The Beautiful Boy

Irish Tune (Ballynamony ora)

'The Beautiful Boy' is a comic song set to the tune of an Irish jig, Ballynamony Ora. Comic songs seem to have been very popular during the Sydney and Hobart concert series: this song was performed by Barnett Levey at the second and sixth Sydney concerts.

Lyrics

It was in the winter, ‘bout six in the morn,

when I, little innocent creature, was born;

there was doctor, and nurse, and a great many more,

but they’d none of them seen such a beauty before:

they all swore I was like my pa-pa, O!

and there is the nose of ma-ma,

with a few alterations, oh, la!

we’ll make him a beautiful boy.

‘To make him a beauty,’ cried out Mrs. Sneer,

‘We’ll be troubled unless the child has a sweet leer;’

so to give me this leer, Mrs. Glazier arose,

and a lump of red putty stuck bang on my nose.

This made me wink and blink so,

the ladies knew not what to think, O!

At last it turn’d into a squint, so -

all to make me a beautiful boy.

To make me accomplished I wanted one thing,

my mouth was too small for the dear child to sing;

then to lug it, and stretch it, they all of them tried,

till they stretch’d my poor mouth near half a yard wide, crying, ‘Pull away now! Mrs. Ryder -

it must be a little bit wider!’

My dear mouth they split pretty nigh, sir,

all to make me a beautiful boy.

Now, being complete, I was next sent to school,

and to shew of my make was struck on a high stool.

When the children went home, they cried out with surprise,

‘We’ve a new boy at school with such beautiful eyes!

He can look any way so handy,

such a mouth he has got to suck candy,

and his legs are so preciously bandy,

they call him the beautiful boy!’

T’other day I was ask’d in the city to dine,

the ladies, in raptures, all thought me divine;

and all when observing my elegant grace,

neglected their dinners to gaze on my face.

They cried, - ‘I shall faint with surprize,

no gas-light can equal his eyes!

and such a sweet mouth for mince pies,

oh, dear! what a beautiful boy

Now, ladies, beware of Love’s powerful darts,

for, fearful I am, I shall steal all your hearts;

and then, sweet dear little creatures, you’ll sigh,

and doat on my charms, till you languish and die:

for you know I can’t marry you all,

but believe me, whenever you call,

my endeavours will be to please all,

although such a beautiful boy.

Recorded in The Universal Songster or Museum of Mirth (London: J Fairburn, 1825)

The Beautiful Boy - Recreation

Performed by Toby Martin and Neal Peres Da Costa at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in May 2021. For more on this concert, visit our Reimagined Performances page. For more on the song, visit the New Songs, Old Tunes page.