​LOG  DRIVER'S  WALTZ    
 

​
Beats per bar = 3     
Beat symbol = Dot (.) 
​               or equivalent
                Wade Hemsworth
( A lively waltz, composed in the 1950s after Mr. Hemsworth spent time as a surveyor in Northern Ontario, Quebec and Labrador, living in logging camps.)  
ACCORDION (BUTTON)
​NOTATION

Inside row  (low)   =  Buttons  2 to 6  plus  o3*
Verse 1 (of 4)

"2   "2   |   .2     .4    .3   |   :2    "2    "2   |   .o3*   .4*   .3*  |  :o3* 
 If  you     ask   an - y      girl  from the     par - ish    a  -  round
                                                                                  
  .o3*   |   .2   .2*    .3*   |    .5       .5      .5   |   .5*     .5     .4*   |    :5    
What    plea-ses  her     most  from  her    head  to      her      toes

    .2   |   .2    .4    .3   |   .2     .2     .2   |   .o3*    .4*     .3*   |   :o3*     
She'll   say  I'm  not   sure that  it's     busi - ness  of       yours

"o3*  "o3*   |   .2    .5    .5   |   .5       .4*   .3*   |    .4    .3     .3   |
 But      I         do  like   to    waltz  with  a         log  dri - ver


Refrain:

 .5   .5*    .6*   |   :6    .5   |    :4       .3    |   :4*      .5*   |    .5*   :4*   | 
For  he  goes    bir- ling   down    a  -   down  white    wa - ter

   .4          ;5      "5   |   .5    .4*   .4   |     ;3*    "5    .5   |    .5   .5*
That's  where  the     log  dri - ver   learns  to  step    light-ly

 .6*   |   :6      .5   |    :4       .3   |   :4*      .5*   |   .5*   .4*
Yes,     bir - ling    down    a  -  down  white    wa - ter

 .4*   |   .4     .5      .5    |    .5        .4*    .4   |   :3*     .5   |   .4       .3
The      log  dri - ver's   waltz  plea - ses   girls  com - plete - ly

              Many performers instrumentally repeat last line of chorus, and
              sing the repeat of the last line of chorus after verse 4, holding final note.
Embedded youTube VIDEOS
Fifteen videos in musical keys of:   C=4    D=7    G=3    G?=1 
Key:  D

Singers:  Kate and Anna McGarrigle

Music Group:  Mountain City Four  

​Posted by:  NFB

This animated NFB video was directed by John Weldon in 1979.
Key: C

Pianist:  ?

Producer:  ?

​Posted by:  Easy_Sheet Music_Play_
                   Along

Instrumental covering two verses and choruses.   It includes the lyrics and  (fake-style) ​music sheet with guitar chords.  The guitar notation above is based on these chords.
Key:   D

Singer:  Heathr Bambrick

with the Toronoto Symphony Orchestra
​conducted by Lucas Waldin.

​Posted by:  ​Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Key:  G

Accordion:  Poss Slaney

​Posted by: Newfieposs

​Instrumental - great job (as always), Poss.
Key:   G

Group:  The Emeralds

Posted by:  The Emeralds - Topic

​Instrumental - beautifully done!
Key:  D

Singer:  Doug Smith
​
Posted by:  Canadian Troubadour
                    Doug Smith - Topic
​
Key:   D

Singer:  Jesse Ferguson  

Posted by: Jesse Ferguson
Key:   G ?

Choir:  Simon Fraser University (SFU)

​Posted by:  SFU Choir

Masterfully arranged and beautifully performed.  Some voices sing the melody (in G, I think), others the harmony, and still others the sounds of the wilderness and river ... a rich assortment of musical sounds.
Key:   D

Accordion:   Phil Grimes

Posted by:  Ted Grimes

Phil is a talented musician, originally from Little Bay Islands, now living in Lewisporte, NL.

Instrumental.
Key:  C

Group:  The Swinging Belles
​
​Posted by:  The Swinging Belles - Topic
​
Key:  D

Group:  Captain Tractor

​Posted by:  davidtowns81
Key:   C

Choir:  Lisa Warren

Posted by:  Lisa Warren

Instrumental - beautiful but short!
Key:   C

Singer:  Ingo Neill-St. Clair

Posted by: Ingo Neill-St. Clair
Key:   D

Group:  Blackthorn

Posted by:  Foighidinn

​A Celtic band from Vancouver, BC.

They have included a Celtic-sounding instrumental insert, not part of the original song.
Key:   G

Performer:  Susanna Heerstek
                    (at age 12)

Posted by:  KLONKIE

The Log Divers' Waltz ends at time 1:40 and is followed by a different tune.
Background Materials, Information & Links
​Lyrics:
If you ask any girl from the parish around
What pleases her most from her head to her toes
She'll say I'm not sure that it's business of yours
But I do like to waltz with a log driver

Chorus:
          For he goes birling down  a - down white water
          That's where the log driver learns to step lightly
          Yes, birling down  a - down white water
          The log driver's waltz pleases girls completely

When the drive's nearly over I like to go down
And watch all the lads as they work on the river
I know that come evening they'll be in the town
And we all like to waltz with a log driver

To please both my parents, I've had to give way
And dance with the doctors and merchants and lawyers
Their manners are fine, but their feet are of clay
And there's none with the style of my log driver

Now I've had my chances with all sorts of men
But none as so fine as my lad on the river
So when the drive's over, if he asks me again
I think I will marry my log driver

​​
Background and Links:














​
According to Wikipedia, Wade Hemsworth was stationed in Newfoundland for a time during World War II, and it was there that he discovered and developed an interest in traditional music.  Several of his songs have become Canadian folk classics.   Click HERE  for additional (wikipedia) info about Mr. Hemsworth.

When I first heard this song many years ago I thought that birling was a corruption of barreling, which has a similar sound if spoken quickly.  As well, the dictionary gives one of its definitions of "barrel" as an intransitive verb, meaning "to drive or move in a way that is so fast as to be almost out of control", like the logs barreling down through the river's white water. 
     However, Wikipedia suggests that birling is a word in its own right, 
     perhaps from the  old Scottish "birl" meaning "to spin or revolve".
    (For those who look for double entendres in songs, even if originally
​     unintended, it can also mean "carouse").

Click HERE for a link to the National Film Board of Canada, whose short film (see first youTube video above) helped popularize this tune.