Author | Topic: Add: The Dowie dens of Yarrow | |
dmcg | Posted - 13 Oct 02 - 05:44 pm | |
Dowie Dens of Yarrow, The There was a lady in the west You scarce would find her marrow She was courted by nine gentlemen And a ploughboy lad in Yarrow. These nine sat drinking at the wine As oft they'd done before-O And they made a vow among themselves To fight with him on Yarrow She's washed his face, she's combed his hair As oft she's done before-O Gave him a brand down by his side To fight for her on Yarrow As he came o'er yon high high hill And down the glen so narrow Nine armed men lay waiting him Upon the braes of Yarrow It's three he wounded, three withdrew And three he's killed on Yarrow Till her brother John stepped in behind And pierced his body through O father dear, I dreamed a dream I fear it will prove sorrow I dreamed I was pulling heather green On the dowie dens of Yarrow O daughter dear I read your dream To you it will prove sorrow Your true love John lies dead and slain On the dowie dens of Yarrow As she went o'er yon high high hill And down the glen so narrow Twas there she found her true love John Lying cold and dead on Yarrow She washed his face, she combed his hair As she had done before-O And she kissed the blood from off his wounds On the dowie dens of Yarrow Her hair it was three quarters long The colour it was yellow She tied it round his middle small And carried him home to Yarrow O daughter dear, dry up your tears And weep no more for sorrow I'll wed you to a better man Than the ploughboy lad of Yarrow O father dear you've seven sons You may wed them all tomorrow But the fairest flower among them all Was the lad I wooed on Yarrow Source: The Seeds of Love, Stephen Sedley, EFDSS,1967 Database entry is here Edited By dmcg - 10/13/2002 5:44:32 PM | ||
Mr Happy | Posted - 14 Oct 02 - 01:24 am | |
i've a version of this sung by the corries. it varies only slightly by the addition of one word 'all' in the last line of verse 5, thus: Verse 5 It's three he wounded, three withdrew And three he's killed on Yarrow Till her brother John stepped in behind And pierced his body through all | ||
Malcolm Douglas |
Posted - 14 Oct 02 - 02:18 am | |
That's probably a mis-hearing of thorough somewhere along the line: so far as I can remember, they sang through-o, not through all. Dave has mis-typed the word in that verse. The Sedley set is, as usual, a collation from several quite separate sources; in this case, Child, Greig and MacColl. Regrettably (and as usual), he didn't specify; at all events, it is not, as presented, a traditional text. The tune was noted by Lucy Broadwood from John Potts at Whitehope Farm, Peeblesshire, in 1907; and was first published in The Journal of the Folk Song Society, vol.V, issue 19, 1905. The Corries, too, seem to have recorded a "mix-and match" collation from various different sources, so far as I can tell; probably based on Child 214E (itself probably a collation from other sources), which was printed in Scott's Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border. They began it with Late at e'en, drinking the wine. Roud 13, Child 214. | ||
dmcg | Posted - 14 Oct 02 - 09:23 am | |
Database entry corrected. I don't usually bother to fix typos in the main thread. | ||
dmcg | Posted - 17 Oct 02 - 09:54 am | |
Sandy Paton made some interesting comments on the Max Hunter version in a thread on The Mudcat Cafe Edited By dmcg - 10/17/2002 9:55:04 AM | ||
Pip Freeman | Posted - 03 May 04 - 07:29 pm | |
I have added a different version called 'The Dewy Dells of Yarrow' here. It has several variations in the story and a totally different tune. |