When Jones's Ale Was New

DESCRIPTION: Stories from Jones's Bar. Various drinkers come in, each with his tale or his unruly behavior or his demand. Most are hard workers whose burdens are relieved by the ale.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: apparently 1594 (stationer's register)
KEYWORDS: drink nonballad landlord ritual
FOUND IN: US(Ap,MA) Britain(England(All),Scotland) Australia
REFERENCES (20 citations):
Gardham-EarliestVersions, "WHEN JOAN'S ALE WAS NEW"
Doerflinger-SongsOfTheSailorAndLumberman, pp. 168-169, "When Johnson's Ale Was New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Ford-VagabondSongsAndBalladsOfScotland, pp. 273-277, "When John's Ale Was New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Greig/Duncan3 561, "When Jones' Ale Was New" (1 fragment, 1 tune)
Williams-FolkSongsOfTheUpperThames, pp. 276-278, "When Joan's Ale Was New" (1 text) (also Williams-Wiltshire-WSRO Wt 507)
Williams-Wiltshire-WSRO Ox 243, "When Joan's Ale Was New" (1 text)
Copper-SongsAndSouthernBreezes, pp. 284-285, "Four Jolly Fellows" (1 text, 1 tune)
Hamer-GreenGroves, pp. 14-15, "When Jones' Ale Was New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Copper-ASongForEverySeason, pp. 286-287, "When Jones's Ale Was New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Kennedy-FolksongsOfBritainAndIreland 287, "When Jones's Ale Was New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Reeves/Sharp-TheIdiomOfThePeople 50, "Joan's Ale Was New" (1 text)
Palmer-EnglishCountrySongbook, #117, "When Jone's Ale Was New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Dixon-AncientPoemsBalladsSongsOfThePeasantryOfEngland, Song #22, pp. 206-208,249, "Joan's Ale was New" (1 text)
Bell-Combined-EarlyBallads-CustomsBalladsSongsPeasantryEngland, pp. 417-419, "Joan's Ale Was New" (1 text)
Chappell-PopularMusicOfTheOldenTime, pp. 187-189, "The Jovial Tinker, or Joan's Ale Is New" (1 text, 1 tune)
Combs/Wilgus-FolkSongsOfTheSouthernUnitedStates 166, pp. 132-133, "The Jovial Tinker (Joan's Ale is Good)" (1 text -- a heavily modified version with a floating first verse and a final verse that may imply a Civil War setting)
Paterson/Fahey/Seal-OldBushSongs-CentenaryEdition, pp. 245-248, "When Jones's Ale Was New" (1 text plus an excerpt from a British broadside)
Silber/Silber-FolksingersWordbook, p. 231, "Johnson's Ale" (1 text)
Olson-BroadsideBalladIndex, ZN2502, "There was a jovial Tinker"
DT, JONESALE JONESAL2 JONESAL3
Roud #139
RECORDINGS:
Bob & Ron Copper, "The Jovial Tradesman" (on LomaxCD1700); "The Jovial Tradesman" (on FSB3)
Fred Jordan, "When Jones's Ale Was New" (on Voice13)
John M. (Sailor Dad) Hunt, "When Jones's Ale Was New" (AFS, 1941; on LC27)
A. L. Lloyd, "When Johnson's Ale Was New" (on Lloyd12)
BROADSIDES:
Bodleian, Douce Ballads 1(105b), "Joan's Ale is New"["Jones" in the text], T. Vere (London), 1644-1680; also Douce Ballads 1(99b), "Joan's Ale is New"["Jones" in the text]; Harding B 28(139), "Joan's Ale"["Joan's" in the text]; Harding B 11(652), "When John's Ale Was New"; Harding B 16(336b), "Joan's Ale Was New"["Joan's" in the text]; 2806 c.18(169), "Joan's Ale is New"["Joan's" in the text]
Murray, Mu23-y2:014, "When John's Ale was New," Poet's Box (Glasgow), 19C
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Young Man Who Travelled Up and Down"
ALTERNATE TITLES:
Jone's ale is newe
When John's Sail Was New
NOTES [146 words]: Hyder E. Rollins, An Analytical Index to the Ballad-Entries (1557-1709) In the Register of the Company of Stationers of London, 1924 (I use the 1967 Tradition Press reprint with a new Foreword by Leslie Shepard), p. 111, #1288 is "Jones ale is newe," entered by Jno. Danter on October 16, 1594. On November 15, 1594, Edward White entered "the vnthriftes adiew to Jones ale is newe. (Rollins #2793, p. 241). Individually, the title wouldn't be enough to prove the existence of this song, but the fact that two printers used the title at the same time strongly hints that it is this song.
On March 25, 1656, Thomas Vere printed "Joane's ale is New" (Rollins, #1289, p. 111). I can't prove that it's the same, either, but once again it seems likely. - RBW
The song was sung by the "jolly boys" (pace-eggers) in Overton, Lancs, as part of their Easter house-to-house ritual. - PJS
Last updated in version 6.8
File: Doe168

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