My Rattling Mare and I

AKAThe old grey mare
Old bay mare and I
The country carrier
(My old wife and I)
LyricsHarry CliftonMusic Harry CliftonRoudRN1400
Music Hall Performers Harry Clifton
Folk performancesSource singers (all variants involving a horse)
William Randall, 1905, Hampshire, England
Alexander Robb, 1906, Scotland
Walter Wilcock, 1908, London, England
William Norton, 1908, London, England
Henry Norris, 1909, Surrey, England
Henry Burstow, 1911, Sussex, England
EH, 1929, Norfolk, England
Mararet Broughton, 1952, Surrey, England
Percy Webb, 1968, Suffolk, England
Percy Webb, 1970, Suffolk, England
John Hodson, 1982, Yorkshire, England
Bob Hingston, 1970s, Devon, England
Charlie Hill, 1976, Devon, England
Tony Harvey, yr?, Suffolk, England
Modern versions
John Goodluck
Nick Dow
Cohen Braithwaite Kilcoyne
My Old Wife 
Charactaristic Song
Written composed and performed by Mr Harry Clifton
[from Sheet Music H&C989, around 1866 or earlier, personal copy]

I merrily sing from morn till night,
And misery I defy,
And I've a wife who, with delight,
Sings just as happy as I.
She is the comfort of my life,
My darling and my pride,
For twenty years together, my boys,
We've travell'd it side by side.

Round goes the world,
Trouble I defy,
Jogging along together, my boys,
My dear old wife and I.

When homeward I'm returning, why,
She'll greet me with a smile;
Her dear old face beams with delight
In such a happy style.
"Sit down by the fireside,"
She'll say, "and take your tea."
She laughs and jokes on t'other side,--
A picture, boys, to see.

In winter, when the snow is down,
She'll meet me at the door,
With: Come in, lad, and warm yourself,
You must be cold, I'm sure."
She brings my slippers, warm and dry,
And lays them by my side;
I never could find her equal, though
I search the world so wide.

I smoke my pipe, and sing my song,
Content to stay at home,
As happy as the day is long,
And ne'er inclined to roam.
There's many talk of single bliss,
And for their freedom sigh;
But that will never be the case
With my old wife and I.


MY RATTLING MARE AND I  [around 1866]

I am a country carrier. A jovial soul am I.
I whistle and sing from morn till night and trouble I defy.
I've one to bear me company. Of work she does her share.
It's not my wife, upon my life, but a rattling old bay mare.

Round goes the world. 
Trouble I defy,
Jogging along together, my boys, 
My rattling mare and I.

Up and down the countryside the mare and I we go.
The folks they kindly greet us as we journey to and fro.
The little ones they cheer us, and the old ones stop and stare,
And lift their eyes with great surprise at Joe and his rattling mare.

And when the loads are heavy, or travelling uphill,
I'm by her side assisting her; she works with such good will.
I know she loves me well enough because the whip I spare.
I'd rather hurt myself than hurt my rattling old bay mare.

And when the town we reach, she rattles over the stones.
She lifts her hoofs up splendidly, not one of your lazy drones.
It's "Clear the road" when Joseph comes. "My crawlers, all take care
Of the carrier's cart, the driver smart, and the rattling old bay mare."

I would not change my station with the noblest in the land.
I would not be Prime Minister or anything so grand.
I would not be an alderman to live in luxury
And state if it would separate the old bay mare and I

Harry Clifton wrote these two songs to the same tune apparently around the same time. They more or less share a chorus and there are other similarities …

The song has been collected from multiple source singers in England and one in Scotland, always sung with a focus on “the Rattling Mare” rather than “the old wife”. The two versions both appear under the Roud number 1400 in the Vaughn Williams Memorial Library, and both appear multiple times in 19th-century broadsheets and songbooks, on both sides of the Atlantic.

Modern traditional singers, tend to sing it under the title of “The country carrier” following version sung by Percy Webb in 1970. Most singers seem to have recognised it as a Music Hall song that has passed into the tradition.

The earliest reference to My Old Wife:

July 8, 1866; The Era 

Earliest reference to My Rattling Mare and I:

Illustrated London News – 18 August 1866

Sources:

Cohen Braithwaite Kilcoyne sings it at The Bridge Folk Club:

Last Updated on June 29, 2023 by John Baxter | Published: May 29, 2020

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