Roger Ruff or A drop of good beer

AKARoger Ruff
I likes a drop of good beer
A drop of good beer
LyricsJB GeogheganMusic JB GeogheganRoudRN21415
Music Hall performersWilliams at Wilton’s 1863!
JB Geoghegan
Folk performancesSource Singers
Unkown,1880s? England : Gloucestershire
Unknown, 189 England
Blann, Michael, no date, England : Sussex
Dickinson, Harvey, no date, England : Devon
Fry, Edmund, no date, England : Devon : Lydford

Modern performances
Bob Blake 1971
Roger Rough: A drop of Good Beer (Roud no. 21415)
from the Smithsonian collection: by JB Geoghegan

I'm Roger Rough, a ploughman,
A ploughman's son am I,
And like my thirsty feyther,
My throttle's always dry;
Let t' world go wrang, to me its reet..
What need I interfere?..
I work and I sing from morn till neet,
And then I drinks my beer;
For, I likes a drop o' good beer, I does.
I'm fond of a drop o good beer, I is;
Let gentlemen fine sit down to their wine,
But I likes a drop o' good beer, I does.


There's Sally, thats my wife, sir,
Loves beer as well as me,
Who's the happiest woman in life, sir,
Who's happy as woman can be:
Who does her work, takes care t'bairns..
No gossiping neighbors near..
And, as every Saturday neet returns,
Like me, Sal drinks her beer;
For, Sarah likes her beer, she does;
She's fond on a drop of good beer, she is:
Let gentlemen fine sit down to their wine,
Sarah she likes her beer, she does.


There's my owd man, God bless him!
He's now turned eighty-five;
Hard work can never distress him,
He's the happiest chap alive;
He labors well, 'as gotten his health,
His heart and head is clear;
Possessed of these, he needs no wealth;
So he sings, and drinks his beer;
For, the ow'd man likes his beer, he does,
He's fond on a drop of good beer, he is:
Let gentlemen fine sit down to their wine,
But the ow'd man likes his beer, he does.


So, lads, need no persuasion,
But fill your glasses round;
We'll never fear invasion,
While barley grows i' th ground;
Let discord cease, and joys increase
Wi' every coming year;
Possessed of these, and blessed wi' peace,
Why, we'll sing and well drink our beer;
For, we likes a drop of good beer, we does,
We're fond on a drop of good beer, we is;
Let gentlemen fine sit down to their wine,
But we likes a drop of good beer, we does  


A drop of good beer 
from John Ashton 1888 (Roud no. 1502)
Come one and all, both great and small,
With voices loud and clear,
And let us sing, bless Billy the King,
Who bated the tax upon beer.

For I likes a drop of good beer, I does,
I’se pertickler fond of my beer, I is,
And ----- his eyes, whoever he tries
To rob a poor man of his beer.

Let Ministers shape the Duty on Cape,
And cause Port wine to be dear,
So that they keep, the bread and meat cheap,
And gie us a drop of good beer.

In drinking of rum, the maggots will come,
And soon bald pates will appear;
I never goes out, but I carries about,
My little pint noggin of beer.

My wife and I, feel always dry,
At market on Saturday night,
Then a noggin of beer, I never need fear,
For my wife always says it is right.

In harvest field, there’s nothing can yield,
The labouring man such good cheer,
To reap and sow, and make barley grow,
And to give them a skinfull of beer.


 
From the Derby Mercury, July 16, 1851, presumably in response to the great exhibition at Crystal Palace:
 BEER -A LAY OF THE CRYSTAL PALACE.
 BY A COUNTRY GENTLEMAN. 
 I've come up to see 
 The world's industry, 
 And hours I've wandered here, 
 And I'm out of breath, 
 And tired to death, 
 And I can't get a bottle of beer! 
  
