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McAllister Dances Before the King

[ Roud 38986 ; Mudcat 174575 ; D.M. MacKenzie]

Alison McMorland: Herd Laddie o’ the Glen.

McAllister Dances Before the King is a poem by D.M. MacKenzie, probably from his book Highland Readings (Glasgow: Laidlaw & MacKenzie, 1935), a collection of humorous poems around Highland life which were originally published in the 1930s in the Glasgow Herald.

I’m not sure about the spelling of the protagonist. I haven’t seen MacKenzies book and can’t verify it there, but the websites that quote the poem usually give “McAllister” so I’m assuming this is correct. But Mary B. Maclean’s record has “McAlister”, Tobar an Dualchais uses “MacAllister”, and Alison McMorland has “MacAlister”.

Mary B. Maclean recited McAlister Dances Before the King on 2 October 2929 in Glasgow on the January 1930 78 rpm shellac record His Master’s Voice B 3252.

Sandy Scott (son of Willie Scott) recited McAllister Dances Before the King at King’s Seat of Auth, Kolty, Fifeshire on 16 August 1960. This recording was released in the same year on the Folkways album of songs and dances of the English-Scottish Border, The Border. The album’s booklet noted:

Recitations and readings are still an important part of the rural entertainment in the Borders and no village “concert“—often called a “mod“—would be complete without a dramatic recitation of one of the popular ballad poems or stories. It is a tradition that seems to have survived from the earliest periods of Scottish life. The most important event in which recitations play a large part are the popular “Burns’ Suppers”, held to commemorate Burns’ birthday on 25 January. Robert Burns still is a living poetic voice to the people of Scotland and at the Burns’ Suppers the entire evening is given to a long speech on Burns, recitations of his poems—Tam o’ Shanter is especially popular—and performances of his songs. In many ways the Suppers emphasise the sentimentality that is such a strong part of the present Scottish temperament and Sandy Scott’s recitation, McAllister Dances Before the King, is the kind of poem which has a strong appeal to this same sentimentality. There is something particularly pleasing about this poem’s hero, McAllister, and his success as a dancer and as a “figure of a man” at the court of England. In the most cosmopolitan pubs of cities like Glasgow or Edinburgh, if the poem is mentioned, someone will immediately straighten up, stretch out his glass and solemnly begin to recite, “Clansmen, the peats are burnin’ bright …”

Sandy Scott also recited MacAllister’s Dance Before the King to Mike Yates at St. Boswells, Borders, on 2 August 2002; This recording was included in 2003 on the Kyloe anthology of ballads, songs and tunes from the Scottish Borders collected by Yates, Borderers. Mike Yates noted:

Sandy learnt this recitation from Willie MacFalane, a farmer’s son at Hartwood Myers in the Ettrick Valey, sometime around 1946, when Sandy was about 12 years old.

Willie Scott recited MacAllister Dances Before the King in a 1986 recording on Tobar an Dualchais and Alison McMorland printed MacAlister Dances Before the King in her Willie Scott book Herd Laddie o’ the Glen. On the opposite page of the poem is a picture of Willie Scott performing it at a Burns Supper in 1977. Alison McMorland noted:

It was a privilege to hear Willie deliver this famous recreation piece from the pen of D.M. MacKenzie. It was believed to be a favourite of the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.

Lyrics

Willie Scott recites MacAlister Dances Before the King

Clansmen, the peats are burning bright, sit round then in a ring,
And I will tell of that great night I danced before the King.

For as a dancer in my youth, so great was my renown
The King himself invited me to visit London town.

My brand new presentation kilt and ornaments I wore,
As with my skean-dhu I rapped upon the Palace door.

And soon I heard a lord or duke come running down the stairs,
Who to the keyhole put his mouth demanding who was there.

“Open the door,” I sternly cried, “as quickly as you can,
Is this the way that you receive a Highland gentleman?”

The door was opened, word went round, “MacAlister is here”
And at this news the Palace rang with one tremendous cheer.

The King was sitting on his throne but down the steps he came,
Immediately the waiting lord pronounced my magic name.

The lovely ladies of the court with pearls and jewels decked,
All blushed, and trembled as I bowed to them with great respect.

Slowly at first with hands on hips I danced with ease and grace,
Then raised me airms above me head and swifter grew the pace.

At last no human eye could see my steps so light and quick,
And from the floor great clouds of dust came rising fast and thick.

The King was deeply moved and shook me by the hand in friends true
“Alas,” he cried,“ although a King, l canna dance like you.”

And then the gracious Queen herself came smiling up to me,
She pinned a medal on my breast for everyone to see.

Her whisper I shall not forget nor how her eyes grew dim,
“Ah, where were you MacAlister the day I married HIM?”