May Colvine- Wattie Wright (Midl) 1973 Munro
[From: Collection - School of Scottish Studies; Original Tape ID - SA1973.112. " Colvine" is pronounced "Colveen."
R. Matteson 2018]
Summary- In this ballad, a knight comes to court a young maid, convincing her to leave with him and bring gold and horses. He takes her to the seaside and tells her to dismount - he has drowned other young women here, and will do the same to her. When he demands her silken gown, she asks him to avert his eyes, and with his back turned she pushes him into the water. He begs to be saved, saying he will marry her if she helps him; she refuses and rides away.
Wattie Wright sings only the first part of this ballad - the second deals with the young woman's regret at stealing from her father and her request that her father bury the knight.
May Colvine- sung by Wattie Wright (b. 1909) of Edinburgh, Midlothian County in 1973. Recorded for Scottish Studies by Ailie Edmunds Munro.
Hae ye ever heard o' the bloody knight
He came from the west country
How he betrayed eight maidens fair
And drowned them in the sea.
The false Sir John a-courtin' came,
A lady most won'drous fair,
May Colvine was this lady's name,
Her father's only heir.
He courted her both butt and ben,
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