 For I like a drop of good beer, 
 It's worth all the wish-wash here, 
 And dang their eyes 
 If I'll eat their stale pies 
 Without a pint bottle of beer
  
 The ham and the veal 
 Is as hard as deal, 
 And the bread's as dry as a chip, 
 And the cakes are stale 
 And the cherries are pale, 
 And syrups I can't sit and sip. 
  
 For I want a drop of good beer, 
 The dust from my throat to clear; 
 They may shut up their shop. 
 With their nectar and pop, 
 If they don't get a barrel of beer! 
  
 I'm vastly afraid 
 Of their lemonade, 
 And besides it's a little too dear; 
 For drenching your throttle 
 At sixpence a bottle 
 Is awful compared to beer. 
  
 For I like a drop of good beer, 
 But they won't let them keep it here; 
 I'd have let the whole gang 
 Of executives hang 
 If I'd thought they'd have stopped my beer.
  
 Coffee and tea 
 Won't do for me, 
 At two in the afternoon; 
 And I don't mind the price, 
 But I never eat ice, 
 Or anything else with a spoon. 
  
 For I like a drop of good beer, 
 The committee were wrong I fear, 
 When they wouldn't let pass 
 Reed. Guinness, or Bass, 
 Or any like sample of beer! 
  
 In Coalbrook Dale 
 They brew good ale, 
 And I wish we had some of it here, 
 If instead of their gates 
 They'd have filled some crates 
 With little pint bottles of beer!
  
 For I must have a drop of good beer, 
 And I'll go if I can't get it here, 
 And I'll come no more, 
 For the show is a bore, 
 If they won't let you have any beer!

This is one of several similar songs, all with a chorus along the line of:

For I likes a drop of good beer, I does,
I’se pertickler fond of my beer, I is,
And —– his eyes, whoever he tries
To rob a poor man of his beer.

From Ashton, published 1888.

As far as I can tell these songs start appearing in 1830- 40. John Ashton’s version published in 1888 is given above, but variations of this type, usually thanking King Billy for making beer cheaper, appear in broadsides going back to the 1830s (though its hard to be accurate). These versions (Roud number 1502) are extremely unlikely to originate from an earlier date, as William IV (a.k.a. Billy the king) reigned 1830-37, and legislation designed to reduce the price of beer was introduced via the Beer House Act in 1830 (this was a response to the perceived problems caused by consumption of cheap gin).

As you can see from the 3rd version above, it was adapted in 1851 to welcome the Great Exhibition at Crystal Palace.

It seems reasonable to suggest that when Geoghegan published Roger Ruff he was essentially publishing a new variant of the earlier song. The earliest record of the Roger Ruff/Rough version is the British library catalogue entry:

Roger Ruff, or A Drop of Good Beer; written and composed by JB Geoghegan [song begins: “I’m Roger Ruff”.] Published in London in 1860.

British Library

The earliest occurrence that I can find of a song called Roger Ruff/Rough in The Era is in 1863, sung by Mr Williams at Wilton’s Music Hall in London (the Music Hall song is most often described as Roger Ruff the Ploughman). There are also references to a song about good beer featuring a ploughman and/or Roger Ruff in local papers in the 1860s and 70s, but none earlier than this.

Charles Rice, the early Music Hall performer, describes singing a song called “A drop of Good Beer” in 1850, but as there is no mention of Roger or the Ploughboy, this is unlikely to be the version written by Geoghegan.

The song was collected by several of the prestigious song collectors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries including Sanbine Baring-Gould, Frank Kidson, Alfred Williams and Lucy Broadwood.

The VWML has a copy of a letter to The Sporting Times in 1903 from a correspondent who remembers hearing Geoghegan singing the song, and who enjoyed singing it himself.

In the folk world the various versions may be sung to different tunes, and verses may cross from one version to the other…. There is a nice version of Bob Blake singing something like the Roger Ruff version here (though the title and Roud number refer to the earlier version).

Sources:

Magpie Lane sing the King Billy version

Last Updated on August 6, 2024 by John Baxter | Published: February 21, 2020

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