Recordings & Info 68. Young Hunting
CONTENTS:
1) Alternative Titles
2) Traditional Ballad Index
3) Folk Index
4) Child Collection Index
5) Excerpt from The British Traditional Ballad in North America by Tristram Coffin 1950, from the section A Critical Biographical Study of the Traditional Ballads of North America
6) Mainly Norfolk (lyrics and info)
7) Bob Dylan's text
ATTACHED PAGES: (see left hand column)
1) Roud Number 47: Young Hunting (235 Listings)
Alternative Titles
Lady Margot and Love Henry
Earl Richard
Lord Land
Lord Bonnie
Low Bonnie
Young Redin
Little Scotchee
Lord Banyan
Lord Barnet,
Lord Barnet and Fair Eleonder
Lord Henry
Love Henry (Henery)
Pretty Polly
Proud Lady Margaret
Sir (Lord) Henry and Lady Margaret
Sweet William and Fair Ellender
The Faulse Lady
The Old Scotch Well
The Scotland Man
Traditional Ballad Index: Young Hunting [Child 68]
DESCRIPTION: (Young Hunting) goes riding, and meets his love. She bids him come in; he says he cannot, for he must meet another love. She kills him. She is then told (by a bird?) that "he had no love but thee." But all she cares about is hiding the body
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1776 (Herd)
KEYWORDS: love betrayal murder death burial bird
FOUND IN: Britain(Scotland(Bord)) US(Ap,MA,MW,NE,SE,So,SW) Canada(Mar) Ireland
REFERENCES (35 citations):
Child 68, "Young Hunting" (11 texts, 1 tune) {Bronson's #34}
Bronson 68, "Young Hunting" (43 versions, though a few are fragments which may belong with some other song)
Lyle-Crawfurd1 37, "Earl Richard" (1 text, 1 tune)
GlenbuchatBallads, pp. 147-151, "Young Huntley" (1 text)
BarryEckstormSmyth pp. 122-128, "Young Hunting" (2 texts, 1 tune) {Bronson's #36}
Flanders-Ancient2, pp. 87-88, "Young Hunting" (1 tune, with no text at all but reported to be this) {Bronson's #7}
Belden, pp. 34-37, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
Randolph 14, "Lord Henry and Lady Margaret" (2 texts, 1 tune) {Bronson's #18}
Randolph/Cohen, pp. 28-31, "Lord Henry and Lady Margaret" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 14A) {Bronson's #18}
Davis-Ballads 17, "Young Hunting" (5 texts plus a fragment; all the texts seem somewhat mixed, and "E" clearly has verses from "Lady Isabel and the Elf Knight"; 4 tunes entitled "Sir Henry and Lady Margaret," "Young Hunting," "Lord Henry"; 1 more version mentioned in Appendix A) {Bronson's #20, #22, #16, #28}
Davis-More 17, pp. 111-122, "Young Hunting" (6 texts, 5 tunes)
BrownII 18, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
Chappell-FSRA 8, "Young Hunting" (2 texts, one short; 1 tune) {Bronson's #42)
Hudson 9, pp. 77-78, "Young Hunting" (1 text plus a fragment, from the same informant)
Cambiaire, pp. 28-29, "Loving Henry" (1 text)
SharpAp 18 "Young Hunting" (12 texts plus 2 fragments, 14 tunes){Bronson's #35, #32, #33, #22, #40, #2, #12, #11, #25, #27, #13, #37, #31, #30}
Ritchie-Southern, po. 88-89, "Young Hunting" (1 text, 1 tune)
Scarborough-SongCatcher, pp. 134-136, collectively titled "Young Hunting," individually "Loving Henery," "Come In, Loving Henery," "Loving Henry" (2 texts plus a fragment; the "A" text has a moralizing ending in which the girl dies; tune on p. 398) {Bronson's #10}
Creighton/Senior, pp. 36-39, "Young Hunting" (2 texts, 1 tune) {Bronson's #5}
Leach, pp. 229-234, "Young Hunting" (2 texts)
McNeil-SFB2, pp. 76-78, "Lord Barnie" (1 text, 1 tune)
OBB 30, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
Friedman, p. 190, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
FSCatskills 65, "The Lord of Scotland" (1 text, 1 tune. Cazden et al are not sure this song should be identified with "Young Hunting," since the "bird scene" is more extended than in other versions of that ballad. However, all the classic elements of "Young Hunting" are present)
Warner 109, "A Song of a Lost Hunter (or, My Love Heneree)" (1 text, 1 tune)
PBB 44, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
Niles 27, "Young Hunting" (1 text, 1 tune)
Gummere, pp. 209-212+350-351, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
Sharp/Karpeles-80E 13, "Love Henry (Young Hunting)" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #31}
Sandburg, pp. 64-65, "Little Scotch-ee" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #38}
Asch/Dunson/Raim, p. 22 "Henry Lee" (1 text, 1 tune)
Hodgart, p. 54, "Young Hunting" (1 text)
JHCox 9, "Young Hunting" (2 texts)
Abrahams/Foss, pp. 97-99, "Love Henry" (1 text, 1 tune)
DT 68, FALSLADY* YNGHUNT * YNGHUNT2* YNGHUNT3* YNGHUNT5
Roud #47
RECORDINGS:
Jimmie Tarlton (Darby & Tarlton), "Lowe Bonnie" (Columbia 15763-D, 1930; on TimesAint04, ConstSor1) {Bronson's #43}
Logan English, "Love Henry" (on LEnglish1 -- several verses filled in from Cecil Sharp's Kentucky version)
Dick Justice, "Henry Lee" (Brunswick 367, 1929; on AAFM1)
Ella Parker, "Lord Barnett" (on FineTimes)
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The False Young Man (The False True Lover)" (lyrics)
ALTERNATE TITLES:
Lady Margot and Love Henry
Earl Richard
Lord Land
Lord Bonnie
Low Bonnie
Young Redin
NOTES: Bronson notes that the musical tradition of this ballad "is perplexed and hard to make out," the tunes having diverse metres and forms. Bronson divides them into six major groups (the largest of which has two subgroups), but notes connections to many other melodies. Given the complexity of establishing tune families, we make no attempt to list them all in the cross-references; you'll have to see Bronson.
Although American versions of this song are often known as "Loving Henry," not every song known by this title is a version of Young Hunting. Norm Cohen points out to me that at least two 78s known by this title [Kyle Wooten, "Loving Henry" (OKeh 45539, 1931; rec. 1930) and Jess Young's Tennessee Band, "Loving Henry" (Columbia 15431-D, 1929)] are not Child 68. - RBW
Folk Index: Young Hunting [Ch 68/Sh 18/Me I-A 5]
Rt - Loving Henry ; Lowe Bonnie ; Lord of Scotland
Dunson, Josh; & Ethel Raim (eds) / Anthology of American Folk Music, Oak, Sof (1973), p 22 (Henry Lee)
Friedman, Albert B. (ed.) / Viking Book of Folk Ballads of the English-S, Viking, sof (1963/1957), p191 [1700ca]
Wells, Evelyn Kendrick (ed.) / The Ballad Tree, Ronald, Bk (1950), p152
Scottish Song Book for Contralto, Bayley & Ferguson, Sof (1910s?), p 73 [1850s] (Earl Richard)
Leach, MacEdward / The Ballad Book, Harper & Row, