Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me

Subject: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: Benson
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 11:40 AM

Ohhhhh....I fear the valiant men of the "Fighting 7th Cavalry" would roll in their graves to think that they went to battle to the tune of......"The Girl I left Behind Me"

Even the Crest of the 7th was emblazoned with the name of "Garry Owen"......I mentioned this in the earlier post....No one picked up on it.....

For the words and history.....go to www.metronet.com/~harryb/1st_team/7th_rgmt (click here)

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: katlaughing
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 12:22 PM

I went to the site you listed and heard the tune, which I remembered as soon as it started to play, but, in a quick perusal, did not find the words, which I would be happy to post here. Sorry. kat

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: Benson
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 12:35 PM

Dear Kat.....

You have to "ckick" on the words "Garry Owen" between the start an stop "buttons".....

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: Benson
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 12:50 PM

The words are at
www.metronet.com/~harryb/1st_team/7th_rgmt/music_go.html

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: Bruce O.
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 01:22 PM

The history on the 'metronet' website says "Garryowen" can be traced back to the 1860's. Actually, "Garryown" is from a stage production, 'Harlequin Amulet, or the Majic of Mona' (1800). Wm. Campbell gave the tune in his 16th book of Country Dances, c 1801, (copy in Library of Congress) attributing the tune to 'Jackson of Cork'. However, the tune had appeared as "Auld Bessy" in Aird's Airs, III, #594 (1788). An ABC of the latter is T059 in the miscellaneous tunes file (T1.HTM) on my website. www.erols.com/olsonw

[See my Irish Tune Title Index for some other early copies of the tune]

Subject: Lyr Add: GARRYOWEN
From: Benson
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 01:38 PM

"Garryowen" is known to have been used by Irish regiments as a drinking song. As the story goes, one of the Irish "melting pot" troopers of the 7th Cavalry, under the influence of "spirits,” was singing the song. By chance Custer heard the melody, liked the cadence, and soon began to hum the tune himself. The tune has a lively beat, that accentuates the cadence of marching horses, and for that reason was adopted as the regimental song soon after Custer arrived at Fort Riley, Kansas to take over command of the 7th Cavalry Regiment. It was the last song played for Custer's men as they left General Terry's column at the Powder River and rode into history.

During First Team ceremonies the song is not sung; however, it is customary for the song to be played at the conclusion of the activities and the guests stand and clap.

Lyrics of the song are as follows:

GARRYOWEN

1. Let Bacchus's sons be not dismayed,
But join with me each jovial blade,
Come booze and sing and lend your aid,
To help me with the chorus:

CHORUS: Instead of spa we'll drink down ale
And pay the reckoning on the nail,
For debt no man shall go to jail
From Garryowen in glory

2. We are the boys who take delight
In smashing Limerick lamps at night,
And through the street like sportsters fight,
Tearing all before us (Chorus)

3. We'll break windows; we'll break doors,
The watch knock down by threes and fours,
Then let the doctors work their cures,
And tinker up our bruises (Chorus)

4. We'll beat the bailiffs out of fun,
We’ll make the mayor and sheriffs run,
We are the boys no man dare dun,
If he regards a whole skin (Chorus)

5. Our hearts so stout have got us fame,
For soon 'tis known from whence we came,
Where’re we go they dread the name,
Of Garryowen in glory (Chorus)

Subject: Tune Add: GARRYOWEN
From: Bruce O.
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 02:53 PM

For those that want the gory details, let me add that the identification of "Auld Bessy" with "Garryowen" was made by Samuel Bayard in 'Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife', #632, 1982, and confirmed by the theme code in Charles Gore's 'The Scottish Fiddle Music Index', 1994. I have gotten a copy of "Auld Bessy" only recently in 'Sources of Irish Traditional Music', (July) 1998. The title of the stage production in which "Garryowen" appeared is in Campbell's 16th book of Country Dances, c 1801, and the date of it is from Alfred Moffat's 'Minstrelsy of Ireland', 1897. Here's Wm. Campbell's tune from the Library of Congress copy:

X:1
T:Garry Owen. Harlequin Amulet-- or Majic of Mona.
S:by Jackson of Cork. [Campbell's 16th bk. of CD's, c 1801]
Q:120
L:1/8
M:6/8
K:Adorian
g/f/|edc BAB|B3/2cc/B Bgf|edc BAG|A3/2B/A Agf|\
edc BAG|B3/2c/BB2d|defg2B|A3/2B/AA2::\
c|(B/c/dB) (B/c/dB)|(B/c/dB) d2g|(c/d/ec) c/d/ec|\
(c/d/ec)e2f|g2ab2a|g2e edB|def g2B|A3/2B/AA2:|]

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: alison
Date: 31 Dec 98 - 07:16 PM

Hi,

If I remember back to what I learnt at school Garry Owen was the march past of the Royal Irish Rangers.

Slainte

alison

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: GUEST,spidermc
Date: 05 Oct 05 - 11:27 AM

i heard the song was sung by the royal irish lancers

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: PennyBlack
Date: 05 Oct 05 - 12:55 PM

We were approached last year by a couple who had been trying to get a recording of the song (not just the tune), for years with great difficulty, in the end they commisioned us to record it for them - great fun. Sound great in DADGAD!

PB

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 06 Oct 05 - 04:59 AM

A quick check through O'Neills 1001 Gems confirms what I thought, Garrowen and The Girl I Left Behind Me are completely different tunes

eric

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: GUEST,Richard
Date: 06 Oct 05 - 05:57 AM

The military connection with "The girl I left behind me" is that it is also known as "Brighton Camp". Others may know more specific details of its usage as a marching/regimental tune. There are several civilian sets of words set to it.
Richard

Subject: RE: Garry Owen/ The Girl I Left Behind Me
From: Lighter
Date: 13 Oct 22 - 09:52 PM

"Garryowen" was played by Irish-American regiments (and probably others) on either side during the Civil War.

"The Girl I Left Behind Me" was widely popular, thanks to the title (and the 18th century lyrics).

Although "Garryowen" became especially associated with Custer's 7th Cavalry (formed only after the war), the tune played as the regiment left Fort Lincoln for the Little Bighorn, according to Elizabeth Bacon Custer, was "The Girl I Left Behind Me."

She calls it "the regiment's usual departing tune." "Garryowen," on the other hand, was the air "to which the regiment always returned."