An uncommon history of several common East Anglian hornpipes

By Chris Holderness

Including sound files played by Chris on fiddle and pdfs of the tunes created by Alan Helsdon.

The hornpipe has long been a type of tune associated with traditional dance and a great many, such as Yarmouth Hornpipe and Soldier’s Joy, have enjoyed very common currency in East Anglia and indeed almost everywhere else. This popularity is mostly throughout the English-speaking world, but not completely so. In East Anglia the tune type has been used mainly for accompanying step dancing and this trait is prevalent elsewhere, in particular in areas of the United States and in Nova Scotia. The tunes were widely travelled, often under a bewildering plethora of names, some localised, some not. This article proposes to investigate the origins and function of several hornpipes commonly played in East Anglia, as far as can be ascertained, and to unravel some of the many names which were given to the tunes. The chosen tunes are certainly not an exhaustive list; rather they are the tunes which seem to have been most commonplace in the area and, to a great extent, still are.

The word ‘hornpipe’ now generally refers to a group of tunes in common time (4/4 or 2/4) which George Emmerson described thus: tunes with  “staccato quaver runs punctuated by the stressing of the second and third beats within the bar at regular intervals” with “double stress at the end of phrases.” (1) Hornpipes played today fall into this category, although they can either be played ‘straight’ as regards the timing or, probably much more frequently, dotted. Emmerson further makes the distinction that Irish hornpipes are slower and very jaunty with a “rhythmic characteristic comparable to a strathspey: pure step-dance,” with the “beating of rhythms of the feet.” This does not seem so very different from the form and purpose of hornpipes in East Anglia. This type of tune comes into prominence towards the end of the eighteenth century; earlier hornpipes were a “syncopated, limping-gait tune in triple time: 3/4, 6/4 or 12/8 which probably originated in the Borders.” This early style has survived to an extent in pipe tunes and songs. The examples to be dealt with here are all tunes in common time.

Background to these types of hornpipes

The type of hornpipe as we know it came into prominence in the second half of the eighteen century and was very popular indeed by the end of the century. A great many music manuscripts have survived, as well as quite a few published works, which attest to this. They were very often associated with famous dancers of the day and in fact several tunes were named for, or after, such performers; examples of these will be given later. They were also closely connected with stage performances, as many plays had dances as part of the programme. An example is that a Mrs Vernon danced a ‘New Hornpipe’ in Covent Garden, composed by Thomas Arne, in 1760, supposedly the first of this new genre of common-type hornpipe. Another example is that famed dancer Arnold Fishar performed a dance called ‘The Scots Measure’ in a play called ‘The Gentle Measure’ in 1775. (2)

The hornpipe gained a nautical aspect through the stage as well, due to the popularity of such a theme in contemporary plays, probably stimulated by contemporary conflicts and also the publication of Rule Britannia in 1740. The Sailor’s Hornpipe almost certainly made its first appearance in the bawdy comic play ‘The Wapping Landlady’ in 1767, again danced by Fishar. (3)

Step dancing

In East Anglia, as often elsewhere, the hornpipe is synonymous with step dancing and so, before considering the tunes, it is worthwhile looking at this very popular form of largely solo dance which generally took place in public houses. It was largely, but not entirely, the preserve of men, beating out a rhythm with their feet to a hornpipe, with varying complexity of steps. Early in the twentieth century, of those who did partake, “women would draw up their skirts short, and pull the back of the skirt forward between their legs, to show their feet and ankles.” (4) In East Anglia recently there were certainly several well-known female dancers (5) but the majority were men. (6)

That this practice was not at all confined to East Anglia is shown by the following, from a commentator from Worksop (7): “There were many men step-dancers, and a few women ones, well into the later half of the nineteenth century in most villages, and step-dancing displays were usual incidents at feasts and wakes. On Saturday nights also ‘stepping’ would suddenly break out at village ale-houses, when two or three men would pit themselves against each other in short spells, hardly of the nature of contests. When a lad I saw many such steppings, and step-dancers are no means dead, although gone out of village life, maybe. A good dancer was one capable of taking any step music, or without any music whatever. Many of the dancers used stepping shoes or light clogs – the latter preferred in clog-wearing localities. Nimbleness and clatter were essentials, with a good ‘crowdy’ (fiddler) to give the music.

