Lyr ADD: The Copper's Song (Hamish Imlach)

Subject: Lyr Add: THE COPPER'S SONG (Hamish Imlach)
From: Becky
Date: 28 Mar 99 - 04:20 PM

Hiya everyone :)

I am new to Mudcat, and this is my first attempt at posting lyrics, so bear with me if it goes horribly pearshaped.

Being fairly new to folk music, I don't know much about the singers or the songs yet (though I'm loving every bit of discovering new songs and new people), but as far as I understood from Hamish Imlach's daughter, who lives in Oslo, he's the guy who wrote Black is the Colour, (originally for his wife and later adapted for his mistress :)). Anyway, I have the Glasgow spelling for the song AndyG wrote, if it's of any interest.

THE COPPER'S SONG
(Hamish Imlach)

It was doon in auld Invertoddie
The Gestapo were oot on their beats
Lookin' for murder and arson
And drunks as they stot doon the street

Noo two of the Chief Constable's agents
Had note-books quite full of names
Fourteen men, three women and a dog
For peein' up closes and lanes

It was twelve o'clock when they found it
Lyin' there just like a log
T'was a badly bashed aboot body
Tyre marks scotched up its physog

They went through the usual procedures
They kicked it tae mak sure it was dead
Then they went through its pockets and shared oot its cash
And smoked all its fags while it bled

They then lifted up this body
One at its head and its feet
and they carried it aff tae an alleyway
And dumped it on an ither man's beat

It was four o'clock when they re-found it
Propped up in an old chip shop doo
r It was naked by now with a note roond it's neck
Not wanted on beats three or four.


Hope this turns out alright, and if it does thanks to your help for mudcatters thread :)!


Becky :)

Subject: RE: hamish imlach
From:
Date: 29 Mar 99 - 03:14 AM

Watch out, Becky - Hamish's mistress (or rather, as he used to say, his long-term partner) has been known to lurk in this thread! (You still there, Muriel???)
Actually, as far as I know 'Black is the Colour' is far older than Hamish but he did make it popular in Britain, and many people will associate the song with him.
Hope I haven't scared you off the Mudcat, Becky! - Susanne

Subject: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: Lanfranc
Date: 01 Apr 00 - 07:41 AM

A recent thread about the "Gay Caballero" reminded me of another song that I haven't heard in years (again, Alex Norton was the original culprit). It was probably of Scottish origin, and was about the fate of a corpse in the street.

The song starts: "It was midnight in old Invertoty(?), the cops were all out on their beat ...." and ends "... it was naked by now, with a sign round its neck 'Not wanted on beats three or four'"

Anyone else remember it?

Subject: Lyr Add: THE COPPERS' SONG (Hamish Imlach)
From: GUEST,Captain Swing
Date: 01 Apr 00 - 08:48 AM

THE COPPERS' SONG
(Hamish Imlach)

It was down in old Invertoty,
The Gestapo was out on the beat,
Looking for murder and arson,
And drunks as they rolled down the street.

Now two of the chief constable's agents,
Their notebooks were crammed full with names.
Ten men, six women, a cat and a dog,
For peeing up closes and lanes.

It was four o'clock when they found it,
Lying in the road like a log,
It was a badly bashed-about body,
With tyre marks scorched up its fizzog.

So they went through the usual procedure,
They kicked it to make sure it was dead.
Then they went through its pockets and stole all its cash
And smoked all its fags while it bled.

Then they lifted up this old body,
One at its head and it's feet,
And carted it off down an alley way,
And dumped it on another bloke's beat.

It was six o'clock when they refound it,
Propped up in an old chip shop door.
It was naked by now with a note round its neck,
"Not wanted on beats three or four."

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: Lanfranc
Date: 01 Apr 00 - 05:30 PM

WOBH! :-) Thanx, Captain Swing. Nothing is too obscure for a Mudcat thread. Stand by for a revival - in Essex at least!

