THE SPALPEENS

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The Stories Behind the Songs We Sing

The Whistlin Gypsy

The Whistling Gypsy Rover, according to an interesting thread on the web site Mudcat Café, dates from the days of Oliver Cromwell, may he rot in hell. In fact one chat room historian suggests that the term ‘gypsy’ was ‘spailpin’ in the original Gaelic or Irish version. Quoting the Mudcat thread: “Now 'spailpín' is the word for an itinerant farm worker in Ireland, whose life was full of hard physical labor, low wages and maltreatment by landowners. Even the word 'spailpíín' came to mean a person of low character, which is also, of course, the common stereotypical image of the Irish Travelers. “I don't know which language the song was originally written in, but I find it interesting that the Irish language version does not call the young fella a 'tincéir' (Tinker/Gypsy), but a 'spailpín' (traveling farm worker).” An interesting aside: The Spalpeens sing a common version of the song that mentions in the penultimate verse the River Clady. In some versions, the rhyme is to “the river so shady.” There is no river in Ireland called the Clady. The closest in spelling and sound seems to be the River Clanrye in the County Down in southeastern Northern Ireland. But half the people who live along it apparently call it the Newry River. Some even refer to it as the County River. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Clanrye) Changing our tune at this late date would be so unpeenlike, thus it shall remain forever the non existent but oh so rhymeful River Clady.

The Spalpeens sing this in the Key of A (Capo on second fret and play “G” chords)

The Whistling Gypsy Rover (Traditional)

G                 D7        G                     D7

The gypsy rover came over the hill,

G                              D7           G     D7

down through the valley so sha-dy,

G                                D7                   G                    C

He whistled and he sang ‘til the green woods rang

       G                    C              G   C         D7

And he won the heart of a la-aa- aa-dy.

Chorus

G          D7               G         D7

Ah-dee-do ah-dee-do da-day,

G          D7               G     D7

Ah-dee-do ah-dee day-ee

G                                D7                    G                    C

He whistled and he sang ‘til the green woods rang,

       G                    C              G   C         D7

And he won the heart of a la-aa- aa-dy.

She left her father's castle gate,
She left her own fond lover;
She left her servants and her estate
To follow the gypsy rover. (to chorus)

Her father saddled up his fastest steed
He searched these valleys all over
Seeking his daughter at great speed
And the whistling gypsy rover. (to chorus)

At last he came to a mansion fine
Along the river Clady (in some versions “so shady”)
And there was music and there was wine
For the gypsy and his lady. (to chorus)

He is no gypsy my father she said

But lord of these lands all over
And I will stay til my dying day
With my whistling gypsy rover. (to chorus)

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