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There Was a Pig

from Nutmeg & Ginger by IONA

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8. There Was a Pig/We've Been Awhile (English) 4:15

There was a Pig is an old agrarian mummers' carol from Bedfordshire, linking the Christmas season with the cycle of planting and harvesting. Such carols were mimed, often in wicker headdress or costume, by the men of the village. This time we follow on with another of those wassail songs, this one from Yorkshire, expressing many of the same sentiments that we've sung before..

lyrics

There Was a Pig/We’ve Been Awhile
There was a Pig went out to dig
Chris-I-mas Day, Chris-I-mas Day
There was a Pig went out to dig
On Chris-I-mas Day in the morning!

There was a Cow went out to plough,
. . . &c.
There was a Sparrow went out to harrow,
. . . &c.
There was a Crow went out to sow,
. . . &c.
There was s Sheep went out to reap,
. . . &c.
There was a Drake went out to rake,
. . . &c.
There was a Minnow went out to winnow,
. . . &c.

We’ve been awhile a-wandering
Amongst the leaves so green
But now we come awassailing
So plainly to be seen
For it’s Christmas time,
When we travel far and near;
May God bless you and
send you a happy New Year..

We are not daily beggars
That beg from door to door;
We are your neighbors’ children,
That you have seen before;
For it’s Christmas time....etc.

Good master and good mistress,
While you’re sitting by the fire,
Pray think of us poor wassailers
A-wand’ring in the mire;
For it’s Christmas time....etc.

Bring us out a table
And cover it with a cloth,
Bring us out a moldy cheese
And some of your Christmas loaf;
For it’s Christmas time....etc.

Call up the butler of this house,
Likewise the mistress too,
And all the little children
That round the table go;
For it’s Christmas time....etc
© 1996 Barnaby Productions Inc.

credits

from Nutmeg & Ginger, released October 1, 1996
Barbara - Lead and harmony vocals, guitar, bodhrán; Bernard - Harmony vocals, doumbek, flute; Diana - Cittern

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all rights reserved

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IONA Washington, D.C.

IONA has been taking its unique brand of traditional Celtic music to festivals, arts centers, schools & house concerts all over North America and Europe since 1986, blending music from the various Celtic traditions with stories and a little humor - Barbara Ryan (vocals, bouzouki, bodhran), Bernard Argent (flute, doumbek), Chuck Lawhorn (bass), Jim Queen (fiddle, banjo) & Kathleen Larrick (dance). ... more

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