Looking for music/lyrics to "Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg & Clov

[Assunta Kent]

Hello, I attended the Northern Lights Festival of SCA Eastern Kingdom
and got the first recognition by anyone that I haven't imagined that
I remember this great drinking song, Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg,
Cloves--I am in urgent need of the music and lyrics (in parts if
possible). I am directing a medieval extravaganza that goes into
tech rehearsals in two weeks.

Thanks in advance for any leads and comps to anyone who can provide
sheet music.

Dr. Assunta Kent
Theatre, Honors, Womens Studies
University of Southern Maine

[Greg Lindahl]

ass...@usm.maine.edu (Assunta Kent) writes:

> Hello, I attended the Northern Lights Festival of SCA Eastern Kingdom
> and got the first recognition by anyone that I haven't imagined that
> I remember this great drinking song, Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg,
> Cloves--I am in urgent need of the music and lyrics (in parts if
> possible). I am directing a medieval extravaganza that goes into
> tech rehearsals in two weeks.

The song is "Of all the Birds" from Thomas Ravenscroft, and there is
sheet music (all parts) in the "modern editions" section of my
Ravenscroft webpage:

http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/ravenscroft/

Enjoy.

-- greg

[Dr Alan Radford]

Hi Assunta,

This is "The Owl", a well-known English drinking song of the seventeenth
century. For a version of the words, try:

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/8500/a-song3.htm

Good luck with your performance.

Alan Radford
(Director of The Leeds Waits)

Assunta Kent wrote:

> Hello, I attended the Northern Lights Festival of SCA Eastern Kingdom
> and got the first recognition by anyone that I haven't imagined that
> I remember this great drinking song, Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg,
> Cloves--I am in urgent need of the music and lyrics (in parts if
> possible). I am directing a medieval extravaganza that goes into
> tech rehearsals in two weeks.
>

[Dr Alan Radford]

Hi Assunta,

This is "The Owl", a well-known seventeenth century English drinking
song. For a version of the words, try:

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/8500/a-song3.htm

Good luck with the performance.

[Dr Alan Radford]

p.s. Oh, I forgot, it's by Thomas Ravenscroft, in either "Pammelia" or
"Deuteromelia".

Alan

[Jonathan...@dragonsys.com]

>>> "Assunta Kent" <ass...@usm.maine.edu> >>>

Hello, I attended the Northern Lights Festival of SCA Eastern Kingdom
and got the first recognition by anyone that I haven't imagined that
I remember this great drinking song, Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg,
Cloves--I am in urgent need of the music and lyrics (in parts if
possible). I am directing a medieval extravaganza that goes into
tech rehearsals in two weeks.
<<<

There's a song of that description on an early recording by some of the Steeleye
Span people -- Maddy Prior and Martin Carthy, I think. Maybe their "Summer
Solstice" album? I think I have also seen a written source somewhere at some
point (Ravenscroft, maybe, though I'm not very confident of it), and *may* even
be able to put my hands on it ... sorry to be so vague. The name is something
to do with owls, I think -- I'd say Sweet Suffolk Owl, but I believe that's a
rather different madrigal (which also contains the words "te-whit, te-whoo"
however).

The words I think I vaguely remember are something like:

Of all the birds that ever I see,
The owl is the fairest in her degree.
All the day long she sits in a tree,
And when the night comes, away flies she.
Te-whit, te-whoo, te-whit, te-whoo,
This song is well sung; I'll make you a vow
That he is a knave that drinketh now.
Nose, nose, nose, nose,
What gave thee thy jolly red nose?
Cinnamon and ginger, nutmeg and cloves,
That gave me my jolly red nose.

Jonathan Gilbert

"Assunta Kent" <ass...@usm.maine.edu> on 03/25/99 04:16:26 AM

Please respond to earl...@olymp.wu-wien.ac.at

To: Multiple recipients of list EARLYM-L <earl...@olymp.wu-wien.ac.at>
cc: (bcc: Jonathan Gilbert/Dragon Systems USA)
Subject: Re: Looking for music/lyrics to "Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg & Clov

[Greg Lindahl]

a.ra...@leeds.ac.uk (Dr Alan Radford) writes:
> Hi Assunta,
>
> This is "The Owl", a well-known seventeenth century English drinking
> song. For a version of the words, try:
>
> http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/8500/a-song3.htm

Hm, too bad that webpage has an incorrect age for the song. Welcome to
the Internet, keep your skeptic's hat on...

-- g

[Assunta Kent]

Thank you so much. I've found a musician who was willing to fax us
the music; I'm trying to save my lutenist the work of transcribing it
as he has three gigs in the next week plus composing settings of the
musical fragments for the troubador lay, Aucassin and Nicolette.