PORTSMOUTH
MIKE OLDFIELD
SONGWRITER: UNKNOWN
COUNTRY: U.K.
PERFORMED: INSTRUMENTAL
ALBUM: MIKE OLDFIELD: PORTSMOUTH
LABEL: VIRGIN
GENRE: FOLK
YEAR: 1976
"Portsmouth"
is a traditional English folk dance tune, similar to an Irish or
Scottish hornpipe melody. It is sometimes referred to
as the "Portsmouth Hornpipe".
"Portsmouth" appeared in the 11th
edition of John Playford's The Dancing Master in 1701. It is also one of the three
arrangements on which English composer Ralph Vaughan
Williams based his
Sea Songs, originally arranged for military band in 1923 as the second movement of
his English Folk
Song Suite, and
subsequently re-arranged for full orchestra in 1942 by the composer. In the 1950s it was used as the signature tune
for BBC television series Billy Bunter.