Subject: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: GUEST,The Fumbling Fingers
Date: 08 Sep 02 - 06:35 PM

It was midnight...... That's all we can remember. Can you supply the rest of the words??

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: Stewie
Date: 08 Sep 02 - 07:34 PM

You will possibly find what you are looking for in this thread:

Click Here

--Stewie.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: Jon Bartlett
Date: 08 Sep 02 - 08:32 PM

For your "scorched" I have "scotched" - I visualize a face with tire marks on it, looking rather like a (Scotch) tartan. Nu?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: GUEST,Zipster
Date: 08 Sep 02 - 08:47 PM

Anyone got chords for this?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: CraigS
Date: 08 Sep 02 - 09:16 PM

C, F, G7 - wot you want - jam on it?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: GUEST,Fumbling Fingers
Date: 09 Sep 02 - 01:29 PM

Many thanks, Captain Swing, you hit the spot.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 08:27 AM

Is Invertoty supposed to be a real place? I can't find any record of it, at least not with that spelling. I found an actor named Alex Norton, but no indication that he also sings or writes songs.

Can anyone verify the title of this song? Author/composer? Artist? Album? Date?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: GUEST,Lanfranc at the orifice
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 09:08 AM

Invertoty is purely fictional.

The Title was as introduced by Alex Norton.

Alex may not list his time as a folksinger or his residency at the London Troubadour in 1969-1971, but he was there (as was I). Come to that, he doesn't make much of his time on the kids' TV show "Playaway", either! He used to own Marty Wilde's old Gibson J200, which I still covet.

The composer might have been Alex himself. It was not by any of the usual suspects (Hamish Imlach, Matt McGinn), and I have never seen it on anyone's album, nor have I heard it sung in thirty years, other than by me.

Do Captain Swing or Jon Bartlett know any better, I wonder?

Alan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: Dave Bryant
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 11:49 AM

Is there some kind of Psychic Communication on Mudcat. Time and time again we see the same song asked for at the same time. There is a current thread HERE about the same song. I'm putting a link back from the other one as well.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: Dave Bryant
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 11:52 AM

Is there some kind of Psychic Communication on Mudcat. Time and time again we see the same song asked for at the same time. There is a current thread HERE about the same song. I'm putting a link back from the other one as well.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: Lanfranc
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 07:05 PM

Chords above pretty much right!! - tune is a slight variant on "Villikins and his Dinah" with no chorus.

Alan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: Lanfranc
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 07:16 PM

Love this place - thanks for making the link, Dave, it's solved a couple of mysteries (for me anyway).

Given that the true title is "The Coppers' Song", the composer, as I had suspected, was Hamish Imlach.

According to Hamish's discography, it can be found on record as follows:

Hamish Imlach - The Definitive Transatlantic Album (Castle Communications, 1997) ( includes: It's Better In The Dark; Cod Liver Oil And Orange Juice; Johnny O'Breadislee; Erin Go Bragh; If It Wasn't For The Unions; Foggy Dew, The; Copper's Song, The; McPherson's Farewell; 37 Bus, The; Jean Harlow; Clapped Out Motorcar; McGreggors, The; Anthony Riley; Beer Is Best; Little Maggie; Goodbye Booze; Calton Weaver, The; Clive's Song; Cuckoo, The; Kilbogie; Bluebird; Jenny Jenkins; Travelling Rhythm)

Looks like a CD to me, and, if so, is one that will shortly join my collection.

Thanks all

Alan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Coppers Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: GUEST,Lanfranc at the orifice
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 06:46 AM

Did I say "Villikins"? That will teach me to post late and tired!

Actually it's more like "Botany Bay" - I'd got my touraliaddies confused! Sorry for any confusion!

Is it me?

Alan

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'Midnight in old Invertoty'
From: GUEST,Lanfranc at the orifice
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 06:51 AM

Except that that CD appears not to be available any longer. I have a vague memory that the company that produced the Castle Communications label went belly-up a year or so ago. Oh well!

