Blaydon Races

"Blaydon Races" (Roud #3511) is a Geordie folk song written in the 19th century by Geordie Ridley, in a style deriving from music hall. It is frequently sung by supporters of Newcastle United Football Club and Newcastle Falcons rugby club. Blaydon is a small town in Gateshead, situated about 4 miles (6.4 km) from Newcastle upon Tyne, in North East England. The race used to take place on the Stella Haugh 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Blaydon. Stella South Power Station (demolished in 1995) was built on the site of the track in the early 1950s, after the races had stopped taking place in 1916.

For the modern race, see Blaydon Race.
"Blaydon Races"
Song by Geordie Ridley
LanguageEnglish (Geordie)
Written1862
Published1891
Songwriter(s)Geordie Ridley

Lyrics

The song is quoted from the author's manuscript in Allan's[1] as follows:

Aa went to Blaydon Races, 'twas on the ninth of Joon,
Eiteen hundred an' sixty-two, on a summer's efternoon;
Aa tyuk the 'bus frae Balmbra's, an' she wis heavy laden,
Away we went 'lang Collin'wood Street, that's on the road to Blaydon.

Chorus:
Ah me lads, ye shudda seen us gannin',
We pass'd the foaks alang the road just as they wor stannin';
Thor wis lots o' lads an' lassies there, aal wi' smiling faces,
Gannin' 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 lassies lost their crinolines off, an' the veils that hide their faces,
An' aw got two black eyes an' a broken nose gannin' 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, aa sung them "Paddy Fagan",
Aa danced a jig an' swung my twig that day aa went to Blaydon.

(chorus)

We flew across the Chain Bridge reet into Blaydon toon,
The bellman he was callin' there, they call him Jackie Broon;
Aa 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 aall the day an' mayed the groons quite muddy,
Coffy Johnny had a white hat on – they war shootin' "Whe stole the cuddy."
There wis spice stalls an' munkey shows an' aud wives selling ciders,
An' a chep wiv a hapenny roond aboot, shootin' "Noo, me lads, for riders."

(chorus)

The song is now usually sung with more modern language but retaining the Tyneside dialect. For example the chorus might be sung:

Oh! me lads, ye shud a' seen w'us gannin,
Passin' the folks alang the road just as they were stannin'.
Aal the' lads and lasses there, aal wi' smiling faces,
Gannin' alang the Scotswood Road to see the Blaydon Races.

Tune: "Brighton".[2]

History

Ridley sang the song at a concert in Balmbra's Music Hall on 5 June 1862. It is likely that on this occasion the song ended with the exhortation to see Ridley's show on 9 June, and that the final verse was added for that later performance. Although the account of the trip to Blaydon is a fiction, the heavy rain and missing cuddy (horses) were reported in the local press.

The song was adopted as its marching anthem by the British Army Infantry soldiers of the Fifth of Foot (The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers), of Fenham Barracks, Newcastle upon Tyne. Today it is the Regimental Song of The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, the modern descendants of The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers.

Places mentioned

"Scotswood Road" was and still is a long road parallel to the left bank of the river Tyne, running westwards from Newcastle city to Benwell and Scotswood, and which at the time of the song ran through industrial and working-class areas. "Airmstrang's factory" was a large engineering works at Elswick, which made large guns and other firearms. The "Robin Adair" was a pub on Scotswood Road which has since been demolished. Paradise is a reference to the local dump on Scotswood Road.

150th anniversary campaign

In December 2010 an online petition was launched calling for "...a clear and sustained commitment on the part of Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead Councils to work hand-in-hand with the Geordie people...to help deliver an appropriate celebration of the 150th anniversary of Mr George Ridley's world-famous anthem of Tyneside." On 9 November 2011, Chi Onwurah MP presented a parliamentary petition to the Speaker of the House of Commons in support of the campaign. From August 2011, campaign group members were in discussions with the two councils. As a result of these discussions, the core campaign objective of delivering an on-street event on the actual anniversary of 9 June 2012 was achieved. A series of additional "satellite" events were also organised including a week-long beer festival at The Hotspur pub, Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne on the night of 9 June 2012.

Modern race

The Blaydon Race is a 5.9-mile athletics race from Newcastle to Blaydon that takes place on 9 June every year and starts off with the singing of 'The Blaydon Races', as the words are used as the basis for the whole race.[3]

As a football chant

Although 'Blaydon Races' is recognised as the Newcastle United FC supporters song, it has been adapted for use by many clubs throughout the United Kingdom. The geographical references (e.g. Scotswood Road) and dialect words (e.g. gannin') in the lyrics are changed to suit the club but the tune remains the same.

It can be argued that Gateshead FC can lay claim to this song, as Blaydon is in Gateshead as opposed to nearby Newcastle. Geordie Ridley himself was from Gateshead.

Queens Park Rangers F.C. use a similar chant:

Oh me lads you should have seen us coming,
Running down the Uxbridge Road,
You should have seen us coming,
All the lads and lasses smiles, upon their faces,
Running down the Uxbridge Road,
To see the Queens Park Rangers...

Some other clubs that use this style of chant are:

In recent years the original song has also been adopted by supporters of Newcastle Falcons rugby club.

Recordings
  • The Friends of Fiddler's Green on The Road to Mandalay, 1994
  • Bob Davenport and The Marsden Rattlers, released in 1971 on "BBC's Folk on 2 presents Northumbrian Folk" (BBC Records REC 118S [LP, UK, 1971])
  • In the opening scenes of The Lone Ranger (2013) the song playing in the background on an organ is "The Blaydon Races"[4]

Painting
William Irving's 1903 painting

William Irving's 1903 painting. 'The Blaydon Races – A Study from Life' is on show at the Shipley Art Gallery in Gateshead. The painting depicts the fairground festivities associated with the race.

Bobby Robson tribute

In November 2009 a charity version of 'Blaydon Races' was recorded by Jimmy Nail, Kevin Whately and Tim Healy, from the cast of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, in aid of the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, featuring an additional verse:[5][6]

And now a word for Bobby Robson, hero of the Toon; A football man, a gentleman, who never let we doon; A friendly word, a cheery smile, and brave right to the end; We're proud to say your one of wors, Sir Bob... Auf Wiedersehen.

gollark: *Try Xenon, and your shop will suddenly produce 1 million krist per hour - or your money back!*
gollark: *Xenon: the solution to all problems with shops*(note: sarcasm)
gollark: *Try Xenon now! The modern shop which does Stuff and Things (I haven't actually read the table in much detail!)*
gollark: Ah, this must be ***THE SHEEPOCALYPSE***, then.
gollark: 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵 🌵

See also

Notes
  1. Allan's Tyneside Songs, 1891
  2. Melody taken from Tyneside Songs 1927 edition and reengraved in Lilypond.
  3. "The Blaydon Race". blaydon-race.co.uk. The Blaydon Race. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  4. Thornton, Trevor (2013). "The Lone Ranger (2013) Soundtrack". songinmovie.com. Retrieved 16 July 2017. Blaydon races by Trevor Thornton
  5. "Auf Wiedersehen Pet stars sing Blaydon Races for Sir Bobby Robson". The Journal. 4 November 2009. Archived from the original on 4 November 2009. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
  6. "Auf Wiedersehen cast's charity song". Press Association. 4 November 2009. Archived from the original on 4 November 2009. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
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