“There were a number of men who were good ‘crowdies’, playing from ear the tunes to which the dancers stepped. The dancing was always on wood – a floor or large table: the latter preferred as the steppings and beats could be heard to better advantage. Some danced without the crowdy, but it was to music which they knew by heart and carried in their feet… When the dancing was done without a crowdy, the listeners could tell the tunes by the steps and beats on the boards.

“Sometimes there would be a couple of dancers on the table. When one had gone through an arranged number of steps, he stopped, the other taking his place; and this was done so deftly that there was no break in the music whilst the change was made. The old fiddlers were hard to tire, and one crowdy, with intervals ‘to wet his whistle’, could keep it up for hours.” This full account could easily apply to East Anglia, aside from the clogs and the word ‘crowdy’, which has never been used in the locality.

This was the typical use to which these common time tunes were put: the typical ‘native’ English hornpipe, although it was much less frequently used to accompany country dances (involving many participants) where a step-hop motion was required, such as in the ‘Nottingham Swing’. It spread far and wide, in particular to the eastern provinces of North America: “One time I was at my uncle’s and there was a violin player there. He asked if anybody could dance. They pointed to me and said, ‘There’s Reuben.’ So he said, ‘How many steps can you dance?’

“I said, ‘About fourteen or fifteen.’ He said I couldn’t, so I said, ‘I’ll give you a different step every time and at the end of each a double back step.’ I danced fifteen different steps and he laid a $5 gold piece down. I’d learned to dance when I was in America. If I saw a dancer I caught on.

“These are some of the steps: double back shuffle, cross steps, shingle, strip the willow, dodging six, hunt the squirrel, American eight, sliding step, lift your leg, rustic dance and triple shuffle.” (8)

Yarmouth Hornpipe

One of the very common hornpipes in East Anglia and way beyond is the Yarmouth Hornpipe. The tune spread far and wide and had a great many names, including the above, which was what it was referred to in Norfolk, and also occasionally elsewhere (9). In Suffolk it is generally known as Pigeon on the Gate and in the north of England as the Manchester Hornpipe. As the latter name was used in a published version, many people have assumed that it is the ‘proper’ name for the tune. The reality is much more complicated.

The tune was undoubtedly one of those hornpipes which surfaced sometime in the second half of the eighteenth century, but the exact provenance of which is not known, as is generally the case. The first published version appeared in Alexander McGlashen’s Collection of Scots Measures in 1781, in Edinburgh. The tune wasn’t given a name but was noted ‘as danced by Aldridge’. Robert Aldridge was a famous dancer of the time from Dublin who made his name performing in Covent Garden and Drury Lane, London, as well as in his native Dublin and in Edinburgh. He was also a ballet master in London. The tune is sometimes known as Aldridge’s Hornpipe as a consequence. (10)

The tune crossed the Atlantic, as did so many, and became identified with John Bill Ricketts, an equestrian, circus entrepreneur and dancer (1769-1802). He was English born, moved to America as a young man, establishing the first large multi-act circus in the country; he became something of a celebrity before his early death at the age of thirty three when he was lost at sea en route back to England. (11) The tune became highly popular amongst American musicians as Ricketts’ Hornpipe (the apostrophe is often misplaced) and was published in several manuscript books in the United States before 1800. (12) It gained other names, such as the One-Eyed Fiddler and is still a staple today, a good example of a tune with enduring popularity on both sides of the Atlantic.

