I'll Tell Me Ma

polka

Key signature: Dmajor

Submitted on January 25th 2004 by Michael Bell.

This tune has been added to 158 tunebooks.

Also known as Come To The Show, Heel And Toe, The Heel And Toe , Heel Toe, Heel Toe Polks, I' Tell Me Ma, I'll Tell My Ma, My Aunt Jane.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

30 Years A-Greying - Disc 2 by The Dubliners
A Drop Of Pure by Quilty
An Irish Delight by Flanagan Brothers
Celtic Ceili by Various Artists
Cuig by Blackbeers
Dance Music Of Ireland: Volume 12 by Matt Cunningham
Dancing Through Ireland by Various Artists
Fibb'nacci Sequence by Knot Fibb'n
FYH by Brendan Begley And Caoimhin O'Raghallaigh
Humdinger by Paul Brock And Enda Scahill
I Am The Wee Falorie Man by David Hammond
I'll Have A Pint!!! by Flaming Seamus
Ireland's Finest by The Dubliners
Irish Heartbeat by Van Morrison
Live From Dublin - A Tribute To Derek Bell by The Chieftains
Mind The Dresser: Music For The Sets Volume 2 by Various Artists
Proper Job: Melodeon Playing From Dartmoor by Bob Cann
Sean-Nos Nua by Sinead O'Connor
Seven Years After by Sirkus
Shake Your Shamrocks by Various Artists
The Devils Of Dublin by Celtic Music Society (East Rochester HS)
The Moneymusk by Hammy Hamilton
The Rare Old Times by Foggy Dew
The Tap Room Trio by Tap Room Trio
Twos And Threes by Murphy Roche Irish Music Club
Voyager: Ireland's Tin Whistle by Various Artists
Waltons Irish Whistle CD Edition by Waltons
What Is Friday by Comrade

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

I'll Tell Me Ma

I heard this song growing up in Belfast, but it is a popular song elsewhere. The first verse goes something like -
I'll tell me ma when I go home
The boys won't leave the girls alone
They pull my hair, they steal my comb
But that's alright when I get home
She is handsome, she is pretty
She's the belle of Belfast city
She is courtin', one, two, three
Please won't you tell me, who is she

# Posted on January 25th 2004 by Michael Bell

More of a polka than a reel.

# Posted on January 25th 2004 by Mad Baloney

Actually that's the chorus

Here are the verses the pattern goes chorus verse chorus verse chorus.

Verse one-

Albert Mooney says he loves her
All the boys are fightin' for her
They rap at the door and they ring the bell
Sayin' oh, my true love are you well
Out she comes as white as snow
Rings on her fingers, bells on her toes
Old Jenny Murray says she'll die
If she doesn't get the fellow with the roving eye

Verse Two-
Let the wind and the rain and the hail go high
and the snow come tumbling from the sky
she's as sweet as apple pie
And she'll get her own love by and by
when she gets a love of her own
She won't tell her ma til she comes home
Let them all come as they will
For its Albert Mooney she loves still

There are many variations on the words but these are the ones I sing. It's a good song to liven up a crowd.

~Autumn

# Posted on January 27th 2004 by autumn

I'll Tell My Ma

When I was a kid in Glasgow we used to sing this as the first verse.
When I was young,I had no sense
I bought me a fiddle for eighteen pence
the only tune that it would play
was over the hills and far away
she is handsome.....etc.

# Posted on March 1st 2003 by dafydd

I'll Tell Me Ma

This is a great song. It's on of those tunes that riles up even the saddest of souls. I first heard it a few years ago in high school in my Irish history class. It helped kindle my passion for ITM. The recording the Chieftains did with Van Morrison is a great rendition of this tune.

# Posted on May 25th 2004 by CaliforniaPiper

I first heard this sung by Ronnie Drew on the Memorial concert the Chieftains did for Derek Bell...

wa hoo

# Posted on March 29th 2005 by Pádraig

# Posted on March 29th 2005 by slainte

Slainte, you are right about the second part. In spite of the song's eternal popularity, usually as a children's song, I have never heard any one play it as a polka at a session except very occasionally myself. I learned it off an ancient ceili band recording with the second part as you have it. The title given was "Come to the Show".

# Posted on March 29th 2005 by LongNote

Harry Bradley recently recorded this polka as "My Aunt Jane" on The Tap Room Trio album. He cites the Flanagan Brothers as the source of the tune.

# Posted on March 30th 2005 by slainte

"I'll Tell Me Ma" ~ another take on it

Alternate for the last two bars: ~ | fd e>f | ed- d :|

# Posted on August 2nd 2006 by ceolachan

You have the option to repeat or not repeat the parts...

# Posted on August 2nd 2006 by ceolachan

I'll Tell Me Ma

Matt Cunningham plays this tune as the 3rd polka in a set of three on the 23rd track of Volume 12 of his CD series Dance Music of Ireland. There's a bit of variation in the B-part.

# Posted on May 3rd 2007 by lazyhound