"The Ryans and The Pittmans" [1] is a popular Newfoundland folk song. It tells of the romantic entanglements of a sailor named Bob Pittman, and his desire to sail home to finally marry his "sweet Biddy". The song is also known as "We'll Rant and We'll Roar", after the first line of the chorus; however, this is also the name by which some foreign variants are known.
It is based on a traditional English capstan shanty, "Spanish Ladies", which describes headlands sighted on a sailor's homeward voyage through the English Channel. "Spanish Ladies" has a number of variants: New England whalers sang of "Yankee Whalermen", while their Pacific counterparts sang of Talcuhano Girls. A more landlocked drover's version surfaced in Australia as "Brisbane Ladies".
Verses 2, 8, 9, and 10 of the Newfoundland version are adapted from that of the whalers; the remainder were composed around 1875 by Henry W. LeMessurier. It was printed in Old Songs of Newfoundland (1912) by James Murphy. The places mentioned in the song are outports [2] in and around Placentia Bay, Newfoundland.
The most famous recent version of the song was recorded by Great Big Sea.
THE RYANS AND THE PITTMANS
The Irish language was once widely spoken on the island of Newfoundland before largely disappearing there by the early 20th century. The language was introduced through mass immigration by Irish speakers, chiefly from counties Waterford, Tipperary and Cork. Local place names in the Irish language include Newfoundland and St. John's Ballyhack, Cappahayden, Kilbride and St. Bride's, Duntara, Port Kirwan and Skibbereen (Scibirín). The dialect of Irish spoken in Newfoundland is said to resemble the Munster Irish of the 18th century.
The Digital Songs or Digital Song Sales chart ranks the best-selling digital songs in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by Billboard magazine. Although it originally started tracking song sales the week of October 30, 2004, it officially debuted in the issue dated January 22, 2005, and merged all versions of a song sold from digital music distributors. Its data was incorporated in the Hot 100 three weeks later. Since October 2004, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboard's music singles charts. The decision was based on the dramatic increase of the digital market while commercial single sales in a physical format were becoming negligible.
"The Banks Of Newfoundland" is the earliest Newfoundland composition set down in music notation. It was composed by Chief Justice Francis Forbes in 1820 and published in a piano arrangement by Oliver Ditson of Boston. Originally composed as a dance, it was treated as a march by the soldiers of Royal Newfoundland Regiment during World War I; it later became the Regiment's authorized march.
"Hard, Hard Times" is a traditional Newfoundland folk song/ballad, adapted from an earlier English song, "Rigs of the Times" by William James Emberley. The song has been sung and recorded by a number of Newfoundland musicians.
Bungi is a dialect of English with substratal influence from Scottish English, the Orcadian dialect of Scots, Norn, Scottish Gaelic, French, Cree, and Ojibwe (Saulteaux). It was spoken by the Scottish Red River Métis in present-day Manitoba, Canada.
Brisbane Ladies is an Australian folksong and is one of many adaptations of Spanish Ladies. The version given below is the most commonly sung, but the original mentions Nanango favorably as "that jolly old township". The song is also known as "Augathella Station".
The Earl and the Girl is a musical comedy in two acts by Seymour Hicks, with lyrics by Percy Greenbank and music by Ivan Caryll. It was produced by William Greet and opened at the Adelphi Theatre in London on 10 December 1903. It transferred to the Lyric Theatre on 12 September 1904, running for a total of 371 performances. It also ran at the Casino Theatre in New York beginning on 4 November 1905 for 148 performances, starring Eddie Foy and W. H. Denny. A production toured Australia in 1906 and 1907. A revival in London in 1914 ran for a total of 107 performances, and there were later revivals and tours.
Al Pittman was a Canadian writer and teacher from Newfoundland.
"Spanish Ladies" is a traditional British naval song, describing a voyage from Spain to the Downs from the viewpoint of ratings of the Royal Navy.
Toslow is a resettled fishing community in Placentia Bay on the island of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The village was located in a natural harbour called Presque Harbour. According to Howley, the name is believed to be a corruption of the French for silver cup because "the little harbour is cup-like, and the quartz in the rocky cliffs give it a silver-like appearance".
"The Lochmaben Harper" or "The Blind Harper" is a traditional British Folk ballad and is one of the ballads collected by Francis Child in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads (1882–1898).
The Fishermen's Protective Union was a workers' organisation and political party in the Dominion of Newfoundland. In many ways, the development of the FPU matched that of the United Farmers movement in parts of Canada.
Resettlement in Newfoundland and Labrador terms refers to an organized approach to centralize the population into growth areas. It is used in the current context when referring to a voluntary relocation initiated from isolated communities themselves.
Oscar Brand was a North American folk singer, songwriter, author and radio host. He released nearly 100 albums and composed hundreds of songs, among them Canadian patriotic songs, songs of the U.S. Armed Forces, sea shanties, presidential campaign songs over the years, and songs of protest. His discography is extensive.
"The Snows They Melt the Soonest" is an English folk song dating back at least as far as 1821. It was mentioned, along with the lyrics, in Blackwood's Magazine (Edinburgh) of that year.
Touton refers to a popular traditional dish from Newfoundland, most usually thought of as a pancake-like bread dough commonly made with risen dough. Although pancakes are rarely made from homemade bread dough in Newfoundland, the memory of regional terms still exists in younger generations, such as the British English term tiffin, meaning "small lunch". The dish has a long list of regionally-distinct names, and can refer to two different types of baked or fried dough: the dough cake variant, usually fried; and a baked bun variant, made with pork fat. Toutons are usually served at breakfast or brunch and are on the breakfast menus of many local restaurants.
"The Collier’s Rant" is a traditional Geordie folk song written many years ago, the writer is unknown. It is one of the oldest mining songs in existence. It was already popular, and had been for how long we do not know, when Joseph Ritson published it in his Northumbrian Garland in 1793. It is still a very popular piece by choirs throughout the North East of England.
Henry William LeMessurier was a civil servant and politician in Newfoundland. He represented Burin in the Newfoundland House of Assembly from 1885 to 1889 as a member of the Reform Party.
