Perhaps the most requested thing Civil War soldiers asked for in their letters home were "Songsters" - small pocket sized books that featured the lyrics of popular songs of the day (and only the lyrics - there was no written music in the songsters).
I recently attended a lecture/zoom presentation by Dr. Catherine Bateson on the Irish Music of the civil war. In her research she estimated that over 200 Irish Songs were published during the war years (and possibly many more) out of the over 11,000 pieces of sheet music that were produced during the conflict.
During the Zoom presentation I had asked if she was aware of any songsters that specifically were for the Irish and featured Irish Music, but she was unable to answer due to many questions and time constraints. But a fellow attendee directed me to one that he was aware of - "The Emerald Book of Irish Melodies."
Published in 1863 by Dick and Fitzgerald of New York and sold for only thirty cents a copy it was readily available to the public and the soldiers of the North. There is no listed author so likely the publisher collected many popular songs of the day.
The book contains over 100 songs - the "Sentimental, Comic, Convivial, Political, and Patriotic songs of Erinia". It's divided into two sections, with the comic songs taking up the entirety of part 2. Some of the songs tell what tune goes with the song, but most don't - leaving it to the singer to use popular tunes of the day as the melody. Melodies from traditional Irish songs such as "Roisin the Bow" and "The Irish Jaunting Car" were used in many of the songs of the time.
The book also contained over 30 pages of ad's for other songsters and books published by Dick and Fitzgerald. There were a few other Irish themed songsters advertised - " The Charles O'Malley Irish Songster", "Fred Mays Comic Irish Songster", and "The Frisky Irish Songster" are a few examples.
There were also ads for Songsters by the popular Minstrels of the day - Christy's, Billy Birch's, and Bryants - as well as one for "The Little Mac Songster" to cash in on the popularity of General George McClellan among the Union Soldiers - he was also a favorite of the members of the Irish Brigade.
The book titles advertised present some interesting slices of 1860's everyday life. Some of the titles that caught my eye - "The Manufacture of Liquors, Wine, and Cordials", "The Daring Deeds of Good and Bad Women" (wish I could find that one) , "The Hangman of Newgate", "Barney Riordan, or the Adventures of a Bashful Irishman", "The Perfect Gentleman", "The Ladies Manual of Fancy Work", "Courtship Made Easy" and what I'm sure was a classic "Blunders in Behavior Corrected" (bet this would be useful by today's politicians). Most of these could be ordered by mail for less than a dollar a copy.
But back to the songs - a treasure trove with traditional classics like "Molly Bawn", "The Exile of Erin", "Kathleen Mavourneen", and "The Irish Jaunting Car" - along with many long forgotten songs like "The Land of Potatoes", "Dorans Ass", and "The Wake of Teddy the Tiller".
It will take a while to read them all - which will keep me busy during the pandemic - and I may perhaps add a tune to a few to try and revive them.
In many of the forgotten songs I found some golden nuggets of verse - here's one of my favorites from the song "Good Morrow to your Nightcap". ( A precursor to the session tune of similar name?)
Last Night, A Little Bowsy
With Whisky, Ale, and Cider
I asked young Betty Blowsy
To let me sit beside her
Her anger rose, as sour as sloes*
The little gipsy cocked her nose
So here I rid away to bid
Good morrow to your Nightcap
*Sloes are the bitter fruit of the blackthorn and used to make Sloe Gin
