On the night that I was married
And on my marriage bed
Up came a bold sea captain
And he stood at my bed head
Saying, "Arise, arise, young wedded man
And come along with me
To the low, low lands of Holland
To fight the enemy.
Now Holland is a lovely land
And on it grows fine grain
Sure it is a place of residence
For a soldier to remain
Where the sugar cane is plentiful
And the tea grows on the tree
I never had but the one __
Now he's far away from me.
Said the mother to the daughter
Give off your sore lament
Oh there's men enough in Galway
For to be your heart's content"
"If there's men enough in Galway
Alas there are none for me
Since these high winds and stormy seas
Have come between my love and me."
I will wear no shoes around my feetIt's easier to understand if you remember that William of Orange came from the lowlands of Holland. The Clancy Brothers also sang a little bit 'particular to Armagh, in the Christmastime,' which held: "Up the long ladder and down the short rope, to hell with King Billy and God bless the Pope!" And now you know enough, as Tolkien might have said, to go along with.
Nor combs pull in my hair
No handkerchief around my neck
For to save my beauty fair
And never will I marry
Until the day I die
Since the low, low lands of Holland
Have come between my love and I.
Ah, we're near the end of fine October. The best month of the year, unless it be May; and almost gone to winter. How many more will I see? Or you either, friend.
His successor also might take you to similar places against similar enemies, and always there are songs.
ReplyDeleteO'er the hills and o'er the main,
To Flanders, Portugal, and Spain.
Queen Anne commands, and we'll obey:
Over the hills and far away.
I don't know whether this one is that old (the Dubliners have also done it, but I like these ladies' version best).
Virginia ended this October with some unseasonal early snow. (My last trip here in February '10, we had unseasonal late snow. But still no one can pin it on me.)
Ah, the Merry Wives of Windsor. No, they write their own material, but it's generally based on something that its genuinely old. For example, the Tourdion that we played last week is a tune they wrapped up into a new 'folk song' they had written (on the subject of wine-drinking, as I recall).
ReplyDeleteIn this case, the genuine part is the response lyric -- 'Oh, no, that never can be,' followed by a claim of having a wife already (usually, 'in my own country'). The Clancy Brothers did a version of that tune, where the soldier is not a gentleman but "a bold grenadier" who walks with the lady "like sister and brother." There's also a variation that's just called "Soldier, will you marry me?"
Oh, those lyrics have been around a while - as you can see here it was collected in 1907 - but just how far back they go, I don't know. (The Clancy Brothers tune you're referring to is doubtless "The Nightingale" - where they both sit down together, love, to hear the nightingale sing.)
ReplyDeleteP.S. - For all the variants on the basic idea, I only know one where the soldier actually does the decent thing and marries her.
ReplyDeleteThe troops get better press now than when that "traditional" fellow was writing.
Yes, the Nightingale! What a fine song it is.
ReplyDeleteIndeed! Here's another traditional sweet nightingale song - I used to have a recording by a male alto, with lute accompaniment, but this one is good also.
ReplyDeleteAh, now, as for that tune -- "in the valley below" is another line that the Merry Wives of Windsor used, to villainous and sinful purpose. (I assure readers that they would be much better off not following that link.)
ReplyDeleteMy education continues...
ReplyDelete