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When I Was On Horseback

Steeleye Span

Text File

Steeleye Span
When I was on horseback
By Marcel Veltman

I am surprised to see nothing of this British Folk band on UG. In their days they were
mentioned next to Fairport Convention as the other band which dared to bring electrical
instruments into traditional folk. In fact, it was ex-Fairport member Ashley Hutchings
who was among the founding fathers. Lead singer Maddy Prior was considered by some to be
better then Sandy Denny. She could certaintainly raise more goose-flesh. Somewhere around
1975, with 'All around my Hat', they even brought a hitsingle up in the charts. Such a
feat was never accomplished by Fairport. 

Not intended to play along with the original record, but to allow the singer/guitarplayer
to do the song before his or her own audience. The chords in the first verse were those I
found right away, the second verse contains those I found while experimenting a bit. You
can do it either way, or change from one to the other through the song.

     Am                   G
When I was on horseback, wasn't I pretty
     Am                   C       Am
When I was on horseback, wasn't I gay
                                    C
Wasn't I pretty when I entered Cork city
                 G                            Am
And met with my downfall on the fourteenth of may

 Am                    G
Six jolly soldiers to carry my coffin
 Am                    C          Am
Six jolly soldiers to march by my side
                                C           Am
It's six jolly soldiers take a bunch of red roses
 C          G            Em      Am
And for to smell them as we go along

Beat the drum slowly and play the pipes only
Playing the deadmarch as we go along
And bring me to Tipperary and lay me down easy
I am a young soldier that've never done wrong

Instrumental break

Repeat first verse

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When I Was On Horseback

Steeleye Span