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"The Jolly Beggar", also known as "The Gaberlunzieman" is a Scottish ballad.
The song's chorus inspired lines in Lord Byron's poem "So, we'll go no more a roving". Hamish Henderson has noted: Another native Scots ballad. It is sometimes said to reflect one of the adventures of King James IV (or perhaps James V) of Scotland, who traveled the country disguised as the Guidman of Ballengeich to learn how his subjects fared.This tale of the adventures of the king dressed in disguise as a beggar has remained widely popular in Scottish tradition. This song is not the same as the Irish song The Little Beggarman. It was first published in Herd’s Ancient and Modern Scots Songs (1776). Whether the ballad dates back to James IVth is often disputed by academics and the ribald nature of the story line has no doubt often kept the text out of print. It was included as #279 in Child's The English and Scottish Popular Ballads. It was also printed in Ramsay's Tea Table Miscellany (1724) and Percy's Reliques (1767). In the US, traditional versions of Child 279, "The Jolly Beggar", are scarce. 'Gaberlunzie' in the alternate title is a corruption of 'ghiberlaun', Scots Gaelic for 'beggar'. It appears in the Roud Folk Song Index as #118. It was recorded as "The Jolly Beggar", "Jolly Beggarman", "The Ragged Beggarman", "The Beggar Man", "The Auld Beggarman" or "The Gaberlunzie Man" by Ewan MacColl, Jeannie Robertson, Noel Murphy, Cyril Tawney, The High Level Ranters, The Freemen, Planxty, Cherish the Ladies (with Liam Clancy), June Tabor and others. Click |