As an aside, one of Ricketts’ associates was the famed dancer John Durang. He was a dancer and acrobat in Ricketts’ circus, as well as becoming a business partner at one point. He was hailed as the ‘first American dancer’, born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, of German parents in 1768. From a theatrical family, he danced hornpipes on stage on a regular basis. He was self-taught, learning by observing other dances. On 7 November, 1790, he danced ‘a Hornpipe on thirteen eggs blindfolded, without breaking one’ (sic). This feat became known as the ‘Egg Dance’ (see below). He danced in the ballets of William Francis and went into a teaching partnership with him between 1794 and c1806. These dancers really were highly regarded celebrities and in 1785 Durang’s German violin teacher Mr Hoffmaster composed Durang’s Hornpipe for him in New York. This tune became very popular in America and remains so to this day. (13)

The tune certainly had widespread currency in East Anglia, as either Yarmouth Hornpipe or Pigeon on the Gate, to accompany step in the usual 4/4 common time. There is one example of a loose version in 6/8 jig time for the Long Dance, which was noted down by Joan Roe at Wayford Bridge.

Sailor’s Hornpipe

This tune has also enjoyed widespread popularity, typical of those connected with stage performances of a nautical flavour, as the name suggests. As mentioned, Fishar brought the tune to wide appreciation when he danced to it in ‘The Wapping Landlady’ in 1790. This play was an amorous romp involving the eponymous lady and a group of ‘Jack Tars’ and was a great success. It is the epitome of the tunes which were part of such performances: dances were billed as ‘hornpipes’ even if they weren’t; sometimes just as a ‘sailor’s dance’. Hornpipes were also billed sometimes even when there was no allusion to sailors or anything nautical, but the association stuck, with the Sailor’s Hornpipe becoming synonymous with ‘hornpipe’ in general. To further complicate matters, the Sailor’s Hornpipe was the dance and the actual tune was the College Hornpipe. Both titles are still used for the same tune, even though there is a completely separate tune known as the College Hornpipe. (14)

Four Hand Reel / Sheringham Breakdown

This is another very popular tune in East Anglia, particularly in its Sheringham Breakdown form, to accompany step dancing. The Four Hand Reel is basically a simplified version of the first two parts of the Londonderry Hornpipe. Yet another tune which probably goes back into the eighteenth century, it is one which has several names: the Hingham dulcimer player Billy Cooper called it the English Breakdown and Cromer melodeon player Bob Davies the Gates of Edinburgh. The Sheringham Breakdown version is highly simplified, almost exclusively played by melodeon players to accompany step dancing, the usual practice being just the A music of the tune being repeated as necessary, really just laying down a rhythm in much the same way as Albert Hewitt’s Southrepps Hornpipe. (15) In various versions the tune has enduring popularity across the country.

Bristol Hornpipe

A very commonplace tune indeed, with several examples of recordings of East Anglian musicians playing it. Yet another tune with various names, for example Billy Cooper called it Yarmouth Hornpipe even though he played the usual tune of that name as well. It has a great many names, some of which are the Blacksmith’s Hornpipe, The Clover Blossom and Slayley Bridge Hornpipe. The tune was published in Kerr’s ‘Merry Melodies, Volume 1’ in c1880 and again in 1898 by William Honeyman in his ‘Strathspey, Reel and Hornpipe Tutor’ in the key of A. Phil Heath-Coleman has described it as “probably the most popular hornpipe amongst traditional musicians in England until the end of the twentieth century.” (16) A cylinder recording was made of Hereford gypsy John Lock(e) playing it in about 1905, by Ella Leather. A widespread tune overall, it was also known as Smith’s Hornpipe in Wales.

