A Collection of Songs
Singing was a popular pastime in the 18th Century – beyond the function of accompanying work, as one of the Regiments distaff members remarked, in whichever century, "it certainly makes doing the dishes go a lot faster" – singing accompanied celebrations, casual social gatherings, & served as a form of political protests. During a time where many people were illiterate, songs served to pass on tradition & information. In the military, singing aided in coordinating marching (the military uses songs as marching cadences to this day) & Espirit de Corps.
Many traditional songs may be sung in a call & response style, where those who are unfamiliar with the verses can join in on the chorus. Most of these songs can be started with the chorus to teach the group.
Although reasonable efforts have been made to provide accurate information & lyrics, melodies have a tradition of being pirated & mated with multiple sets of lyrics & many traditional songs have local variations with lyrics added & eliminated over the past 300+ years, so what follows cannot be considered definitively correct. Although most songs listed below are proper to the Regiment's portrayal in terms of subject matter & publication date, the few songs which were written after Regiment's discharge in 1781 were included as they were common songs of the Revolutionary War & are fitting to the spirit of time period we portray.
Clicking on the song title will display the lyrics & brief background information as the compiler could assemble. Clicking on the MIDI link will play the melody. Songs with an asterisk are more bawdy & may not be appropriate for young children.
| A-Roving* | [MIDI]4 |
| Auld Lang Syne | [MIDI]2 |
| The Bee Hive** | [MIDI]2v |
| Black Velvet Band | [MIDI]2 |
| Blow the Candles Out* | [MIDI]1 |
| Chester | [MIDI] |
| Cuckoo's Nest* | [MIDI]2 |
| The Cutty Wren | [MIDI]4 |
| Dance to Thy Daddy | [MIDI]2 |
| Diddle, Diddle | |
| Fathom the Bowl | [MIDI]2 |
| Free America | [MIDI]2 |
| Garry Owen | [MIDI] |
| Girl I Left Behind Me | [MIDI]4 |
| Handsome Cabin Boy* | [MIDI]2 |
| Here's to the Maiden of Bashful Fifteen | [MIDI]2 |
| Lilliburlero | [MIDI] |
| Old Soldiers of the King | [MIDI]2 |
| Over the Hills and Far Away | [MIDI]2 |
| The Rakes of Mallow* | [MIDI]2 |
| Rolling in the Dew* | [MIDI]1 |
| Rosin, the Beau | [MIDI]2 |
| The Parting Glass | [MIDI]2 |
| We Be Soldier's Three | [MIDI]2 |
| White Cockade | [MIDI]2< |
| Yankee Doodle |
1 www.contemplator.com
2 www.traditionalmusic.co.uk
3 sniff.numachi.com
4 www.redcoat.org