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You may talk about your singers that come here from near or far,
But just listen to Mrs. Dempsey and you'll say she is a star;
She can rise from "L" to "W", her voice it is that strong,
And you'd walk to Isle o' Valen for to hear her sing a song.
The high notes she can take them with no effort, none at all,
And when she starts a solo you could hear a building fall;
Her voice is loud and also sweet, her time is measured well,
And she'd sing till Easter Sunday without trying to take a spell.
Well her voice is not a tenor, a contralto or a bass,
But when you hear her in the block the spot you cannot pass;
The stars will shiver in the sky, the moon turn upside down,
When she warbles at the finish, and the house is coming down.
Men that travelled through Australia, Philadelphia and elsewhere,
Say the like of Betsy Dempsey they are prepared to swear;
In fancy shows or theatres in Spain or Santa Fe,
They can't come near her hinder heel when she starts on high G.
She can also take the highest note with range both sweet and low,
That you can hear her in a cellar when she takes the octave low;
You may talk about Ann Kennedy, Bridge Mansfield or Sue Long,
But they're only pigeons' livers with sweet Betsy in a song.
Published in Burke's Ballads, p.25, c.1960, compiled by John White and archived at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Libraries, Centre For Newfoundland Studies - Digitized Books collection.
See more songs by Johnny Burke.
From Dictionary.net:
Hinder - of or belonging to that part or end which is in the rear, or which follows; as, the hinder part of a wagon; the hinder parts of a horse. [1913 Webster].
From Wikipedia:
Isle of Valen - island off St. Leonard's in the Western Channel of Placentia Bay established in 1856. The Way Office was changed to Post Office in 1891. The name was changed to its present calling of Isle Valen or Valen Island sometime before 1968. It was a small place with only 23 families and was officially depopulated on September 17, 1968.