Yarmouth Breakdown

A marginal entry perhaps, as this tune was not of wide currency in the area, but certainly carried a local name. Melodeon player Percy Brown from the Aylsham area was the only musician to have been recorded playing it, often as part of a medley with Harvest Home or Yarmouth Hornpipe. It is sometimes known as Percy Brown’s Step Dance as a consequence; used to accompany such dancing in north Norfolk, particularly the Davies family and others in Cromer. Reg Hall commented of it: “the tune is a lovely example of the un-dotted English hornpipe, very much in vogue in East Anglia throughout most of the twentieth century and probably dating from the nineteenth.” (17) Further afield, it is related to Lemmy Brazil’s Tap Dance. (18)

Blakeney Hornpipe

Another marginal entry but yet again having a local name, this tune was not widespread amongst East Anglian traditional musicians, at least as far as recordings give us evidence. The only version known is by Herbert Smith, fiddler of Blakeney, Norfolk. It is also known as the Lass on the Strand and the Belfast Hornpipe, the latter published in O’Neill’s: ‘Music of Ireland’ (1907). (19) A version known simply as the Breakdown was recorded from Harry Lee, a gypsy settled in Kent, by Ken Stubbs and Paul Carter, in 1962. (20) This had a very different B music though.

Fisher’s Hornpipe

This well-known tune was named for the aforementioned dancer Arnold Fishar and was known therefore as Fishar’s Hornpipe, but later more commonly as Fisher’s Hornpipe and sometimes as Fisherman’s Hornpipe. It is another tune with very common currency in the United States, seeming to have travelled widely. (21) The tune was also known as the Egg Hornpipe as Fishar replicated Durang’s trick of dancing blindfolded on eggs – the ‘Egg Dance’ – and this tune was used; under this title it was noted by John Clare, the Northamptonshire poet, as one of the tunes he collected in the 1820s (22). Walter Bulwer of Shipdham was also recorded playing the tune as part of a medley of hornpipes under this title in 1959. (23) The tune had many other names – too many to mention – including O’Dwyer’s Hornpipe and the bizarre Wig on the Green. It is another tune published in McGlashen’s ‘A Collection of Scots Measures’ in 1781, again untitled and again with the note that it was ‘danced by Aldridge’.

Soldier’s Joy

This is another tune with an old pedigree and wide currency indeed. It has been described as one of the most frequently played tunes in the English-speaking world; in fact its popularity spread further than that: it was also common in Scandinavia; for example the Danish Hornfiffen is a variant. It is thought that the tune dates back to the early eighteen century, but its exact provenance is uncertain. It was first published in 1756 in the third volume of Rutherford’s ‘Compleat Collection of two hundred of the most Celebrated Country Dances, Both Old and New.’ (24) The tune has carried many different sets of words, for example Robert Burns used it for the first song of the cantata ‘The Jolly Beggars’, writing dark lyrics about a dismembered, homeless veteran sarcastically recounting his delight with battle. (25) Also, Thomas Hardy mentions it in ‘Far from the Madding crowd’, commenting that it had much merit as a tune for dancing to. In this instance he seems to refer to communal country dancing rather than step dancing.

The tune had several other names, including the King’s Head and Payday in the Army. This latter has given rise, unsurprisingly, to the suggestion that the meaning is just that. Others have suggested that it is a reference to the rum ration given to troops in the British Army or to a concoction containing morphine, of which more below. (26)

Soldier’s Joy has always been very popular in the United States; in fact it has been described there as “an American classic”, even though there is nothing to suggest that it is American in origin. It has been recorded from a great many musicians, described by the Library of Congress as “one of the oldest and most widely distributed tunes.” (27) The American suggestion for the name’s meaning dates back to the American Civil War and is a rather dark reference to a concoction of whisky, beer and morphine given to soldiers during surgical operations, particularly amputations. In this context, there were several verses put to the tune, such as:

 â€œGimme some of that Soldier’s joy, you know what I mean, I don’t want to hurt no more, my leg is turnin’ green.”   (28)

The tune was certainly popular amongst East Anglian musicians, once again mainly used to accompany step dancing. Along with Yarmouth Hornpipe it was probably the tune most played at communal gatherings where such music was performed.            

