Tuesday 31 July 2012
Tune of the Day: Hurrah for the Bonnets of Blue
Traditional English jig
This tune is often considered to be from Northumberland, even though its earliest appearance, an arrangement for voice and piano published in New York in 1827, attributes it to London-born composer Alexander Lee.
“Blue Bonnets” was a common nickname for the Scots, stemming from the custom of Jacobite troops to identify themselves with a white cockade worn on a blue bonnet, the only thing that passed for a uniform in those days. The white cockade emblem is said to have originated when Bonnie Prince Charlie plucked a wild rose and pinned it to his hat.