Daemon Lover, Lyric Variant 02

This item is part of the I. G. Greer Folksong Collection which consists of more than 300 individual song titles and their variants as collected by Isaac Garfield Greer (1881-1967) from informants, primarily in Ashe, Wilkes and Watauga counties. The collection includes manuscripts, typescript transcriptions produced by Dr. Greer’s clerical staff, and handwritten musical notations. Songs range from traditional Child Ballads, traditional English and Scottish ballads as well as their American variants, to 19th century popular music to musical compositions of local origin.

Ballads, English

Adultery--Songs and music

Ocean travel--Songs and music

The House Carpenter (Said an Old True Love)

AC.113 Isaac Garfield (I.G.) Greer Papers and Recordings

W. L. Eury Appalachian Collection, Appalachian State University

Greer, I. G. (Isaac Garfield), 1881-1967

PDF

English

Text

The House Carpenter.

Well met,well met,my old true love .
Well met,he cried
For I’m just returning from the salt,salt sea,A
And it’s all for the love of thee.

Oh, I could have married a King’s daughter ,dear,
And she would have married me,
But I refused a crown of gold,
And it’s all for the love of thee.

If you could have married a king’s Dayghter,dear,
I think you are to blame,
For I have lately been married to a House arpenter,
And I think he’s a fine young man.

Oh,wont you leave your House Carpenter,
And go along with me?
I’ll take you where the grass grows green,
On the banks of Sweet willowrie.

If I should leave my house carpenter and go along with you
And go along with you,
Pray what have you to maintain me on,
And keep me from slavery?

I have seven ships all sailing on the sea,
All sailing for dry land,
One hundred and ten bold brave looking men,
You may have them at your command.

She went and dressed in her finest array,
And slowly turned away,
For she outshined the gliyyering gold,
Most beautiful to behold.

8
She went and kissed her sweet little babe,
She kissed it,she gave it three.
Saying you stay here you dear darling little babe,
And keep your Papa company.

9
They hadn’t been on ship two weeks or more,
I’m sure it was not three,
Until this lady was known to weep,
And she wept most bitterly.

10
Oh,is it for my gold you weep,
Or is it for my store,
Or is it for that house carpenter,
You never shall see any more?

11
It is not for your gold I weep,
Neither is it for your store,
But it’s for my dear darling little babe,
I never shall see any more.

12
A curse, a curse to all seamen,
A curse to you she cried,
You have robbed me of my house carpenter,
An here I shall lose my life.

13
They hadn’t been on ship three weeks or more,
I’m sure it was not four,
Until that ship did spring a leak,
And it sank to rise no more.

14
O don’t you see them dark clouds rise
As black as any crow?
They’re the walls of Hell, They’re
the walls of Hell
and o’er them we must go!

Child, 243 Brown, Older Ballads - Mostly British - 40

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