Conclusion

The aforementioned hornpipes are a selection of tunes which were played in East Anglia regularly, most commonly for step dancing. As can be seen, their provenance is old and many travelled widely and extensively. There is a particular connection between Britain and Ireland on the one hand – the ‘Old World’ – and the United States and Canada on the other – the ‘New World’. The tunes travelled across the Atlantic with emigrants and became staples of the rural musicians for social occasions in both areas. A good indication of the influence of the Old World on the New is the prevalence of British styles and repertoire in Nova Scotia, in particular that of Scotland, where the influence is marked indeed. Likewise, many older fiddlers from the United States sounded very much like their counterparts in Britain and Ireland in many respects, particularly in the central and western states, although it was also the case in the east, in Appalachia. Hornpipes were a large part of this cross-fertilisation and influence, as we have seen.

A great many recordings have been made of players from East Anglia performing these tunes and other similar ones (see Appendix). Similarly, the tunes were noted down in a wide variety of places. This includes local examples, such as the manuscript book (1890) of fiddler George Watson who was living at Swanton Abbott at the time. Almost certainly none of the tunes are East Anglian in origin, but they have established themselves thoroughly and deeply in the repertoires of local country musicians over a period of decades and in that context have become local tunes completely and an interesting part of our traditional musical heritage.

Appendix One: Recordings of East Anglian musicians playing these hornpipes

The following is a list of recordings, hopefully complete, of musicians in Norfolk, Suffolk and, in one case, Essex, playing these tunes. I have given places and dates of recordings. Further information and the performances themselves can be found on releases by Topic, Veteran, Musical Traditions and Rounder, as well as on now-deleted Folktrax and, in the case of Harry Cox, private, unreleased recordings. Inevitably some performances will have slipped through the net, but there are certainly plenty of examples for the interested listener.

Yarmouth Hornpipe / Pigeon on the Gate

As Yarmouth Hornpipe:

Harry Cox (fiddle); Catfield, 1968 (plus other versions, sometimes snippets, elsewhere).
Billy Cooper (dulcimer); Hingham, 1959
Billy Bennington (dulcimer); Barford, 1981
Fred Whiting (fiddle); Kenton, 1978
George Craske (melodeon); Sustead, 1977
Percy Brown (melodeon); Aylsham, 1979
NB: Fred Pearce (melodeon) plays a totally different tune under this title; Blaxhall, 1968

As Pigeon on the Gate:

Sonny Barber (melodeon); Briningham, 1981
Cyril Barber (melodeon); Felsham, 1983
Fred List (melodeon); Framlingham, 1978
Peter Plant (melodeon); Framlingham, 1978
Oscar Woods (melodeon); Benhall, 1968
Dolly Curtis (melodeon); Dennington, 1983
Fred Whiting (fiddle); Kenton, 1978

Sailor’s Hornpipe

Walter Bulwer (fiddle); Shipdham, 1959 (as part of a medley with Fisher’s Hornpipe and Shipdham Hornpipe).
Charlie Buller (melodeon); Erpingham, 1987
John Woodrow (melodeon); Ingham, 1970

Four Hand Reel / Sheringham Breakdown

As Four Hand Reel:

Herbert Smith (fiddle); Blakeney, 1952
Walter Bulwer, Billy Cooper, Daisy Bulwer, Mervyn Plunkett and Reg Hall (various); Shipdham, 1962 (with Soldier’s Joy)
Billy Cooper (dulcimer); Hingham, 1961 (a version, as English Breakdown)
Bob Davies (melodeon); Cromer, 1975 (a version, as Gates of Edinburgh)
Harry de Caux (melodeon); Baniston, Dunmow, 1990

As Sheringham Breakdown:

Billy Bennington (dulcimer); Barford, 1981(somewhat different from the melodeon performances, with two parts)
Percy Brown (melodeon); Aylsham, 1959 (and sometimes elsewhere as part of a medley)
George Craske (melodeon); Sustead, 1977
Walter Newstead (melodeon); Binham, 2004
Albert Hewitt (melodeon); Southrepps, c1952

