Lyr Req/Add: Maid in the Calico Dress^^^

Subject: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 02 Apr 00 - 04:57 PM

It's a sure sign I'm up and running with a new computer as here I am on the beg for lyrics again...

So can anyone help with this one.. I think the song is also refered to as The Maidens of Burnley, judging by a play list on the John Peel show last June

Many Thanks
Mick

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 03 Apr 00 - 12:21 PM

moving this up top for ya....

I've only found cd's it's been recorded on thus far....

Mary

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 03 Apr 00 - 05:02 PM

So have I...

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 03 Apr 00 - 05:59 PM

... and half of them by Danny Doyle. I tried though.

Jon

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 04 Apr 00 - 04:54 PM

Thanks Jon...

Subject: Lyr Add: GIRL WITH A CALICO DRESS (J. H. Tenney)^^
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 04 Apr 00 - 09:51 PM

Here's a snippet that Mick sent me of the chorus (we think) in case it rings a bell with anyone....

"The ladies of Dublin in satin or silk,
are pretty I truly confess,
ah but give me the maid who is neatly arrayed
in a beautiful calico dress."

It is interesting to know that I found a similar song at the Library of Congress: Music for a Nation site (which I have already sent ya, Mick):

GIRL WITH A CALICO DRESS
(J. H. Tenney)
From "Silver Carols"
1876

A fig for your upperten(?) girls,
With their velvets, and satins, and laces,
Their diamonds, and rubies, and pearls,
And their milliner figure and faces;
They may shine at a party or ball,
Emblaroned with half they possess,
But give me, in place of them all,
The girl with a calico dress.

The girl with a calico dress
The girl with a calico dress
Ere long you shall see
Whose wife she shall be
The girl with the calico dress.

She's plump as a partridge, and fair
As the rose in the earliest blooming;
Her teeth will with iv'ry compare,
And her breath with the clover's perfume;
Her step is as free and as light
As the fawn when the hunters hard press;
And her eye is as soft as the light,
The girl with a calico dress.

She's cheerful, warm-hearted, and true:
Is kind to her father and mother;
Her hand ever ready to do
For sweet little sister and brother;
If you want a companion for life,
To comfort, enliven and bless,
She'll make the right sort of a wife
The girl with a calico dress

-----------------
I'll keep looking....

Mary

---

Click to play

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: John in Brisbane
Date: 05 Apr 00 - 03:10 AM

Mick,Mary & Jon, I presume that Mary's lyrics have a tune and are of American origin. I believe that I have seen a song title reference to calico in the last 6 months or so but would need to back track. Do you have any further clues, especially country of origin? Regards, John

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 05 Apr 00 - 05:01 AM

Oct 99 re "Calico Printer's Clerk"...good recollection John!

The song I quoted is of American Origin (published in Toledo, Ohio if I remember) and the sheet music is at the site I mentioned above...though no real need to post the link.

The origin of the song Mick was not mentioned...per our email discussions he is trying to help a fellow musician locate the words...

Mary

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 05 Apr 00 - 07:53 PM

As for Origins.. well what do you expect me to say... probably English.. hence the "alternate" title "The Maidens of Burnley", but I suspect it was adopted on the other side of the Irish Sea and hence appears on quite a few "Irish" records/tapes/cds..
I'm surprised it doesn't appear in any of the countless music/song books I have... but that's life for you.
Mick

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 06 Apr 00 - 07:16 PM

My posts to other newsgroups have, thus far, turned up no responses, Mick....

Mary

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Stewie
Date: 06 Apr 00 - 07:46 PM

I have, or had, a song somewhere with the verse that Mary gave above: 'Give me a maid who is neatly arrayed' etc. However, I can't remember who sang it. The recording would have been from the 60s or 70s. I think it was an English singer that I had - the verse definitely had 'Burnley' rather than 'Dublin', but I am not sure whether 'Maidens of Burnley' was the title; that title doesn't ring a bell like the verse does. I will keep looking.

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 06 Apr 00 - 09:47 PM

Please keep looking
Mick

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Timbobbin
Date: 07 Apr 00 - 09:24 AM

This was requested by someone a few months back, and I posted the lyrics then. They should be in a thread titled haunted by two songs, unfortunately I can't do the blue clicky thing.

If anyone has chords for this song please post them.

