song about young woman marrying younger boy
Erich Marschner
The song you describe sounds like a song I learned many years ago, I
believe from a Pentangle album. The title was, I think, "The Trees They
Grow High", although I think I have also seen it elsewhere called "Lang
A-Growin'". I recall the words being as follows:
The trees they grow high, and the leaves they do grow green,
Many's the times my true love I've seen,
Many's the hours I've watched him all alone,
He's young, but he's daily growin'.
Father, dear Father, you've done me great wrong,
You've married me to a boy who is too young,
I am twice twelve, and he is but fourteen,
He's young, but he's daily growin'.
Daughter, dear daughter, I've done you no wrong,
I've married you to a brave lord's son,
He'll be a man for you when I am dead and gone,
He's young etc.
Father, dear Father, if you see fit,
You'll send my love to college, a world-view to get,
Tie blue ribbons, all around his head,
To let the ladies know that he's married.
As I was a lookin' o'er my father's castle wall,
[I] saw all the boys, a-playin' with the ball,
My own true love was the flower of them all,
He's young, etc.
At the age of fourteen, he was a married man,
Age of fifteen, the father of a son,
Age sixteen, o'er his grave the grass grew green,
Cruel death had put an end to his growin'.
I'll make my love a shroud of the finest whole cloth,
Every stitch I put in it, the tears come tricklin' down,
Once I had a true love, but now I've ne'er a one,
But I'll watch o'er his son while he's growin'.
Hope this helps.
Erich
Rodalley wrote:
>
> I've been wanting to find a recorded version of this for years. About
> seven years ago, I was went to performance at New Pieces (I believe that's
> right) in Berkeley, California, by a female harpist and folk singer. One
> of the songs was about young woman being married to a still younger boy,
> who still played ball with his friends. In subsequent verses, he grows up,
> begins to grow a facial hair, fathers a child himself, and finally dies and
> is buried. I believe the harpist/singer specialized in Welsh folk songs.
> With this very sketchy and probably in some respects incorrect (I've tried
> to give every detail I can remember, and perhaps a bit more than I can
> correctly remember) description, can anyone help me? What's the name of
> the song? Who was the harpist? Does she have a recorded version out? Is
> there another good recorded version that someone could recommend?
> Thx,
> Rod Alley
Bobpegritz
Dear Rod,
There's another interesting song that I heard done by Andy M. Stewart
and Silly Wizard. The words in the refrain were "All the town new of our
wedding, now all the town knows of our shame". It speaks of a couple who
found out that they were brother and sister from "a stranger who told me my
name". Just thought I'd throw that one in.
Bob Pegritz
Sweet Caroline
Rodalley wrote:
>
> I've been wanting to find a recorded version of this for years. About
> seven years ago, I was went to performance at New Pieces (I believe that's
> right) in Berkeley, California, by a female harpist and folk singer. One
> of the songs was about young woman being married to a still younger boy,
> who still played ball with his friends. In subsequent verses, he grows up,
> begins to grow a facial hair, fathers a child himself, and finally dies and
> is buried. I believe the harpist/singer specialized in Welsh folk songs.
> With this very sketchy and probably in some respects incorrect (I've tried
> to give every detail I can remember, and perhaps a bit more than I can
> correctly remember) description, can anyone help me? What's the name of
> the song? Who was the harpist? Does she have a recorded version out? Is
> there another good recorded version that someone could recommend?
> Thx,
> Rod Alley
Rod,
I've never heard a recorded version, but I have seen the sheet music (it
was in a book of Irish songs I picked up at my local music store). The
song was called "The Bonny Boy" and the chorus had the line, "The bonny
boy is young, but he's growing."
-Caroline
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Gail Gurman
>>>>> "L" == Lanna1 <lan...@aol.com> writes:
L> Does anyone know the tune to this song?
Which song? Please learn to quote.
--
Gail Gurman | Email.................gail@homemail.com
Technical Writer | Personal Web Page.....http://www.wco.com/~gailg/
Wink Communications | Company Web Page......http://www.wink.com/
Paul McEvoy
I think there is a version on the Mary Makem Album Ulster Ballad Singer,
but I can't find the album now, and I dought that it is still in print.
Copied it from the library.
Paul
Lanna1
Gail Gurman wrote -
>>>>>> "L" == Lanna1 <lan...@aol.com> writes:
>L> Does anyone know the tune to this song?
>
>Which song? Please learn to quote.
Actually, I learned how to quote a long long time ago, but thanks for the
tip. I just figured that with the subject line speaking of a song, I could
ask about the melody line of it without causing too much confusion. Whoops.
My bad.
Alana.
Lan...@aol.com
Timothy Jaques
Here is the version from the digital database.
recorded on: Joan Baez/2, Jean Redpath Seals
and Sara Cleveland
DAILY GROWING (BONNY BOY IS YOUNG OR TREES GROW HIGH, ETC.)
The trees they grow high, the leaves they do grow green
Many is the time my true love I've seen
Many an hour I have watched him all alone
He's young, but he's daily growing
Father, dear father, you've done me great wrong
You have married me to a boy who is too young
I'm twice twelve and he is but fourteen
He's young, but he's daily growing
Daughter, dear daughter, I've done you no wrong
I have married you to a great lord's son
He'll be a man for you when I am dead and gone
He's young, but he's daily growing
Father, dear father, if you see fit
We'll send him to college for another year yet
I'll tie blue ribbons all around his head
To let the maidens know that he's married
One day I was looking o'er my father's castle wall
I spied all the boys aplaying at the ball
My own true love was the flower of them all
He's young, but he's daily growing
And so early in the morning at the dawning of the day *
They went out into the hayfield to have some sport and play;
And what they did there, she never would declare
But she never more complained of his growing.
At the age of fourteen, he was a married man
At the age of fifteen, the father of a son
At the age of sixteen, his grave it was green
Have gone, to be wasted in battle.
And death had put an end to his growing
I'll buy my love some flannel and I will make a shroud
With every stitch I put in it, the tears they will pour down
With every stitch I put in it, how the tears will flow
Cruel fate has put an end to his growing
*additional verse from Penguin Book of English Folk Songs, Williams and
Lloyd
recorded on: Joan Baez/2, Jean Redpath Seals
and Sara Cleveland
--
Timothy Jaques
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
"Men's evil manners live in brass: their virtues we write in water."
Sweet Caroline <cste...@hotmail.comNOSPAM> wrote in article
<34100C...@hotmail.comNOSPAM>...
Timothy Jaques
The colleges were filthy with shit and ill-cooked food. In the original
song he was a little too young for war, even in those times.
Timothy Jaques
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
"Men's evil manners live in brass: their virtues we write in water."
R Pickett <emerson@*bayarea.net*> wrote in article
<34130ea6...@news.bayarea.net>...
> Annwn <http://www.elfhill.com> have a cool version (*) on our most
> recent album, _Come_Away_to_the_Hills_, where it's titled "The Trees
> They Do Grow High." It also has a slight alteration of the lyrics,
> where the boy gets sent to war instead of college. As the guitarist
> mentions in the liner notes: "We figure that unless college was a lot
> different then than it is now, attending usually isn't fatal..." And
> so, traditional music morphs yet again.