Bristol Hornpipe

Harry Cox (fiddle); Catfield, 1968 (‘A’ part only, but also a wayward fuller version recorded)
George Craske (melodeon); Sustead, 1977 (‘A’ part only)
Bob Davies (melodeon); Cromer, 1975
Percy Brown (melodeon); Aylsham, 1975
Billy Cooper (dulcimer); Shipdham, 1962 (called Yarmouth Hornpipe; part of a medley)
Oscar Woods (melodeon); Benhall, 1978
Cecil Pearl (melodeon); Claydon, 1983 (as Dick Iris’ Hornpipe)

Blakeney Hornpipe

Herbert Smith (fiddle); Blakeney, 1952

Yarmouth Breakdown

Percy Brown (melodeon); Aylsham, 1975 (and as part of medleys elsewhere)

Fisher’s Hornpipe

Walter Bulwer (fiddle); Shipdham, 1959 (as The Egg Hornpipe; part of a medley with Shipdham Hornpipe and Sailor’s Hornpipe)

Soldier’s Joy

Billy Cooper (dulcimer); Hingham, 1961
Walter Bulwer, Daisy Bulwer, Billy Cooper, Mervyn Plunkett and Reg hall (various); Shipdham, 1962 (a medley with Four Hand Reel) 
Harry Cox (fiddle); Catfield, 1968
Tommy Sparkes (dulcimer); Rattlesden, 1963
Percy Brown (melodeon); Aylsham, 1959 (as part of a medley)
Fred List (melodeon); Framlingham, 1974

Appendix Two: Where to find the recordings

The following is a list of CD releases which collectively contain all of the performances mentioned above:

English Country Music   Topic TSCD607
Rig-a-Jig-Jig: Dance Music of the South of England (Voice of the People Vol. 9)   Topic TSCD659
The Pigeon on the Gate: Melodeon Players from East Anglia   Veteran VTDC11CD
‘I thought I was the Only One!’: Dulcimer Playing in East Anglia Veteran VTDC12CD
Billy Bennington: The Barford Angel   Veteran VT152CD
Heel and Toe   Veteran VT150CD
Who Owns the Game?   Veteran VT130CD
Fred Whiting: Old Time Hornpipes, Polkas and Jigs   Musical Traditions MTCD350
The Old Out and Homer: Norfolk Melodeon Players Musical Traditions MTCD204
Father Went to Yarmouth: Traditional Songs and Dance Tunes from Norfolk    Helions Bumpstead Gramophone Company – no number
Harry Cox: What Will Become of England?   Rounder 1166-1-1839-2
Norfolk Village Songs and Dances  Folktrax Ftx328 – no longer available

