an election song from the 1830s

Subject: an election song from the 1830s
From: Jack Campin
Date: 02 May 07 - 06:09 AM

This was flyposted in Edinburgh in one of the elections succeeding the
Reform Bill of 1832. "Mr Blair" was an Independent candidate (which as
today meant a thinly disguised Tory). The only copy I have located is
in a large-print handbill from the ephemera collection of the scientific
instrument maker Alexander Adie. Parts of it were torn away, perhaps
because Adie couldn't shift the glue. The bits in square brackets are
my reconstruction.

   Could Mr Blair
   His a-se prepare
   To grunt out aye or no
   He firmly bent
   To Parliament
   Without a head might go.

   The Tories proud
   With praises loud
   On bidding him adieu
   [C]ould kiss so droll
   [A] speaking-hole
   [And] deil a ane would [spe]w.

It was a couple of years before I identified the tune for it. It's a
parody of a hymn from the _Scottish Paraphrases_ of 1781:

   Ho! ye that thirst approach the spring,
   Where living waters flow;
   Free to that sacred fountain all
   Without a price may go.

Those words were given a specific melody in a religious spinoff of R.W.
Hume's broadside music serial _The Lyre_, called _The Sacred Lyre_, a
tune called "St Gregory" attributed to Dr Wainwright. It's similar to
"Crimond", the tune most often used for Psalm 23, which also fits.

X:1
T:St Gregory (melody)
Z:Jack Campin: "Embro, Embro", transcription (c) 2001
F:17riot/abc/StGreg1.abc
C:Dr Wainwright
M:3/2
L:1/2
Q:3/2=50
K:Bb
B|d2 (c/d/)| e2 d|(cB)       A    | B2 ||d|(cf) A|(BA)    G|G2||
F|B2 _A    |(GA) B|(c/d/e/d/) (c/B/)|(BA)||c|(f>e) d|(G/c/B) A|B2|]

The tune would probably have been better known at the time in four-part
harmony. Here is one version for the harmony singers out there (it's
old-fashioned by the standards of the time, with the tune in the tenor):

X:1
T:St Gregory (4-part setting)
Z:Jack Campin: "Embro, Embro", transcription (c) 2001
F:17riot/abc/StGreg4.abc
C:Dr Wainwright
S:NLS Cwn.460
N:A Collection of Psalm and Hymn Tunes in Four Parts Sung in South Leith Church
N:David Black, Teacher of Music, 138 Kirkgate, Leith
N:C.M.
V:1
V:2 transpose -12
V:3 transpose -12
V:4 bass
M:3/2
L:1/4
Q:3/2=50
K:Bb
[V:1] d2 |B4       F2 | B4    B2 |(G2F2) F2 | F4   ||B2 | c4    c2 |(d2 c2) B2 |A4 ||
[V:2] f2 |f4       f2 | g4    f2 |(e2d2) c2 | d4   ||f2 | f4    f2 | f4    =e2 |f4 ||
[V:3] B2 |d4       c2 | e4    d2 |(c2B2) A2 | B4   ||d2 |(c2f2) A2 |(B2 A2) G2 |F4 ||
[V:4] B,2| B,4    A,2| G,4   B,2|(E,2F,2)F,2| B,,4 ||B,2| A,4   F,2 |(B,,2C,2)C,2|F,4 ||
%
[V:1] A2 |B4       B2 |(B2 c2)B2 | G4    e2 |(d2c2)||A2 |(B3 c) d2 |(e2 d2) c2 |B4 |]
[V:2] c2 |f4       f2 |(g2 f2)f2 |(efg2) g2 | f4   ||f2 | f4    f2 |(g2 f2) e2 |d4 |]
[V:3] F2 |B4      _A2 |(G2=A2)B2 |(cded) (cB)|(B2A2)||c2 |(f3 e) d2 |(G2 B2) A2 |B4 |]
[V:4] F,2|(B,,2C,2)D,2| E,4   D,2| C,4    C,2| F,4 ||G,2|(D,3C,)B,,2|(E,2 F,2)F,2|B,,4|]

Or you might try a different tune for the same text, which was probably
fashionable at the time, being an adaptation of a tune of Beethoven's by
the star Scottish church musician of the period:

X:1
T:Ho! ye that thirst, approach the spring
Z:Jack Campin: "Embro, Embro", transcription (c) 2001
F:17riot/abc/Thirst.abc
C:Beethoven
S:R.A.Smith: The Edinburgh Sacred Harmony NLS Nha.Mus.30 (Dec 1829)
M:3/4
L:1/8
Q:1/4=120
V:1               % Treble
V:2 transpose -12 % Counter Tenor
V:3 transpose -12 % Tenor
V:4 bass          % Bass
K:A
[V:1] e>d|c4 c2 |(B3A)B2 | A4    B2 |c4 || c2 | d4   e2 |(f2d2)B2 |(A2G2)||
[V:2] e2 |e4 e2 | d4 d2 |(c2 e2)g2 |a4 || a2 | a4   a2 |(a2f2)f2 | e4   ||
[V:3] c>B|A4 A2 | G4 G2 | A4    e2 |e4 || e2 |(f2d2)A2 | A4   d2 |(c2B2)||
[V:4] E,2|A,,4A,,2| A,,4A,,2| A,,2C,2E,2|A,4||=G,2| F,4 C,2| D,4 D,2| E,4 ||
%
[V:1] B2 | B4    B2 |(B2c2)c2 |(c2 d2) e2|f4||f2 |(f2e2)dc |(c2BA) Be |A4 |]
[V:2] g2 | (f2g2) g2 |(g2a2)a2 | a4    a2|a4||g2 | a4   f2 |(f2d2) d2 |c4 |]
[V:3] e2 |(^d2e2)=d2 |(d2c2)e2 | e4    e2|d4||B2 | A4   A2 |(d2F2) G2 |A4 |]
[V:4] E,2| E,4   E,2| A,4 A,2|(A,2B,2)C2|D4||D,2| C,4 F,2| D,4   E,2|A,,4|]

Or you could just belt it out to _Auld Lang Syne_, which was my first
guess.

Subject: RE: an election song from the 1830s
From: GUEST,Terry McDonald
Date: 02 May 07 - 06:31 AM

And he didn't get in - the two Liberal candidates were elected with 4035 and 3850 votes, whilst Mr Blair only got 1519. He never tried again.