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"Constant Billy", also known as "Cease Your Funning", "Death of Parker",
"Lofty Mountains" or President Parker" is an English Morris Dance in either
6/8 or duple versions and A Major (Bacon & Raven-Adderbury, Oddington & Wheatly versions;
Williamson), F Major (Bacon–Bidford),
G Major (Bacon–Bucknell, Eynsham, Field Town, Headington, Ilmington, Barnes, Kershaw MS,
Longborough & Sherborne, Mallinson–Adderbury and Headington versions)or B Flat Major
(Bacon–Bampton).
The parts are played AB (Barnes), AAB, x6 (Adderbury, Bampton, Bucknell versions),
AABB, x4 (Headington version), AABB (Kershaw, Williamson) and ABABABA (Bacon-Bidford).
The tune was very popular throughout England and became a morris standard, being set to a variety of dances. Cotswold morris versions are numerous and come from the areas of Adderbury, Bampton, Bidford, Bucknell, Eynsham, Field Town (Leafield), Headington, Ilmington, Longborough, Oddington, Sherborne and Wheatley. In modern times the tune is usually played in the key of G Major to accommodate the morris melodeon. Morris dancers traditionally sing these words while walking in a circle as a preamble to the dance proper: Oh, Billy, my constant Billy, It was printed in Bacon's A Handbook of Morris Dances (1974), Barnes' English Country Dance Tunes, vol. 2 (2005), The Joseph Kershaw Manuscript (1993), Karpeles & Schofield's A Selection of 100 English Folk Dance Airs (1951), Mallinson's Mally's Cotswold Morris Book, vol. 1 (1988), Neal's Espérance Morris Book, vol. 1 (1910), Raven's English Country Dance Tunes (1984) and Williamson's English, Welsh, Scotch and Irish Fiddle Tunes (1976). It was recorded by John Kirkpatrick on Plain Capers (1976/1992) and Francis Shergold on Greeny Up (1988. The Bampton version of the melody). |