The Trunch Wassail Song
Here we come a wassailing all among the leaves
That isn't very easy when they're still all on the trees
Wassail, wassail, we'll tell you wassail
It comes in bottles brown and pale
Comes in bottles, so bring some here
And we'll have a happy new year
Lets us now be thankful that the old year had departed
But there's no time for feast before another one has started
Chorus
Now the year has past away, past away your sins
There's lots of lovely new ones as the year begins
Chorus
Pouring cider on the apple trees seems rather wrong
We'll drink it first and then we'll water the trees before too long
Chorus
Bring food from off your table and beer from out o' your barrel
For If you don't we'll stop and sing another ancient carol
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Written by Sid and Henry Kipper, copyright 1985 Dambuster Re
cords. Recored on "The Ever Decreasing Circle."
Winter was a time for retreating indoors and drawing in the
horns. It was a time, as Henry recalls, of gathering round the
fire, or even round the piano, which made a bigger, more cheery
blaze, for a singling session. Many of the old carols of the
region are sadly lost, only fragments remaining of such songs as
"Oh Little Town of Gimimgham' and Good King Wenceslas - Look
Out!," but fortunately we have in its entirety the poignant
'Trunch Wassail Song.'
The custom was for the wassailers to visit each house in the
parish, where they would sing this old carol, and demand in
return a sum of money, which was suppose to ensure good luck, it
was certainly unlucky not to pay, for then the carolers would
simply sing again.
The song is surely very ancient. Sid claims that it goes
back to Roman times, thought this is doubtful since Roman times
would have expressed in Roman numerals. The custom was more
recently associated with the Hunting of the Renoir, this being a
painting which mysteriously disappeared from the Great Hall one
New Year during a particularly riotous game of pin-the-tail-on-
the-dicky. George Kipper knowingly asserts that the search is a
waste of time.
DC
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!