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: MMario
Date: 07 Apr 00 - 09:31 AM

that would be haunted by two songs

url=http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=15496&messages=7#141339

it is mentioned in that thread that this song is also performed as "maids in dublin'

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 07 Apr 00 - 12:17 PM

Well done Timbobbin and MMario!

I just found out that it is a Lancashire poem.....

Mary

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Stewie
Date: 07 Apr 00 - 09:21 PM

Thanks also to Timbobbin and MMario, I have located my recording. It is titled 'The Maid in the Calico Dress' in this instance and that is why I did not recall the 'Maidens of Burnley' title. 'The Maid in the Calico Dress' is the first track on the Oldham Tinkers 'Sit Thee Down' Topic 12TS323. Unfortunately, it does not appear on the recent 'Best Of' CD of the Oldham Tinkers. I will have a listen later and see if the lyrics differ from those posted in the 'haunted' thread and let you know.

Cheers, Stewie.

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Stewie
Date: 07 Apr 00 - 09:35 PM

I meant to mention that there is a note stating that it is by a Burnley poet by the name of Henry Nutter (one hopes that this was a pseudonym) and set to music by Gerry Kearns of the Oldham Tinker. It goes on to say: 'On the road between Rochdale and Burnley is a rise called Rushy Hill. Nearby is Healey Dell, a beauty spot and indeed a nature reserve. In these beautiful natural surroundings Henry Nutter places his ideal girl'.

--Stewie.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE MAID IN THE CALICO DRESS^^
From: Stewie
Date: 08 Apr 00 - 02:55 AM

I listened to the song and the lyrics are almost identical to those posted in the 'haunt' thread. I have put them in a form that would be more suitable for harvesting for the DT. I hope they will be - fair play to Mr Nutter for such a delightful song. I have followed the line structure as sung by the Oldham Tinkers:

THE MAID IN THE CALICO DRESS
(H. Nutter/G. Kearns)

In flowery July upon Healey's proud height
As the plovers come from the moor end
As southward the cuckoo is taking his flight
And the corncrakes are deep in the grass
A swallow and swift were aloft in the air
And the starling was feeding her young
The milkmaid was tending her cattle with care
And the haymakers cheerfully sung

Chorus:
The maidens of Burnley in satin or silk
Are pretty I freely confess
But give me the maid who is neatly arrayed
In a beautiful calico dress

You may praise the Italian ladies in vain
And the maidens of France or Peru
Or worship the languishing beauties of Spain
And the blushing caucasians too
But she whom I love has an eye like a sloe
And her cheeks are like roses in June
So graceful each step as she trips like a doe
And her ruby red lips are in tune

Repeat chorus

Should fortune or friendship compel me to roam
Or a thirst after changes constrain
I'd still call the banks of old Healey my home
And I'd sing of its beauties again
Sweet gardens of roses or our cultured bowers
May delight a poor soul to possess
But give me old Healey bedecked with wild flowers
And the maid in the calico dress

Repeat chorus

Words by Henry Nutter and tune by Gerry Kearns.

Source: The Oldham Tinkers 'Sit Thee Down' Topic LP 12TS323. Published by Topic January 1977.

--Stewie.

---

Click to play

Subject: RE: lry reqd:- Maid in the Calico Dress
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 08 Apr 00 - 06:05 PM

Many thanks to all
Mick

Subject: RE: Req/ADD:- Maid in the Calico Dress^^^
From: Joe Offer
Date: 02 Jan 07 - 06:00 PM

Lin from Kansas sent in a tune. Thanks, Lin.

---

Click to play

Subject: Lyr Add: THE GIRL IN THE CALICO DRESS (H Nutter)
From: Joan from Wigan
Date: 05 Jun 09 - 04:46 PM

The song apparently originally appeared in the Burnley Gazette as "The Girl In The Calico Dress" and was intended to be sung to the tune of "Paddle Your Own Canoe". There is another verse which the Oldham Tinkers don't sing (verse 3). Watch out also for the "heard" words above which differ from the original printed words. See http://www.archive.org/stream/localrhymes00nutt/localrhymes00nutt_djvu.txt

THE GIRL IN THE CALICO DRESS

In flowery July upon Healey's proud height,
As the plover sprung from the morass,
And southward the cuckoo was taking his flight,
And the corncrake was deep in the grass ;
The swallow and swift were aloft in the air,
And the starling was feeding her young ;
The milkmaid was tending her cattle with care,
And the haymakers cheerfully sung :

" The maidens of Burnley in satin or silk,
Are pretty, I freely confess ;
But give me the maid who is neatly arrayed
In a beautiful calico dress."

