"I don't believe we can have an army without music." -- Robert E. LeeConfederate and Union infantrymen woke up, ate, marched, and went to bed to the sound of fifes and drums. Every company was supposed to include two field musicians, usually a drummer and fifer (cavalry had trumpeters; light artillery and some infantry units had buglers). Despite the popular image of the"drummer boy," most musicians were no younger than other soldiers. Service records of North Carolina musicians show ages ranging from 16 to 65, plus one 14-year-old. They served as the army's public address system, playing calls for reveille, meals, fatigue duties, assembly, and lights out; played at ceremonies such as dress parades, inspections, and raising and lowering the colors; and played to boost morale on the march and in the evening. On the battlefield they assisted the medical staff. Many regiments also had brass bands, but the field musicians were the indispensable work horses of military music.The 26th Regiment North Carolina Troops:The original 26th North Carolina, organized in August 1861, served in its home state and with the Army of Northern Virginia until the surrender at Appomattox. Noted for its valor at Gettysburg (where it lost about 85% of its men), the regiment maintained a fine brass band, but also had fifes and drums throughout the war. Two of its field musicians were killed in action despite their noncombatant status. The fifes and drums, along with other elements of the regiment, were"reactivated" in 1982 under the auspices of the Society for Historical Preservation of the 26th North Carolina Troops, an incorporated non-profit, tax-exempt educational organization. The 26th is now among the largest single-entity reenactment units in America. They seek to honor the soldiers of the War Between the States through participation in ceremonies, living history encampments, and reenactments at sites from Gettysburg to Shiloh, including programs at state and national parks.About the Recording:The selections recorded here represent the full spectrum of Civil War fife and drum music. Some are chosen from the few tunes documented as played by Confederate drummers and fifers; others simply are among our favorites from the period. The instruments used are accurate replicas of those used in the 1860s and earlier: rope-tension, wood-shell Cooperman drums and six-hole rosewood Cooperman fifes. No fife and drum instruction books are known to have been published in the Confederacy. Like our ancestors, we have borrowed freely from Yankee sources. Published fife music of the 1850s and 1860s had only a melody line, but earlier fife manuals often add a second fife part, as David Rotan has done for some of our tunes.Music Sources (see numbers in the notes on each selection):1. George B. Bruce and Daniel D. Emmett, The Drummer's and Fifer's Guide (NY, 1862)2. Col. H.C. Hart's U.S. Regulation Drum and Fife Instructor (NY, 1862)3. Elias Howe, Jr., Howe's School for the Fife (Boston, 1851)4. William Nevins, Army Regulations for Drum, Fife and Bugle (Chicago, 1861)5. American Veteran Fifer (1905, Civil War tunes collected from Union Army veterans)The Music:1. The Girl I Left Behind Me: Countless recruits, North and South, marched out of their home towns to the sound of this popular tune, written in England about 1759. A Tennessee veteran wrote,"I often wonder why it was not adopted as the national anthem of the Confederacy," and recalled a local version of the lyrics:"If ever I get through this war, and Lincoln's chain don't bind me, I'll make my way to Tennessee to the girl I left behind me." Continuing a tradition from both British and American armies, Col. Henry K. Burgwyn of the 26th NC ordered in 1863 that this tune be played whenever the unit left camp. Our rendition combines a"plain" version played on solo fife and drum with a"fancy" version using three fifes and four drums. (2,1)2. The Old North State - Dixie: The words of North Carolina's state song were written in 1840 by State Supreme Court Justice William J. Gaston, to a tune he had heard a Swiss bell choir play. Our