Uncle John's Fiddle

DESCRIPTION: Uncle John -- "the greatest performer that ever was known" -- died and left the singer his wonderful fiddle. He describes his uncle's feats, his fiddle's miraculous attributes and, now, his own playing feats which are not quite as good as his uncle's.
AUTHOR: James Davidson (source: Greig-FolkSongInBuchan-FolkSongOfTheNorthEast)
EARLIEST DATE: 1861 (Davidson, Poems: Chiefly in the Buchan Dialect, according to Greig/Duncan4)
KEYWORDS: death fiddle music humorous
FOUND IN: Britain(Scotland(Aber))
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Greig-FolkSongInBuchan-FolkSongOfTheNorthEast #38, pp. 1-2, "Uncle John's Fiddle"; #30, p. 2, "Uncle John's Fiddle" (1 text plus 1 fragment)
Greig/Duncan4 742, "Uncle John's Fiddle" (3 texts, 1 tune)
Roud #5641
NOTES [59 words]: Greig: "Mr John Milne, Maud, says he first heard 'Uncle John's Fiddle' some time between 1856 and 1860, when it was sung into popularity by Wm. M'Kay, Bransbog, Strichen, and other local singers. 'Uncle John' was an eccentric character and well known in the district. He was no fiddler, and Davidson is simply making fun of his attempts at playing." - BS
Last updated in version 2.6
File: GrD4742

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