ODDINGTON

ODDINGTON Gloucestershire Clive Carey the collaborator of Mary Neal founder of the Esperance Club, is known to have visited Charles Taylor, member of the Oddington Morris, on 21st October 1912 and 23/4th March 1913. Taylor claimed to have danced at Oddington for 22 years. He alleged that dancing ceased in 1888. He used to walk 9 miles to practices. Carey collected sketchy notation from him of two jigs and a set dance. The full repertoire was:- *Princess Royal, *Highland Mary, Sherborne Jig, Jockey to the Fair, The Nutting Girl, *Trunco a "skew-corner dance"(tune incomplete), The Gallant Hussar, Shepgerd's Hey, *Young Collins, *Swaggering boney(the Old Frog Dance), Constant Billy (stick and corner dance), London Pride, Green Sleeves (heel & toe over pipes or sticks), Green Garters. Clive Carey does not seem to have been as successful as Cecil Sharp in getting information from his informants. From Taylor he got information, such as it was, on Princess Royal, Highland Mary (jig) and Swaggering Boney. Carey gives some general information apart from the notes for specific dances, notes on foot up, side step, and capers (double and half). "Come & go" as Half Gipsy, Back to Back as Gipsy. It made no difference he said if you did Gipsy face to back to centre, but face looks best. Dance to left first . In Half-gip dance RLRLL step twice, then three hops back and jump with hands up (or slip back step, feet crossed). In Whole-gip face to the centre keep on dancing LRLL step. End each figure with a jump with hands up. In "Young Collins" (and other side-step dances for a set?) foot-up is followed immediately by Half-gip. Then side step. Then foot-up to the fiddler and Whole-gip. Then side-step and face fiddler.

More to follow later.