melody line is based on the version played by the 26th NC brass band."Dixie" premiered in 1859 in a minstrel show by Ohio song-writer-performer Daniel Decatur Emmett. As a teenager Emmett had been a U.S. Army fifer. With George Bruce, former Army drum instructor, he wrote The Drummer's and Fifer's Guide, source for our version. Note the rarely-heard"walk-around" between verses. The song caught on in the South in 1860-61 and was played at Jefferson Davis' inauguration, assuring its popularity as an unofficial Confederate anthem. Considering recent controversies over"Dixie," it is ironic that a family of black musicians in Ohio claimed that Emmett stole the song from them!3. Fisher's Hornpipe - Soldier's Joy: Veteran W.A. Smith, in his book The Anson Guards (Co. C, 14th NC Reg.), mentioned"Fisher's Hornpipe" as a tune played around the campfire in the evenings. First published in England in 1780, it became part of the fiddle repertoire in both North and South. The version we play was published by J. Carr (Baltimore, 1796)."Soldier's Joy" also came from Britain in the mid-1700's. It remains one of America's most popular traditional fiddle tunes. (4) The drum cadence between the tunes is a traditional beating for the tune"Road to Boston," from the Company of Fifers and Drummers collection.4. Grand March in Norma: Tunes from operas were surprisingly popular in the Civil War era. This march from Norma (1831) by Vicenzo Bellini appears in the books of the 26th NC band, and even in an 1865 banjo instruction book! (3)5. Hog-Eye Man - Oyster River Hornpipe: Two lively marches. The first is in the minstrel-show style from Bruce and Emmett's collection. The second one, named after a river in Connecticut, dates from 1812 or earlier. (1,5)6. Garry Owen: One of the best known fife and drum tunes,"Garry Owen" is famous for its association with George A. Custer and the 7th U.S. Cavalry, but it dates from much earlier. The song was written in the late 1700s to celebrate the exploits of a gang of young toughs from the Irish town of Garryowen. Irish immigrants made it popular in the Civil War armies. (5)7. New Tatter Jack: The origin of this 6/8 march is uncertain, but it sounds very Irish. (1)8. Newport: A quickstep named by Dan Emmett in honor of Newport Barracks, Kentucky (one of the two early schools for U.S. Army musicians), where he studied the fife and drum in the 1830s. (1)9. Duke of York's Troop: A"Troop" tune was part of the daily Guard Mounting and Dress Parade ceremonies, in which the drummers and fifers marched in 3/4 time from one end of the battalion to the other. This particular British tune from the late 1700s is found in numerous American fife and drum books from 1812 to the Civil War. (1) 10. White Cockade - Farewell to Whiskey:"The White Cockade," a Scottish tune from the late 1600s, takes its present title from the ribbon worn by supporters of"Bonnie Prince Charlie" during the 1745 rebellion. An American fifer palyed it at Lexington, Mass., just before the first shots of the Revolutionary War in 1775."Farewell to Whiskey" was written about 1799 by famed Scottish fiddler Niel Gow, expressing"a Highlander's sorrow on being deprived of his favourite beverage." (5,3)11. Kenderbeck's: One of the many difficult quicksteps in the Bruce and Emmett collection. (1)12. The Recruiting Sergeant - Adam Bell's March: Tunes of obscure origin but undoubtedly rooted in Celtic tradition. (5)13. Old 1812 - Hull's Victory: Some may recognize"Old 1812" from the title music of Clint Eastwood's movie"The Outlaw Josey Wales." The tune originated before the War of 1812; it is related to several Irish and Scottish tunes of the 1700s, including the Revolutionary War march"Welcome Here Again.""Hull's Victory" has clearer connections with the year 1812, when Capt. Isaac Hull of the U.S.S. Constitution won the first important naval victory of the war. (5, 3)14. Bonnie Blue Flag - Col. Robertson's Welcome: Harry MaCarthy wrote"The Bonnie Blue Flag" in 1861 to pay tribute to the blue flag with one star used in the secession movement. Set to an older tune called"The Irish Jaunting