Coronation Day
First Published | 1901 |
Writer/composer | AJ Mills / Geo. Everard | Roud | RN24192 |
Music Hall Performers | Charles Bignell |
Folk performances | Collected from the singing of: Costello, Cecilia; England : Warwickshire ; 1967 |
There's a good time coming, boys Later on - yes, in the future; What a day of jubilation When the king is crowned! What with war and the price of sugar Trade's been awful for the nation But we're going to do our level best To pull it round For then we'll march along with flags and banners With our Sunday manners We will spend our tanners Then on concertinas and pianos We will play "God save the King!" Oh! on Coronation Day, on Coronation Day We'll have a spree, a Jubilee And shout "Hip Hip Hooray" For we'll all be merry, drinking whisky, wine and sherry, All be merry on Coronation Day! [Twice] We're sure to take the Missis out And the kiddies for a "beano" Deck our windows and doorways Out with "Union Jacks" We'll illuminate the yard With Chinese lanterns ha'penny candles And in cloth "Red, White and Blue" We'll dress our chimney stacks And when the night-time comes we'll all endeavour, Just to keep together. Never mind the weather, With a saucy smile and "peacock's feather" We will tickle all the girls Nobody will go to "by by" Each one will be too excited, All night we will keep it up, And then will start again. It isn't every day we get A chance to praise a king and sportsman; Briton's true sincerely hope He had a glorious reign In wine we'll toast each statesman and commander, Who would never pander To a pro-Boer slander, And we'll bless our good Queen Alexandra, Who is in dear to every heart
Songwriters AJ Mills and George Everard certainly churned out a lot of songs, and I can’t see a lot of quality control went into this one before it was published. I wonder how often it was actually performed by Charles Bignell? my searches in contemporary newspapers have not turned up any reviews of him singing it…
It must have had some degree of popularity as a parody of the chorus was remembered almost 70 years later by Cecilia Costello:
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%3A24192
- Kilgarrif Sing Us
- Lyrics and Sheet Music: Francis and Day’s 21st Comic Collection (Personal)