Hi, canny man

"Hi, canny man hoy a ha'penny oot" is a famous Geordie folk song written in the 19th century by Harry Nelson, in a style deriving from music hall. Nelson was a well-known Geordie singer/comedian in the late 19th/early 20th century and is credited with writing the song.

"Hi, canny man hoy a ha'penny oot"
Song by Harry Nelson
LanguageEnglish (Geordie)
Writtenc. 1862
Published1862
Songwriter(s)Harry Nelson

Lyrics

The song is based on the old Geordie tradition, which was still a common occurrence in the 1950s, and still (very occasionally) takes place today. As the bride and groom were leaving the church, they would throw coppers to the boys and girls gathered around outside. This would be to calls from the youngsters of "Hoy oot" or similar. These words were eventually written into the song – as "Hi, canny man hoy a ha'penny oot, Ye'll see some fun thor is ne doot, Where ivvor Aa gan ye'll heor them shoot, Hi, canny man, hoy a ha'penny oot."

HI, CANNY MAN

Ne doot ye aall knaa whe Aa am, so Aa've come here te tell ye,
The way the folks aall laugh at me, it's nearly drove me crazy,
If Aa put on me Sunday claes at neet when Aa gan oot,
The folks aroond the neyborhood is sure to start an' shoot.

Chorus:
Hi, canny man, hoy a ha'penny oot,
Ye'll see some fun thor is ne doot,
Where ivvor Aa gan ye'll heor them shoot,
Hi, canny man, hoy a ha'penny oot.

Once Aa went te see the play - Aa made the folks aall glower,
A chep says that's "Aad Monkey Nuts", 'twas then Aa said "Give ower",
Aa teuk a front seat in the staals, commenced to leuk aboot,
When ivorybody in the place, at once began te shoot.

Chorus:

Once Aa thought that Aa'd get wed - née langer Aa wad tarry,
Aa bowt the ring, so off Aa went, ma single life te "barry",
The Parson got the sarvice ower, then Aa began te "laff",
When coming oot th' church agyen, the folks began te chaff,

SPOKEN:- Chaff, Aa think they did, an' shoot at the top o' thor voices -

Chorus:

Comments on variations to the above version

In the early 19th century, as today, there were cheap books and magazines.

Many of these "chapbooks" were on poor quality paper to a poor standard and with poor quality print. The works were copied with no thoughts of copyright, and the work required very little proof-reading, and what was done was not required to a high standard. Consequently, the dialect words of songs varied between editions.

This particular song shows several variations between the various published versions, some very minor, mainly in the spelling of the words, and sometimes variations within the same edition. Some of the most common are listed below:

Generally

all and aall
iverybody and ivorybody
te and to
than
and then
the and th'
tuek and teuk

Discography

The same artist also recorded "Our Jennie", both later in his career, and both have survived and are available on the CD "Various Artists - Wor Nanny's A Mazer: Early Recordings Of Artists From The North East 1904-1933" (on Phonograph, PHCD2K1)[1] The full list of tracks on this CD are as follows:

ordertitleartist
1Wor Nanny's A MazerC. Ernest Catcheside Warrington
2Blaydon RacesJ.C. Scatter
3Alpine EchoesHarton Colliery Band
4Geordie Haad The BairnJamieson Dodds
5Cushy ButterfieldC. Ernest Catcheside Warrington
6Hi, canny manHarry Nelson
7The Neighbors Doon BelaaJamieson Dodds
8Tyneside PolicemanJ.C. Scatter
9The Cliffs Of Old TynemouthC. Ernest Catcheside Warrington
10Our Jemmie (with patter)Harry Nelson
11Johnson and High Level HornpipeJas. Brown
12Keep Your Feet Still Geordie HinnyDewey Gibson
13Last NightC. Ernest Catcheside Warrington
14Adam Buckam O!, Wrap UpErnest J. Potts
15Whistling GeordieJimmy James
16The Keel RowAnthony Charlton
17Hexham Races (Northumbrian Smallpipes)Felton Lonnin
18Albert Before The Means Test Committee Parts 1 & 2Albert Burdon & Company

See also

Geordie dialect words

Recordings

References

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