Annotation:St. James Basin
X:1 T:St. James Bason M:6/4 L:1/8 R:Country Dance B:John Walsh - Caledonian Country Dances (c. 1745, p. 74) N:Published in London in several volumes and editions 1731-c. 1745 Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion K:C C4 C2 D2E2F2|G4c2 B4G2|A4A2 B2c2d2|e4a2 ^g4e2| C4C2 D2E2F2|G4c2 B4G2|c2B2A2 G2E2G2|AB c2E2 TD4C2:| |:c2 g4 g2e2g2|B4 c2 de2B2G2|c2g4g2e2g2|c4a2 ^g4e2| c2g4 g2e2g2|B4c2 d2B2G2|AB c2A2 G2E2G2|AB c2 E2TD4 C2:|]
ST. JAMES BASIN. AKA - "St. James Bason," "St. James Basane," "St. James's Basin", "St. James's Bason," "St. James' Basin." English, Jig (6/4 and 6/8 time). C Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. "St. James Basin" was first published by London music publisher John Walsh in his Third Book of the Compleat Country Dancing-Master (editions of c. 1735, p. 198, and 1749) and in several others of his issues, including Caledonian Country Dances (1745, p. 74). It was also picked up by publishers John Johnson for his issue of Daniel Wright's Wright's Compleat Collection of celebrated country Dances (c. 1740, p. 8), and by David Rutherford for his Rutherford's Compleat Collection of 200 of the Most Celebrated Country Dances (c. 1756, p. 72).
The jig was entered into Northumbrian musician William Vickers' large 1770 music manuscript collection[1], and in Thomas Hammersley's 1790 music copybook. It also was entered into the large music manuscript (581) probably compiled by Robert Kelsall, a musician of Glasgow, sometime between c. 1720 and c. 1730. Kelsall's manuscript, if the dates are accurate, predates Walsh's printing in London by about five years. The dates of the manuscript and publication are not firm, but are based on scholarship, although there may be some overlap. It is also possible that a printing of the tune predates the Walsh publication.
