Mairie's Wedding

polka

Key signature: Dmajor

Submitted on May 28th 2002 by maclowlife.

This tune has been added to 161 tunebooks.

Also known as Mairi's Wedding, Mairie's March, Marie's Wedding, Mhari's Wedding.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

• Dance Album by The Bushwhackers Band
• Edinburgh Hogmany Party Mix by Keltik Elektrik
• Golden Bough by Golden Bough
• Hit The Bricks... by Waking Maggie
• Irish Heartbeat by Van Morrison
• Northern Light by Valerie Klemetti Blessley
• Rakish Paddies by Rapalje
• Rip The Calico by Paul Dooley
• Sea Changes Of The Toucan Pirates by Toucan Pirates
• Set The Sails by Bantry Bay
• Take To The Floor by Haste To The Wedding
• The Houston Sessions by The Alans
• The Irish Concertina Two by Noel Hill
• Trasna Ceilidh Band by Trasna Ceilidh Band

X: 1
T: Mairie's Wedding
M: 2/4
L: 1/8
R: polka
K: Dmaj
f "A"\
|: "D"A>A AB | de f2 | "G"ed Bd | "A7"fe fa \
| "D"A>A AB | de f2 | "G"ed BG | "A7"A2 A2 |]
"B1"\
[| "D"a>a ab | ag f2 | "G"ed Bd | "A7"fe f<a \
| "D"a>a ab | ag f2 | "G"ed BG |1 "A7"A2 A2 :|2 "A"AB/c/ d/e/f/g/ |]
"B2"\
[| "D"a>a ab | ag f2 | "G"ed Bd | "A7"fe f<a \
| "D"A>A AB | de fg | "G"a>f "A7"fe | "D"d2 z2 |]

Words to "Mairi's Wedding"

"Mairi's Wedding" is a Scottish song I've heard in a number of places. Van Morrison sang it on the album he did with the Chieftains.

Chorus (A part):
Step we gaily on we go
Heel for heel and toe for toe
Arm in arm and row on row
All for Mairi's wedding.

Verse (B part):
Over hillways up and down
Myrtle green and bracken brown
Past the shieling through the town
All for sake of Mairi.

Chorus

Red her cheeks as rowans are
Bright her eye as any star
Fairest of them all by far
Is my darlin' Mairi.

Chorus

Plenty herring, plenty meal
Plenty peat to fill her creel
Plenty bonny bairns as weel
That's our toast for Mairi.

Chorus

# Posted on May 30th 2002 by x

There's also a specific Scottish Country dance for this tune and song.

Zina

# Posted on May 30th 2002 by Zina Lee

Mairi's wedding

You'd get some pretty strange looks if you started playing this in a session anywhere in Scotland. This particular song is more associated with the "tartan" end of Scottish tourism, rather than traditional music. It's one of the songs which was hammered into school-kids at school music lessons , thereby putting them off traditional Scottish music for life. Billy Connolly has a great sketch about this on a live double LP he recorded in the late 70s/early 80s, before he became famous - a lot of us could identify with that story only too well!
Having said that, I would have to admit it could work well as a polka, but please, forget about the words.

# Posted on May 31st 2002 by Kenny

More of a March than a Polka, I think...

Though hopelessly over-played, it's still a nice tune...

# Posted on July 7th 2003 by pchaffee

Good recording

I have yet to find a good recording of this tune. It's usually played in a horrible american fashion: everything rolled together with no swing :(

# Posted on September 6th 2005 by Tirno

The Corries

Slightly reluctant to contribute to this for the reasons stated above, but if it is a song you like , then the best version I could recommend would be by "The Corries". I'm sure it's on several of their recordings - try "Foot Stompin" website, or do a "Google" search for "Corries".

# Posted on September 6th 2005 by Kenny

M's Weddin' ~

Back to the future:
http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display.php/1797

# Posted on September 22nd 2005 by ceolachan

Mind you........

Good enough for Noel Hill...........

# Posted on April 26th 2007 by Kenny