First Published | 1906 |
Writer/composer | FW Leigh / G Bastow | Roud | RN25342 |
Music Hall Performers | George Bastow |
Folk performances | Remembered from the singing of Alice Kane’s father, early 20th century |
When I was in the army I was a cavalryman you know And whenever I went on parade A magnificent picture I made Through my galloping here And my galloping there This ridiculous habit I got And I'm hanged if I don't think I'm galloping now Whether up in the saddle or not And the people they stare at me so For it matters not where I go, It's Bumpety, bumpety, bumpety, bump as if I was riding my charger Bumpety, bumpety, bumpety, bump as proud as an Indian Rajah All the girls declare that I'm a gay old stager Hey, hey, clear the way here comes the galloping major. Last year I thought I'd treat myself To a holiday by the sea So I went, and my quarters I fixed Then I found that the bathing was mixed So I galloped away to a bathing machine In the busiest part of the day And I soon felt at home with the girls in the water And joined in their frivolous play They were beautiful creatures but lor' How they giggled as soon as they saw, me I always was a ladies man And a favourite with the sex Well, I called upon one Yesterday Though I won't give the lady away She started to talk of my army career And was quite interested you see But I got rather tired so we talked about her Which was more interesting to me And she said I'd been taking some wine For as soon as we sat down to dine, I went,
A big hit in the 1900s for George Bastow who, as well as singing in the character of a comedy “country bumpkin”, sang a number of songs which satirised the officer class. The Galloping Major has been revived many times. In the 1950/60s it featured in the repertoire of both by Flanagan and Allen and Stanley Holloway. In 1951 it featured in a British comedy film of same name. Folklorist Alice Kane in her Songs & Sayings of an Ulster Childhood remembered her father singing this song.
As sung by Harry Fay:
Sources:
- Entries in the Roud Indexes at the Vaughn Williams Memorial Library: https://archives.vwml.org/search/all:single[folksong-broadside-books]/0_50/all/score_desc/extended-roudNo_tr%3A25342
- Kilgarrif Sing Us
- Lyrics and Sheet Music: monologues.co.uk
- Image: WIKIPEDIA
Last Updated on June 1, 2021 by John Baxter | Published: May 19, 2021