“On Ilkla Moor Bah T'at”
Description
On the dangers of visiting the moor without a hat: One singer tells the other he has been (courting) on the moor without a hat. He is told he'll die of cold. They will bury him, and worms will eat him; ducks will eat them, people eat ducks, and so it goes
Notes
Kennedy reports, "The author of this local dialect song is supposed to have been a Thomas Clark who wrote it in 1805 to the hymn tune Cranbrook. Who he was or how the song came to be are not known. Yorkshire men all the world over regard the song with ritualistic respect." - RBW
References
- Kennedy 303, "On Ilkla Moor Bah T'at" (1 text, 1 tune)
- Silber-FSWB, p. 26, "Ilkley Moor Baht 'At" (1 text)
- DT, ILKLAMOR
- Roud #2143
- BI, K303