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Cock of the North

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Alternative title: "Chase me Charlie"

Source: Peter Shepheard's recording
Performer: Brazil, Lemmie
Place Collected: Sandhurst
Date collected: 26 December 1972
Collector: Shepheard, Peter

Gipsy melodeon player, Lementina “Lemmie” Brazil, was born near Southampton and spent 26 years of her youth in Ireland, before her family returned to England to settle in Gloucester. She described some of her tunes as “Irish” and used to play for step-dance competitions. Peter Shepheard recorded her in the 1960’s and early 70’s and Gwilym Davies recorded her twice, in October 1977 and April 1981, when she was living on a caravan site near Gloucester. She played a one-row melodeon in C. We have transcribed her music in D or G.

Lemmie can be heard on MTCD345-7 The Brazil Family, Down by the Riverside, CD 3, track 19.

Cock of the North was a name traditionally attached to the chief of the Clan Gordon, and in particular to Alexander, 4th Duke of Gordon, who in 1794 raised the future Gordon Highlanders. The regiment long used the tune and made it their official regimental march in 1933. The tune first appeared in print, for the fiddle, in 1816. Donald MacDonald published it for the bagpipes in 1822.

Note by Charles Menteith, with information from Wikipedia