Dunbar's local songs and recitations 1874
# Dunbar's local songs and recitations 1874

Dunbar's local songs and recitations 1874 (full title: “Dunbar's Local and other Songs, Recitations and Conundrums, A Local Tale, &c. Composed by the late William Dunbar, Wardley Colliery, who died February 23rd 1874, aged 21 years. Printed by Stevenson and Dryden, St Nicholas' Church Yard, Newcastle upon Tyne 1874”) is a chapbook of Geordie folk song consisting of over 40 pages, published in 1874, after the author's death.

## The publication

William Dunbar wrote all the songs and a set of the original documents are retained in the archives of Beamish Museum.

The front cover of the book was as thus :-

   LOCAL AND OTHER
   SONGS, RECITATIONS,
   AND CONUNDRUMS,
   A Local Tale, &c COMPOSED BY THE LATE WILLIAM DUMBAR WARDLEY COLLIERY
   WHO DIED FEBRUARY 23RD 1874, AGED 21 YEARS

NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE PRINTED BY STEVENSON AND DRYDEN, ST. NICHOLAS' CHURCH YARD

1874

## Contents

In alphabetical order are as below :-

| | title | tune | brief description |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Best way to feel for a man | Wait for the turn of the tide | |
| 2 | Billy Baker | The Handsome Page | |
| 3 | Comic medley | Who's for the bus | |
| 4 | Deeth o' Jimmy Renforth | Castles in the air | famous local rower Jimmy Renforth |
| 5 | Doing all things for the best | Take care of the peace | |
| 6 | Don't take offence | Act on the square | |
| 7 | Forester's song | Oxford Joe | Ancient Order of Foresters at Wrekenton in 1872 |
| 8 | Geordy's pay | Barbara Bell | |
| 9 | If ivvor aw cease te speak | If I ever cease to love | |
| 10 | Imitation | Just to show there's no ill feeling | |
| 11 | Joe the barber's boy | Imensicoff | |
| 12 | Joseph Arch | The Marble Arch | Joseph Arch was the president of the newly founded National Agricultural Labourers' Union |
| 13 | Maw bonny Bess. (or A dog fancier's musings) | | |
| 14 | My A B C (or items alphabetically arranged) | Bow, Wow,Wow | |
| 15 | North Durham election, 1874. A dialogue between Tommy Stobbs and Sally | | |
| 16 | Nothing venture, nothing win | Par excellence | |
| 17 | Nowt se Queer as Foaks | Castles in the Air | |
| 18 | Playing the troon | A t'yel wiv a seekwil, an' monny an eekwil | |
| 19 | Pull that wins the day | Pull, pull together, boys | |
| 20 | Robin Ramsay; or, what aw'm puzzled wi' | The whole hog or none | |
| 21 | She greets me wiv a smile | I am so volatile | |
| 22 | Shiftin' – (The) | | |
| 23 | Wardley Band – (The) | The pawnshop bleezin | |
| 24 | We hevvent lang te be sober noo | I wish I was a fish | |
| 25 | Wellesley lads – (The) | Imminsicoff | one of the first schools set up to train sailors |
| 26 | We're seldom what we shud be | The country cousin | originally printed in Chater's Diary and Local Remembrancer |
| 27 | Woman charmin' woman O | Try, try again | originally printed in Chater's Diary and Local Remembrancer |
| 28 | Would you like to see | Down among the coals | originally printed in Chater's Diary and Local Remembrancer |