They may praise the Italian ladies, in vain,
Or the maidens of France or Peru,
Or worship the languishing beauties of Spain,
And the blushing Circassians, too.
But she whom I love has an eye like the sloe,
And her cheeks are like roses in June,
So graceful each step as she trips like the doe,
And her sweet ruby lips are in tune.

The maidens of Burnley &c

Her dress (though of print) was embroidered with care,
And the flowers on her bosom were sweet ;
The zephyrs waved gently her dark curly hair,
And the buttercups bloomed at her feet.
As dew from the daisies she carelessly dashed,
The young men were all seized with surprise ;
How sweetly she smiled, and what mischief she flashed
From the glance of her dark rolling eyes.

The maidens of Burnley &c

Should fortune or friendship impel me to roam,
Or a thirst after changes constrain,
I'd still call the banks of Old Healey my home,
And I'd sing of its beauties again.
Sweet gardens of roses, or art-cultured bowers
May delight a poor soul to possess ;
But give me old Healey, bedecked with wild flowers
And the girl in the calico dress.

The maidens of Burnley &c

Subject: RE: Req/ADD:- Maid in the Calico Dress^^^
From: Ross Campbell
Date: 05 Jun 09 - 06:32 PM

Nice to have another verse, Joan.

I was looking for this song a while back and found this site

http://oneguyfrombarlick.co.uk/forum_topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3201&FORUM_ID=34&CAT_ID=

Lots more poems and further info on Henry Nutter (and a picture!) - indeed not a pseudonym, he appears to have been descended from Alice Nutter, one of the Pendle Witches, hanged at Lancaster in 1612 (see here - http://www.pendlewitches.co.uk/).

Ross

ps for Joe Offer -

All the "Click to Play" links above lead to the same file "GirlCalicoDress" which appears to be the tune for the American song listed above. It is not the tune that Gerry Kearns set to Henry Nutter's words. I can't find the Oldham Tinkers' "Sit Thee Down" LP (it was re-issued as a CD a few years back) and I'm not sure the way I have it in my head is 100% the way they do it. If I find it I'll try to pass it on.

Subject: RE: Req/ADD:- Maid in the Calico Dress^^^
From: Joe Offer
Date: 06 Jun 09 - 05:24 PM

Thanks a lot, Ross. I wondered about those links. I'm probably the one who posted them, but I can't remember. I meant to track down the truth the other day, but I got waylaid and won't have time to do mre research for a week. If spmebody can find the right tune and send me a MIDI, I'll be glad to post it.
-Joe Offer-
[e-mail]

Subject: RE: Req/ADD:- Maid in the Calico Dress^^^
From: GUEST,john gilman
Date: 08 Jun 09 - 03:54 PM

Hi, just a quick one i`ve only just found this site again after years of looking. my Uncle (malcom disley) had a lovely thread posted here which i have now bookmarked. Over the years i have been hankering to get back into music and finally took the plunge and am now playing drums with a folk/indie rock band called small town. i am only sad that malc was`nt around to see me back behing the drums after 20 years or so. i rarely see any of malcs old friends and it`s sad that don`t hear his name mentioned more often. sadly both my nan and grandad passed away in recent years. i`m hoping next year if paople are willing to maybe put on a charity gig somewhere local with some of the folk groups and my band hopefully, somewhere around malcs birthday would be nice. could you email me and maybe ask Caz to email me too, my email address is [e-mail] would be lovely to hear from you, we had a really lovely chat at the wake and at the gathering the year after.
take care

john x

Subject: Lyr Add: MY GIRL WITH A CALICO DRESS (R Josselyn)
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 29 Jun 09 - 01:04 AM

From The Poets and Poetry of Texas by Samuel Houston Dixon (Austin, Tex., S.H. Dixon & Co., 1885):


MY GIRL WITH A CALICO DRESS.
Robert Josselyn

A fig for your upper-ten girls,
With their velvets, and satin, and laces,
Their diamonds, and rubies, and pearls,
And millinery figures and faces;
They may shine at a party or ball,
Emblazoned with half they possess,
But give me, instead of them all,
My girl with the calico dress.

She's as plump as a partridge, and fair
As a rose in its earliest bloom;
Her teeth will with ivory compare,
And her breath with the clover perfume;
Her step is as free and as light
As the fawn's, when the hunter hard press;
And her eye is as soft and as bright—
My girl with the calico dress.

