It is presumed that The Swallowtail Jig was written in the middle of the Nineteenth Century and came to America with the Irish migrant caravan of that era. It is also known as The Dancingmaster and both names come from the men’s coat that forks in the back like the tail of the swallow.
Here is my take on the song with video of the bird showing off his signature tail and a couple of fine jig dancers to give an idea of the steps that fit this type of song. I had to slow down the dancers as they were jigging to a faster tune. The BBC slowed down the birds on their own.
Named one of New York's Best Emerging Poets 2019, my poetry chapbook The New Normal was published by Analog Submission Press. My novel The Zoo was published by Cacoethes Publishing House. Other poems and short stories have appeared in Subterranean Blue Poetry, The Journal of Microfiction, and Sick Lit Magazine, among others. Other works include a staged reading of my play Digging Up John Barrymore, performed by Dreamcatcher Entertainment, and five albums of original music recorded with my band Late Model Humans.
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Really nice! I love this tune!
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Thanks – I appreciate the kind words.
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