Car," it became one of the most popular Confederate songs. Our version of the melody was played by the 26th NC Band."Col. Robertson's Welcome" is from the Drummer's and Fifer's Guide. We have been unable to track down who the colonel was, but the tune has a strong family resemblance to the Irish jig"Trip to Sligo."15. Granny, Will Your Dog Bite - Ole Zip Coon: According to a 26th NC veteran's memoirs, one recruit played"Granny, Will Your Dog Bite" on the fife as he marched to be sworn in. Preparing to charge at Sharpsburg, a member of the 3rd Arkansas played the same tune -- on the fiddle!"Old Zip Coon," a song from the minstrel stage first published in 1834, was the second version of a fiddle tune known first as"Natchez Under the Hill" and later in the 1860s as"Turkey in the Straw." (5, 2)16. Come Dearest, The Daylight Is Gone: Col. Arthur Fremantle, a British observer with Lee's army, was surprised to hear the 26th NC Band at Gettysburg playing waltzes"accompanied by the hissing and bursting of the shells." This melody is from the 26th NC Band books. Fifes and drums, too, played waltzes as Troop tunes (see"Duke of York's" on this recording) or as part of the Tattoo ceremony, which was in effect an evening concert.17. Governor's Island: A real workout for both fifers and drummers. Bruce and Emmett named this quickstep after the Army school of music in New York harbor. Earlier names included"The Hero" and"Miss Brown's Reel." A simpler version called"Wagoner" survives in Southern fiddle tradition. (1)18. Rogue's March - Yankee Doodle: When a soldier was"drummed out" or otherwise punished, fifes and drums traditionally paraded him through camp with"The Rogue's March," dating from the mid-1700s or earlier. Some Confederates replaced"The Rogue's March" with"Yankee Doodle"; no punishment could be worse than to be associated with the word"Yankee." This version of"Yankee Doodle" with a dotted-note rhythm appears in several 19th-century fife and drum books. (1)19. Downfall of Paris: Written in England in the early 1800s in the hope of Napoleon's defeat, this piece of music appears in American fife and drum books as early as 1814. Marching bands still use the drum part as a solo. (1)20. Wait For The Wagon - My Love She's But a Lassie: A popular song first published in 1851,"Wait for the Wagon" appeared during the war with both Confederate and Union lyrics. (4)"My Love, She's But a Lassie" is a Scottish tune from the 1700s. Virginia composer George A. Knauff published his own arrangement in 1839 called"Richmond Blues," named for a noted volunteer militia company. Our version is found in The Drummer's and Fifer's Guide as an untitled fife exercise. (1)21. The Campbells Are Coming - Do They Miss Me At Home: Col. Burgwyn of the 26th NC ordered that"The Campbells Are Coming" be played when returning to camp. At Gettysburg the fifes and drums of the 6th Wisconsin played this same Scottish clan march on the way to the Iron Brigade's bloody encounter with Pettigrew's Brigade, including the 26th NC. Our version is an untitled example in the Drummer's and Fifer's Guide. (1)"Do They Miss Me At Home," one of many sentimental songs of the era, was written in 1852 by S. M. Grannis. It was part of the 26th NC Band's repertoire, and was also sung and played in the Union army. (2) The drum solo is from the Company of Fifers and Drummers collection.22. Empty Pockets - Hell On The Wabash: Two of our favorite quicksteps. The second one resembles an Irish tune called variously"The Night We Made The Match" and"Smuggler's Reel." Some American versions are titled"Hell On The Potomac" and"Hell On The Rappahaannock" -- names probably of Civil War origin. (1)Credits:Produced by the 26th North Carolina Fifes and Drums (AKA: Carolina Fifes & Drums) ©1997Recorded at New Horizon Recording Studio, Kernersville, NCMitch Hensdale, Engineer and Digital MasteringLiner notes by Bill BynumP.T. Buckethead, Bidness ManagerSpecial thanks to Jeff Stepp, Jim Taylor, and Jule Morrow for their support and assistance.Fifes: Terry Triplett, Bill Bynum, David RotanDrums: Bob Greer (snare and bass)