Gower Wassail


The Gower Wassail is a wassail song from Gower in Wales, UK. Wassailing is an ancient English Christmastime drinking ritual. The song is printed in A.L. Lloyd's book Folk Song in England, having been heard from Phil Tanner. The song is English but in structure bears similarities to the Irish traditional song Here's A Health, which is in the same vein as The Liberty Song. Some of the lyrics closely resemble another popular wassailing song, 'Gloucestershire Wassail'

Lyrics

The majority of versions of the song begin with the same two stanzas, although pronouns vary. Following the second verse and chorus, the number of stanzas and their order vary from version to version. The primary difference between the lyrics that appear here is that one version is a dialogue between the wassailers and the master and mistress they are appealing to for hospitality. The other version is sung from the wassailers’ perspective alone. All the known stanzas are included below.
Chorus AChorus B
Fol de dol fol de dol de dol

Fol de dol de dol fol de dol de de

Fol de da ro fol de da di

Sing tu re lye do
Al dal di dal di dal

Dal di dal di dal

Dal di dal di dee

Sing deero, sing daddy

Sing too ral di do

Opening Stanzas

A-wassail, a-wassail throughout all the town

Our cup it is white and our ale it is brown

Our wassail is made of the good ale and cake

Some nutmeg and ginger, the best you can bake
Our wassail is made of the elderberry bough

And so my good neighbors we'll drink unto thou

Besides all on earth, you have apples in store

Pray let us come in for it's cold by the door

Dialogue VersionStandard Version
Carolers

Now master and mistress let your company forbear

To fill up our wassail with you cider and beer

We want none of your pale beer, nor none of your small

But a drop of your kilderkin, that's next to the wall



Now master and mistress if you are within

Pray send out your maid with her lily-white skin

For to open the door without more delay

For our time it is precious and we cannot stay



Master & Mistress

You've brought your wassail, which is very well known

But I can assure you we've as good of our own

As for your jolly wassail, we care not one pin

But its for your good company we'll let you come in



Together

Here's a health to our Cooley and her croo'ed horn

May God send her Master a good crop of corn

Of barley and wheat and all sorts of grain

May God send her Mistress a long life to reign



Carolers

Now Master and Mistress, know you will give

Unto our jolly wassail as long as you live

And if we do life to another new year

We'll call in again just to see who lives here		There's a master and a mistress sitting down by the fire

While we poor wassail boys stand out in the mire

Come you pretty maid with your silver headed pin

Pray open the door and let us come in



It's we poor wassail boys so weary and cold

Please drop some small silver into our bowl

And if we survive for another new year

Perhaps we may call and see who does live here



We know by the moon that we are not too soon

And we know by the sky that we are not too high

And we know by the stars that we are not too far

And we know by the ground that we are within sound



We hope that your apple trees prosper and bear

So that we may have cider when we call next year

And where you have one barrel we hope you'll have ten

So that we may have cider when we call again

Main references