Your dandies and foplings may jeer
At her modest and simple attire;
But the charms she permits to appear
Would set a whole iceberg on fire:
She can dance, but she never allows
The hugging, the squeeze and caress,
She is saving all these for her spouse—
My girl with the calico dress.

She is cheerful, warm-hearted, and true,
And kind to her father and mother:
She studies how much she can do
For her sweet little sister and brother.
If you want a companion for life,
To comfort, enliven, and bless,
She is just the right sort for a wife—
My girl with a calico dress.

*
ROBERT JOSSELYN was born in Massachusetts, 1810, educated in Vermont, and admitted to the bar at Winchester, Virginia, 1831. He then immigrated to Mississippi, where he practiced law, served in the Legislature, was District Attorney, and for a while engaged in journalism. He entered the Mexican War as private in First Mississippi Rifles, with Col. Jefferson Davis, but was appointed Captain and Commissary by President Polk. At the expiration of term of service he resigned; was State Commissioner of Mississippi 1850 to 1858; and in Treasury Department, Washington, 1860, but resigned when Mississippi seceded. President Davis appointed him his private secretary at Montgomery, but he resigned after one year's service, on account of ill health, and was made Secretary of Arizona Territory, as organized under the Confederacy. Since the war he has resided in Texas, at Austin. His published works are The Faded Flower and Other Poems, Boston, 1848; A Satire on the Times, St. Louis, 1875; and The Coquette, a drama in five acts, Austin, 1878. He is author of many fugitive poems, two of which—The Girl with a Calico Dress and The Young Widow—have kept their places in the newspapers for more than twenty-five years, though rarely credited to the author.

For some years Mr. Josselyn was connected with the Democratic Statesman, Austin. In 1878 he started a daily paper at Austin, but it fell through after a short life. His writings are generally upon questions of the day, and they are characterized by practical good sense; a compliment rarely to be paid to a man of so varied attainments. January, 1883, when Hon. John Ireland was installed Governor of Texas, Mr. Josselyn accepted a clerkship in the executive office, where he remained until his death, which occurred of pneumonia in 1884. He lived a bachelor—having never been married.

Mr. Josselyn had many admirers who delighted to call him the "Goldsmith of Texas."

Subject: Lyr Add: CALICO DRESS (Steve Cormier)
From: Amos
Date: 13 Jul 12 - 02:50 PM

Steve Cormier, one of the finest of modern cowboy balladeers and erudite to boot, has a song which might be added to this thread for differentiation.


I get into town whenever I can,
First thing I do,
Head for the barbershop,
Gety a shave and a tub.
ANd then down to the Stone Wall,
For a steak and a beer.
Then, a night of dancing,
Hold someone near.
It was there I met her,
In that calico dress,
She could dance the schottische,
Ya should have seen her waltz.

CHO: Sell my horse and saddle,
And cow-driving I'll resign
For just one more look
At that calico dress. I'll sell my horse and saddle,
Cow-driving I'll resign
For just one more look
At that calico dress.

She said her name was Mary,
She ranched west of town.
She only got in
When the need arose.
ANd she said that she liked it out there,
The cholla and the sand,
Said it gave her peace of mind,
Bein' alone.

CHO.

(Instrumental)

We danced the whole night
Mary and me.
Fancy-steppin' fools,
The definition of art.
I can still hear the caller shout,
And hear the fiddler ring.
At first light she rode,
Left with my heart.

CHO.

And I still miss her.
I think about her a lot.
Been twenty-seven years
Since we had that dance.
And I wonder if she went modern
An' got electric lights.
Or if she still reads the Bible
By kerosene at night.

CHO.

Oh, just one more look
At that calico dress.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Maid in the Calico Dress^^^
From: Amos
Date: 13 Jul 12 - 02:59 PM

Here's Steve Cormier spinning a yarn and doing "Calico Dress".

A

Subject: RE: Lyr Req/Add: Maid in the Calico Dress^^^
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 13 Jul 12 - 05:43 PM

According to Wikipedia, in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, calico is "simple, cheap equal weft and warp plain weave fabric in white, cream or unbleached cotton."

A girl would get tired of a wardrobe of nothing but that in a hurry.

In America, calico is lightweight cotton fabric with a printed design, usually small flowers. It's nice for quilts, blouses and little girls' dresses. I've owned a lot of blouses made of calico over the years.

The term is falling out of use. When I googled "calico image", I got pictures of tri-colored cats.