EARL GREY. Scottish, Strathspey. A Major. Standard. One part (Kerr): AB (Hunter): AAB (Athole). Composed by James Hill, who was born in Dundee, Scotland, but who lived in Gateshead near Newcastle, England. Hill is most remembered for his hornpipes such as "The Bee's Wing" and "High Level," though this strathspey is a classic. Hill named his tune after a pub called the "Earl Grey," which itself was named in honor of Charles Grey, the 2nd Earl Grey (1764-1845), born in Falloden, Northumberland. Grey held several titles in his lifetime, and was Prime Minister (1830-1834) and Hero of the Reform Bills. He abolished the slave trade throughout the British Empire, and was a champion of Catholic emancipation (having married Mary Elizabeth Ponsonby in 1794, the daughter of a leading Irish liberal family).
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LINLITHGOW LOCH. AKA and see "Provost Dawson's Favorite." Scottish, Strathspey. D Major. Standard. AAB. Composed by William Marshall (1748-1833). The tune is subtitled "Provost Dawson's Favorite" in honor of Provost Adam Dawson who lived at the old Bonnytoun House on the shores of Linlithgow Loch (Moyra Cowie, The Life and Times of William Marshall, 1999). Dawson was a partner in a distillery named A & J Dawson, and a supporter of the Whig party and the Reform Act of 1832. Cowie says he is remembered for his warmth and keen sense of humor.
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Lintihgow was the site of an important royal residence, Linlithgow Palace, now in ruins. It was already a royal manor house by the time Edward I of England garrisoned it and used it as a base prior to the battle of Bannockburn. Afterwards it reverted to the Scots. James I began the transformation to a large fortified castle in in 1424, and later Mary, Queen of Scots was born there. The castle was destroyed in 1746 during the Jacobite uprising when English troops, who had occupied the castle, took up the chase for Bonnie Prince Charlie but left an unattended fire, which soon spread. Marshall, Fiddlecase Edition, 1978; 1845 Collection, pg. 25.
T:Linlithgow Loch, or Provost Dawson's Favorite
L:1/8
M:C
S:Marshall - 1845 Collection
K:D
F|D>E D<A F<DA<F|D>E D<F E2 E<F|D>E D<A F<DA<F|d/c/d/e/ f<d F2F:|
|:G|d>e f<d e<BdA|Bcd<f e2 e>f|d>e f<d e>Bd>A|G<BF<A E2 E>A|
d>efd e<Bd<A|B>c d<f e2 e>f|g>e (g/f/)e/d/ (f/e/)d/c/ d>A|G<B F>A E2E||
LORD JOHN RUSSELL. Scottish, Reel. B Flat Major. Standard. AAB. Composed by William Marshall (1748-1833). Moyra Cowie (The Life and Times of William Marshall, 1999) finds that Lord John Russell was the youngest stepson of Georgianna Gordon, the Duchess of Bedford. He was an avid supported of Earl Grey's Reform Bill (see note for "Earl Grey"). John's stepmother, Georgiana was the daughter of the Alexander, the 4th Duke of Gordon, for whom Marshall was employed as Steward of the Household. Marshall, Fiddlecase Edition, 1978; 1845 Collection, pg. 21.
T:Lord John Russell
L:1/8
M:C
S:Marshall - 1845 Collection
K:B_
f|edcA BFBd|GBFD C2 Cf|edcA BFBd|GBFD B,2 B,:|
E|(DE/F/) B,F DFB,F|BFdB ~c2 (cd)|(D/E/F) (B,F) DFEG|
FBAc ~B2 (Bd)|(DE/F/) (B,F) DFB,F|BFdB ~c2 (ce)|dfeg fBdB|
AFGA B2B||
PALL MALL. Scottish, Hornpipe. D Major. Standard. AA'BB. Pall Mall is a street in the West End of London between Trafalger Square and St. James's Place, in the heart of London's club district. Located on Pall Mall are several distinguished gentlemen's clubs, including the Athenaeum, the Reform, the Army and Navy and the Travelers. The title comes from paille-maille, a croquet-like game played on a course laid out in the late 17th century on the site of what is now the thorougfare. Kerr (Merry Melodies), Vol. 4; No. 281, pg. 30.