The Mummers' Dance Explained

The Mummers' Dance
Cover:	The Mummers' Dance single.jpg
Type:	single
Artist:	Loreena McKennitt
Album:	The Book of Secrets
Length:	6:08 (album version) 4:01 (single version)
Label:	Warner Bros. Quinlan Road
Producer:	Loreena McKennitt Brian Hughes Donald Quan
Prev Title:	The Bonny Swans
Prev Year:	1995
Next Title:	Marco Polo
Next Year:	1998

"The Mummers' Dance" is a song written and performed by Canadian Celtic fusion singer Loreena McKennitt, released as a single from her sixth studio album, The Book of Secrets (1997), in November 1997. The song refers to the seasonal mummers' play performed by groups of actors, often as house-to-house visits. Its lyrics indicate a springtime holiday. Remixed by electronic music production duo DNA for its single release, "The Mummers' Dance" reached 10 in Canada, No. 18 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and No. 1 on the Billboard Triple-A chart. A music video was also produced for the song.

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "The Mummers' Dance"!Chart (1997–1998)!Peak
position

Canada (The Record)^[1]	16
US Billboard Hot 100^[2]	18
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[3]	23
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)^[4]	3
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)^[5]	14
US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)^[6]	17
US Triple-A (Billboard)^[7]	1

Year-end charts

Year-end chart performance for "The Mummers' Dance"!Chart (1998)!Position

Canada Top Singles (RPM)^[8]	52
Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)^[9]	17
US Billboard Hot 100^[10]	83
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)^[11]	21
US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)^[12]	67
US Triple-A (Billboard)^[13]	12

Release history

Region!scope="col"

Date	Format(s)	Label(s)
United States	November 1997	Adult album alternative radio		^[16]
	December 9, 1997	Contemporary hit radio		^[17]
	February 17, 1998			^[18]

External links

• Loreena McKennitt's website
• The Mummers' Dance Lyrics

Notes and References

1. Hits of the World: Canada. Billboard. 110. 14. 44. April 4, 1998.
2. Billboard Hot 100. Billboard. March 21, 1998. August 25, 2023.
3. Adult Contemporary. Billboard. April 18, 1998. subscription. August 25, 2023.
4. Adult Pop Airplay. Billboard. March 14, 1998. subscription. August 25, 2023.
5. Pop Airplay. Billboard. February 28, 1998. subscription. August 25, 2023.
6. Alternative Airplay. Billboard. February 21, 1998. subscription. August 25, 2023.
7. Adult Alternative Airplay. Billboard. February 28, 1998. August 25, 2023.
8. RPM's Top 100 Hits of '98. RPM. 68. 12. 20. December 14, 1998. March 24, 2021.
9. RPM's Top 100 Adult Contemporary Tracks of '98. RPM. Library and Archives Canada. March 24, 2021.
10. Web site: Billboard Top 100 – 1998. August 28, 2010.
11. Most Played Adult Top 40 Songs of 1998. Airplay Monitor. 6. 52. 55. December 25, 1998.
12. Most Played Modern Rock Songs of 1998. Airplay Monitor. 6. 52. 36. December 25, 1998.
13. Best of '98: Most Played Triple-A Songs. Airplay Monitor. 6. 52. 35. December 25, 1998.
14. Web site: Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2001. Jam!. https://web.archive.org/web/20020726120310/http://jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/2001_singles2.html. July 26, 2002. March 28, 2022.
15. Web site: Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2002 (Part 2). Jam!. January 14, 2003. https://web.archive.org/web/20040906184715/http://www.jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/2002_singles2.html. September 6, 2004.
16. Radio Not 'Mum' About McKennitt's New Single. Radio & Records. 1227. 38. December 12, 1997.
17. New Releases. Radio & Records. 1226. 38. December 5, 1997.
18. Hot 100 Singles Spotlight. Sandiford-Waller. Theda. Billboard. 110. 6. 93. February 7, 1998. ...slating a Feb. 17 in-store date for ['The Mummers' Dance']..