Alan

Subject: Lyric Request Hamish Imlach Coppers Song
From: GUEST,MC Fat
Date: 03 Jun 06 - 07:36 AM

Someone I know would like the words to this. It's the one about the cops finding a dead body and shifting it to other coppers beats.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE COPPER'S SONG (Hamish Imlach)
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 03 Jun 06 - 07:52 AM

THE COPPER'S SONG
(Hamish Imlach)

It was midnight at Twickenham Junction.
The Gestapo were out on the beat,
Looking for arson and murder,
And drunks as they tapped down the street.

Now, two of the chief constable's agents
Were out on duty that night.
They'd been issued with some nice new notebooks
And their pencils were sharpened just right.

It was about 1 AM when they found it:
A sack, that's what it were.
Inside was a bashed about body
With tyre marks scorched down its hair.

Well they went through the usual procedure.
They kicked it to make sure it was dead.
Then they went through its pockets and shared out its cash
And smoked all its fags while it bled.

Then they picked up the body between them,
One at its head and its feet.
Then they carried it down a dark alleyway,
And dumped it on another man's beat.

It was about 3 AM they refound it
Propped up in some chip-shop door.
It was naked by now and a note on its brow
Said: "Not wanted on beats 3 or 4."

Subject: RE: Lyric Request Hamish Imlach Coppers Song
From: GUEST,MC Fat
Date: 03 Jun 06 - 08:07 AM

Yeah think that's the one. Ta much.

Subject: RE: Lyric Request Hamish Imlach Coppers Song
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 06 Jun 06 - 08:33 PM

Amazon.co.uk says THE COPPER'S SONG is on 2 albums: Hamish Imlach, "The Definitive Transatlantic Collection," 1997; and Hamish Imlach, "Cod Liver Oil and Orange Juice: the Transatlantic Anthology," due to be released June 12, 2006.

I listened to a couple of sound samples, and found it a bit different from what Giok remembers:

...It was 12 o'clock when they found it
Lyin' there just like an 'og.
'Twas a badly bashed-about body
Tyre marks scorched up its physog.

They went through the usual procedure
Kicked it to make sure it was dead
Then they went through its pockets and shared out its cash....

Subject: ADD: The Copper's Song (Hamish Imlach)
From: Jim I
Date: 07 Jun 06 - 02:27 PM

Then version I remember is quite different again from Giok:

THE COPPER'S SONG
(sung by Hamish Imlach)

It was doon in auld Invertotty
Ra Gestapo were oot on their beat
Lookin' fur murder and arson
An' drunks as they stoat doon the street

Now two of the chief constabyul's agents
Had notebooks right full of names
Forty men, three women and a dug
Fur peein' up closes an' lanes

It was twelve o'clock when they found it
Lying there jist like a log
'Twas a badly bashed aboot body
Tyre marks scorched up his physog

Well they went through the usual procedure
Kicked it tae make sure it was dead
Then they went through his pockets
and shared oot his cash
Smoked all his fags while he bled

Then they lifted up that body
Wan at his head an' his feet
An' they cairried it oot o' that alleyway
An' left it oan anither man's beat

It was fower o'clock when they re-found it
Propped up in an old chip shop door
It was naked by noo, wi' a note roond its neck
"Not wanted oan beats three and four!"

Subject: RE: Lyric Request Hamish Imlach Coppers Song
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 07 Jun 06 - 03:01 PM

I learnt it in the effete south of England about 40 years ago, so the words are 'a l'Anglais'
Giok

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Copper's Song (from Hamish Imlach)
From: GUEST,Stuart Penketh
Date: 21 Oct 10 - 03:32 AM

The version Jim L quotes is the one I remember hearing Hamish Imlach sing when he came to our Uni in Cardiff to do a concert, in the early 70's.
Fantastic