DT Correction: Pretty Peg (from The Bothy Band)

Subject: Lyric Req: "Pretty Peg" (Bothy Band)
From:
Date: 19 Mar 97 - 03:42 PM

Searching for the lyrics to a song recorded by the Bothy Band. The song is the second track on the album "Best of the Bothy Band." They cite the title as pretty peg but no lyrics I can find under that title match the song I am looking for. Thanks for any info.

Subject: RE: Lyric Req:
From: Michael Carr
Date: 19 Mar 97 - 06:59 PM

I think I can get them for you. That's a nice song, and I like the tune that comes after it. I used to know the lyrics, but my copy of the tape combusted and I hav'nt been able to listen to it in a while. I'll see what I can dig up.

Subject: RE: Lyric Req:
From: Susan of DT
Date: 19 Mar 97 - 07:28 PM

Look at Bonnie Lass of Fyvio and Bonnie Lass of Fenario to see if these are the "Pretty Peg" you are looking for. Search on Fyvio and Fenario, since 'bonnie' has too many alternate spellings.

Subject: Lyr Add: PRETTY PEG or THE KEECH IN THE CREEL ^^^
From: LaMarca
Date: 20 Mar 97 - 11:51 AM

The song isn't a variant of Fenario; it's a version of the Child ballad "The Keech in the Creel" These are the words from my memory; there's a few gaps here and there. I typed this out at least a month ago in answer to this request before...

When Pretty Peg walked down the street some fresh fish for to buy,
The wee town clerk followed after her and he kissed her by and by.

REFRAIN: With my tiddy-right-fol-da-liddle-dido, with my tiddy-right-fol-da-liddle-day.

"Oh, how can I get to your chamber, love? How can I get to your bed,
When your daddy goes to bed at night with a keen eye on his head?"

"Oh, go and get a ladder, love, with thirty steps and three,
And put it to the chimney top and come down in a creel to me." (Creel = a large basket)

He's gone and got a ladder of thirty steps and three,
And a creel on the top of that and come down in the lum to she. (Lum = chimney)

No peace nor sleep could the old wife get with dreams running through her head.
"I'll lay on me life, said the gay old wife, "There's a boy in our daughter's bed!"

He's gone creeping up the stairs as soft as he could steal.
Silence reigned throughout the house and he never twigged the creel. (Twigged = caught on to; noticed)

"My curse upon thee, father! What brought thee up so soon,
To put me through my evening prayers and I just lyin' doon?"

He's gone back to his gay old wife. He's gone back to she.
"She's got the prayer book in her hand and she's praying for you and me."

No peace nor ease could the old wife get till she's gone up to see.
(Memory lapse here...) and into the creel went she.

"Oh, high I rocked her. Didn't I rock her? Didn't I rock her well?
For if any old dame begrudge me her daughter, I'll rock her into hell!"

There's a Scottish version of this called "The Blue Blanket" where the young man has an accomplice to lower him down the chimney. When Dad comes up to check on his daughter, she wraps her boyfriend up in a blue blanket to hide him. When Momma comes up to spy, she falls into the basket, and the accomplice starts hauling her up the chimney. She screams that the Devil had got her, the accomplice keeps her busy, and daughter and sweetheart have a good time...
^^^

Subject: RE: Lyric Req:
From: Jon W.
Date: 10 Feb 98 - 11:41 AM

I'll refresh this as it has been brought up in another thread and also supply some corrections in the last twp verses:

No peace nor ease could the old wife get til she's gone up to see.
She came on a stumbling block and into the creel went she.

Oh, high (how?) I rocked her. Ho, I rocked her. Didn't I rock her well?
For if any old wife begrudge me her daughter, I'd rock her into hell!

Subject: RE: Lyric Req:
From: Bruce O.
Date: 10 Feb 98 - 12:14 PM

"Keach in the Creel". There is an early version of this Child ballad that Child ignored. It is "The Contriving Lover", listed in the internet broadside ballad index at ZN2291.

Subject: RE: Lyric Req:
From: Joe Offer
Date: 17 Apr 01 - 07:14 PM

LaMarca's rendition of the lyrics is in the Digital Tradition (click), complete with the memory lapses. Can anybody fill in the blanks?
-Joe Offer-

---

Can we patch these two together and come up with something complete?

Subject: Lyr Add: PRETTY PEG (Bothy Band)
From: Wolfgang
Date: 23 Apr 01 - 03:49 AM

With Triona's fast singing to the background of Bothy Band's multiinstrumental accompaniment this task would have been too difficult for me had I not found a very close printed version in Cathal O Boyle's 'Songs of the County Down'. It is titled 'Newry Town' in that book and the data of origin is given as 1840.
Mary LaMarca's verses are pretty close to the singing of the Bothy Band and it is not worth trying to correct the odd word and in this process perhaps introducing new mistakes. Below you'll find La Marca's version with my changes in bold. When I wasn't sure what Triona actually was singing I have used the respective line from 'Songs of the County Down'.

Wolfgang

PRETTY PEG

When Pretty Peg walked down the street
Some fresh fish for to buy
The wee town clark followed after her
And he kissed her by and by.

With my tiddy right faladiddle daddy, etc.

Oh, how can I get to your chamber, love,
How can I get to your bed
When your daddy goes to bed at night
With a keen eye on his head.

Oh, go and get a ladder, love
Of thirty steps and three
And a creel all on the top of that
And come down in the lum to me

(Creel = a large basket; lum = chimney)

I went and bought a ladder, love,
Of thirty steps and three
And a creel on the top of that
And came down in the lum to thee.

No peace nor ease could the old wife get
With dreams running through her head
"I'll lay on me life, said the gay old wife,
There's a boy in our daughter's bed!"

Then up the stairs the old man crept
And into the room did steal.
Silence reigned where the daughter slept
And he never twigged the creel.

"My curse attend thee Father,
What brought ye up so soon?
To put me through my evening prayers,
And I just lying down."

He's gone back to his gay old wife,
He's gone back to she
"She's got the prayer book in her hand
And she'd prayin' for you and me."

No peace nor ease could the old wife get
Til she's gone up to see
She came on a stumbling block
And into the creel went she.

Oh, high I rocked her, didn't I rock her
Didn't I rock her well?
For if any old dame begrudge me her daughter,
I'll rock her into hell