Boy in the Gallery (The)

AKA The boy I love is up in the gallery
First published 1885
Lyrics George Ware Music George Ware Roud RNV40136

Music Hall performers Jenny Hill
Nelly Power
Marie Lloyd
Folk performances 

I'm a young girl and have just come over
Over from the country where they do things big
And amongst the boys I've got a lover
And since I've got a lover why I don't care a fig.

 The boy I love is up in the gallery
The boy I love is looking down at me
There he is, can't you see, waving of his handkerchief
As happy as the Robin that sits in the tree.

The boy that I love, they call him a cobbler
But he's not a cobbler allow me to state
For Johnny is a tradesman and he works in the Boro'
Where they sole and heal them whilst you wait.


Now if I were a duchess and had a lot of money
I'd give it to the boy that's going to marry me
But I haven't got a penny so we'll live on love and kisses
And be just as happy as the birds in the tree.

George Ware (1829-1895) started out as a singer-songwriter in the Halls, but later made most of his money as an agent. Aside from The Boy I Love, he also wrote The House that Jack Built for Sam Cowell and The Whole Hog or None for EW Mackney. Richard Baker summarises his career before he became an agent:

In his younger days, Ware had been a singer too; before that, he was a sailor and for a time, a soldier, who entertained his barrack-room mates with ballads he had written himself. He made his first stage appearance in 1845 at Moy’s Music Hall, now the Victoria Palace, but it was not until the late 1850s that he made a name for himself as ‘the extraordinary three-voiced singer’ on account of his ability to sing alto, tenor and bass

Richard Baker: British Music Hall, p234

He originally sold the rights to sing The Boy I love to Nelly Power whilst he was acting as her agent, though at some point it featured in the repertoire of Jenny Hill. Ware later made the biggest discovery of his life when he heard a 15 year old Marie Lloyd singing it. He quickly signed her up, but made it clear that the song belonged to Nelly.

Marie Lloyd never had much problem in finding hit songs though! I have heard this song sung a number of times in singarounds and sessions, and its often described as a Marie Lloyd song, perhaps reflecting its presence in the plays, films and novels that have featured Lloyd over the years.

When folks sing this they tend to recognise it as a Music Hall Song, so it falls into the category “Classics” in my schema…

Sources:

A modern rendition: