A Sailor's Life- R.J. Shinn (WV) 1969 Bush II
[From Michael "Jim" Bush, Folk Songs of Central West Virginia II, c1972.
R. Matteson 2017]
A Sailor's Life - sung by R. J. Shinn, of Cottageville WV, August 1969
A sailor's life makes a dreary wife,
It causes her to weep and mourn,
It causes her to weep and mourn,
For her lost love that never will return
Brown was the color of my true lover’s hair
His cheeks resembled roses fair
And his return will give me much joy
For none do I love but my sweet sailor boy.
She built herself a little boat
That on the water she might float
And every ship that passed her by
She inquired after her Willy boy
She had not been long upon the deep
Till she chanced some ships to meet,
Oh captain, captain, tell me true
Does my sweet Willie sail with you?
Oh no, oh no, he is not on board
I fear he's drowned in yonder deep
On yon green Isle as we passed by
Is where we left your Willy boy.
She ran her boat upon a rock
And I thought that lady's heart was broke
She wrung her hands, she tore her hair
Just like a maid all in despair
She set her down and wrote a song,
She wrote it neat and she wrote it long,
At the end of every line she dropped a tear
At the end of every verse cried, "Willy dear."
"Go dig my grave both wide and deep
And on my breast plant roses sweet
At the head put a turtle dove
To show the world that I died of love."