Blaydon Races - an orchestral arrangement of the choral arrangement I made for my daughter Sam's marriage to Mike - a proper Newcastle United football fan!...
The original dialect would have the text thus:
Aw went to Blaydon Races, 'twas on the ninth of Joon, Eiteen hundred an' sixty-two, on a summer's efternoon; Aw tyuk the 'bus frae Balmbra's, an' she wis heavy laden, Away we went alang Collingwood Street, that's on the road to Blaydon.
(chorus):
Oh lads, ye shud only seen us gannin', We pass'd the foaks upon the road just as they wor stannin'; Thor wes lots o' lads an' lasses there, all wi' smiling faces, Gawn alang the Scotswood Road, to see the Blaydon Races.
We flew past Airmstrang's factory, and up to the "Robin Adair", Just gannin' doon te the railway bridge, the 'bus wheel flew off there. The lasses lost their crinolines off, an' the veils that hide their faces, An' aw got two black eyes an' a broken nose in gan te Blaydon Races.
(chorus)
When we gat the wheel put on away we went agyen, But them that had their noses broke they cam back ower hyem; Sum went to the Dispensary an' uthers to Doctor Gibbs, An' sum sought out the Infirmary to mend their broken ribs.
(chorus)
Noo when we gat to Paradise thor wes bonny gam begun; Thor was fower-an-twenty on the 'bus, man, hoo they danced an' sung; They called on me to sing a sang, aw sung them "Paddy Fagan", Aw danced a jig an' swung my twig that day aw went to Blaydon.
(chorus)
We flew across the Chain Bridge reet into Blaydon toon, The bellman he was callin' there, they call him Jackie Brown; Aw saw him talkin' to sum cheps, an' them he was pursuadin' To gan an' see Geordy Ridley's concert in the Mechanics' Hall at Blaydon.
(chorus)
The rain it poor'd aw the day an' myed the groons quite muddy, Coffy Johnny had a white hat on - they war shootin' "Whe stole the cuddy." There wes spice stalls an' munkey shows an' aud wives selling ciders, An' a chep wiv a hapenny roond aboot, shootin' "Noo, me boys, for riders."
(chorus)
The song is now usually sung with with more modern language but retaining the tyneside dialect. For example the chorus might be sung:
Oh! me lads, ye shud a' seen us gannin, Passin' the folks upon the road just as they were stannin'. Thor wis lots o' lads and lasses there, all wi' smiling faces Gannin' alang the Scotswood Road to see the Blaydon Races.
I stuck mostly to the more modern version, but with an introduction:
This song is writ for Mike, and for Sam, For Mike & Sam, and all Newcastle fans, but especially Mikey the fan of fans!
I went to Blaydon races Twas on the 9th of June Eighteen Hundred and Sixty Two On a summer's afternoon I took the bus from Balmbras And she was heavy laden Away we went along Collingwood Street To see the race at Blaydon
Chorus:
Oh me lads, you should've seen us gannin Passing the folks along the road And all of them were starin' All the lads and lasses there They all had smilin' faces Gannin along the Scotswood Road To see the Blaydon races
We flew past Armstrong's factory And up by the Robin Adair But gannin ower the Railway Bridge The bus wheel flew off there The lasses lost their crinolenes And veils that hide their faces I got two black eyes and a broken nose In gannin to Blaydon races
Chorus
Now when we got the wheel back on Away we went again But them that had their noses broke They went back ower hyem Some went to the dispensary And some to Doctor Gibbs And some to the infirmary To mend their broken ribs
Chorus
I didn't include this verse:
We flew across the Chain Bridge Reet into Blaydon Toon The barman he was calling then They called him Jackie Broon I saw him talking to some chaps And them he was persuadin' To gan and see Geordie Ridley's show At the Mechanics' Hall in Blaydon
Chorus
Now when we got to Paradise There were bonny games begun There were four and twenty on the bus And how we danced and sung They called on me to sing a song So I sang 'em 'Paddy Fagan' I danced a jig and I swung me twig The day I went to Blaydon
Chorus
I didn't include the final stanza:
The rain it poured down all the day And made the ground quite muddy Coffee Johnny had a white hat on The old wife stole a cuddy There were spice stalls and monkey shows And old wives selling ciders And the chap on the ha'penny roundabout Saying 'Any more lads for riders?
Chorus
The Blaydon Races is probably the best known of all the Geordie songs and sung at many a football match. It is the unofficial anthem of Newcastle United Football Club. It was first sung by Gateshead born Geordie Ridley (1835 - 1864) at Balmbra's Music Hall in Newcastle back on 5 June 1862 at a testimonial for Tyneside's sporting hero, British oarsman, Harry Clasper.
The race meetings were held on an island in the middle of the Tyne. Rumour has it that at low tide, there are places on the Tyne at Newcastle where the water is shallow enough to walk across it.... not to be recommended!
The last Blaydon race meeting was held on 2 September 1916 A riot broke out when a winning horse was disqualified, and the races were never held again.