Oh Lily, Dear Lily

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.

Folk songs--United States

Courtship--Songs and music

Soldiers--Songs and music

Death--Songs and music

Love--Songs and music

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

Sweet Willie.

Chorus:
Oh, Lily, pretty Lily,
Oh ,Lily, fare you well.
I am sorry to leave you,
I loved you so well.

He begged me, he teased me,
Some several weeks ago
To live with his Mother,
But I would not go.

We was promised to get married
Some several weeks ago.
This war it broke out,
And Sweet Willie had to go.

He wrote me a letter
That he was very low,
He wrote me another
I never got ,I know.

He was wounded on the battle field,
And mortally in the side.
Then I received another,
Sweet Willie, he had died.

He was buried on the battle field,
And almost in the sea.
Go take up Sweet Willie,
And bury him by the side of me.

For I am troubled, I am troubled,
I am troubled in my mind.
And if trouble don’t kill me,
I will live a long time.

Randolph, 731

113_OhLilyDearLily