Notes

1. George S Emmerson: ‘The Hornpipe’ – EFDSS Folk Music Journal, 1970: Vol.2 No.1.
2. Emmerson, as above.
3. Emmerson, as above.
4. ‘G.W’ and Thomas Ratcliffe – Notes and Queries (quoted in Emmerson).
5. Recent and current examples are Pam and Cis Buckley, Doreen West and Fiona Davies. An older example is Christina Hewitt of Southrepps.
6. Recent and current examples are Lenny Whiting, Percy West, Richard Davies and Ben Davies. Older examples are too numerous to mention but include various members of the Davies, West and Whiting families, Frank Balls and Dick Hewitt. Visual examples can be found as follows: Cromer fishermen and Frank Balls: www.youtube.com/watch?v=zM9rE4Ko92k
   Richard and Fiona Davies: ‘Stepping out with Richard, Fiona and Rig-a-Jig’ (sic) www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2wLjtg7lVc
7. Emmerson, as above; unnamed source. I have found no reference elsewhere to ‘crowdy’ being used to describe a fiddler.
8. Lunenburg Co., Nova Scotia; Helen Creighton – ‘Folklore in Lunenburg Co., N.S.’ National Museum of Canada Bulletin 117, p.73, 1950. For a very good example of Nova Scotia step dancing see master fiddler Jean Carignan doing so: The Talents of Jean Carignan www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPKkAHwvRv8
9. Of the Yarmouth Hornpipe Phil Heath-Coleman has written that it is included in a Northumberland manuscript by Lionel Winship – a small pipes book – under this name. Also, that the notes mention that it is also known as London Hornpipe and Sailor’s Hornpipe – correspondence, 11/02/21.
10. www.tunearch.org
11. Compiled from information from www.wikipedia.org and www.circopedia.org
12. Alan Jabbour: www.loc.gov/item/afcreed000009  American players of the tune include Luther Strong of Kentucky and Henry Reed of Virginia, fiddlers, both recorded for the Library of Congress.
13. www.tunearch.org and www.wikipedia.org
14. Emmerson, as above. George Green’s College Hornpipe, a different tune, was recorded in Little Downham, Cambs. By Sam Steele in the 1950s. It is a version of Kerry Mills’ Barndance.
15. Phil Heath-Coleman: Name That Tune: Waifs and Strays of English Melody – Musical Traditions article MT251, 2010. Albert Hewitt can be heard on Norfolk Village Songs and Dances – Folktrax Ftx328.
16. Phil Heath-Coleman, as above; www.glostrad.com  and www.tunearch.org
17. Rig-a-Jig-Jig: Dance Music of the South of England – Voice of the People, Vol. 9  Topic TSCD659.
18. Correspondence with Phil Heath-Coleman, 11/02/21.
19. www.irishtune.info
20. Boshamengro: English Gypsy Musicians  Musical Traditions MTCD373.
21. Emmerson, as above, and www.tunearch.org Examples of American players of this tune are Edden Hammons of West Virginia, Patrick Bonner of Michigan and Emmett Lundy of Virginia.
22. George Deacon: John Clare and the Folk Tradition – Sinclair Browne Ltd., 1983.
23. As 17, above.
24. www.avettnews.com
25. www.wikipedia.org
26. www.avettnews.com
27. Alan Jabbour: www.loc.gov. Examples of American players are Mrs Ben Scott with Myrtle B Wilkinson, John Stone, Pat Ford and John Selleck – all California – Edden Hammons, West Virginia, and Leizime Brusoe, Wisconsin (the latter calling the tune French Four) Just a handful of examples: the tune was very popular in the United States and remains so today.
28. www.wikipedia.org It is very difficult to fit these words to the tune but that is what is written in the article.

For further information about step dancing and the tunes played for it, see the following articles at Musical Traditions by Chris Holderness:

Sheringham Breakdown: Traditional Music Making in this North Norfolk Town (MT298)  2015.
The Dancing Davies: Step Dancing fishermen of Cromer (MT291)  2014.
Hindringham: Traditional Music and Dancing in this North Norfolk Village (MT285)  2013.
Walter Jeary: North Norfolk Dulcimer Player, Singer and Step Dancer (MT269)  2012.
Dick Hewitt: A True Norfolk Man (MT245)  2010.
Southrepps: Singing and Step Dancing in a North Norfolk Village (MT221)  2009.
Percy Brown: Aylsham Melodeon Player (MT211)  2007.
Wells-next-the-Sea: Traditional Music Making in a Norfolk Coastal Town (MT196)  2006.

Chris Holderness March 2021
For the East Anglian Traditional Music Trust

The writing of this article created the idea for holding a talk with music and dance in Great Yarmouth in October 2021. The slow and cautious return to life after 18 months of Covid-19 resulted in this planned event being cancelled, but thanks to a Covid Restart Fund from Suffolk County Council (distributed by Mid Suffolk District Council), we were able to hire a camera and use the venue booked for the event (the Autumn Years Clubhouse, Great Yarmouth) to create a digital version of the talk with music and dance.

You can see this recorded event HERE.