| AKA | One more glass One more glass before we’re parting |
| First Published | 1875 |
| Writer/composer | EV Page / Vincent Davies | Roud | RN23599 |
| Music Hall Performers | Mr F Jonghmanns |
| Folk performances | Collected from the singing of: Scott, Harry ; England : Bedfordshire ; 1959 |
From Henry De Marsan's new comic and sentimental singer's journal (No. 128, c1876)
One more Glass before we Part
Convivial Song
Words: EV Page; Music: Vincent Davies
Sung nightly by F.Jonghmans
I delight to gather round me
True and trusty friends of mine:
At my table they surround me,
Then I feel a king divine ;
Then I say. "Come what may,
Let's enjoy our fleeting day;
Pass the glass, we'll all be gay,
And sing before we go."
One more glass before we're parting.
Drink with me before you go.
One more glass before you're starting.
Just another — now don't say no!
Life to me would be no treasure,
If I lived a life alone ;
Health and happiness and pleasure,
These are in the gifts I own
These I share everywhere.
Giving all I have to spare:
So pass the glass, well all drink fair,
And sing before we go.
If my guests be two or twenty,
"More the merrier" say I
In the cellar there is plenty,
All are welcome come and try.
When the fun's nearly done,
When our jovial time has run,
Drink to every absent one
And sing before you go
A song written for singer Frederick Jonghmans, usually referred to as Mr F Jonghmans, or Herr F. Jonghmanns, though spellings vary . His brief biography is given below. The words were written by music hall manager and part time songwriter, Edwin V Page, with music by Vincent Davies.
Ferdinand Jonghmans (1822- 87) was musical director and a popular performer at Evans’ Song and Supper Rooms, where he made his reputation as a baritone singer of patriotic songs and selections from the operas. He was particularly famous for his rendition of Rule Britannia. When Evans’s closed in 1880 he performed in London and the Provinces, but bookings were hard to come by and Music Hall audiences were thought to have lost interest in “legitimate” classical repertoire. Jonghmans struggled financially and mentally, dying a few years later, aged 66. His daughters performed in the Halls as The Sisters Jonghmans.
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%3A23599
- Kilgarrif Sing Us
- Lyrics and Sheet Music : Bodleian mediated copying
- https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/275938489481
- Jonghmans’ Obituaries in British Newspaper Archive:
Last Updated on July 8, 2025 by John Baxter | Published: June 28, 2025
