Description
A jolly number inspired by the multicultural life of Petticoat Lane market where the composer used to live back in the 1980s. It is published by Musik Fabrik for a wide variety of wind and string instruments with guitar accompaniment and with piano accompaniment and also a version for alto or mezzo with guitar with words written by the composer:
There is a market in the City
where you can find both cheap and pretty
Petticoat Lane is its name
and you can get almost anything
Folk come from miles and miles around
back into the past searching through all the
age-old market stalls in the heart of old London
So we go down there in the morning
hoping to find a bargain calling
and what we don’t spend will
last at least to midday
then we go back just to spend a little more
just in case we have missed one or two or more
bargain purchases in the heart of old London.
I’ve found a nice cheap T-shirt
you’ve bought a potpourri,
“Bert! we really should keep some cash
for the Underground home!”
“Never you mind the journey home, Pet!
I’ve got my eyes on that old boxset..
“Look! All our fav’rite films are there
at twenty quid for the lot!”
“Come on Bert! we really need to get back
– oh hang on a minute I’ve just seen a beautiful purple rucksack”
And so they go back into the madding crowd,
spending all their dough,
but who do they see just then but Bert’s dear old Auntie Flo:
Laden down with bags and trying to keep one hand free.
Bert grins at Flo and says
“Well where did you get that pink hat?”
Bert’s wife muttered to herself
“I’d hate to be seen wearing that!”
So now all three go down towards Aldgate East,
stop at a curry house to have a spicy feast.
Bert had a hot vindaloo and washed it down
with sev’ral pints of Cobra beer.
Then they went back up to Wentworth Street for another look.
What a Sunday spending all their dough in the heart of old London.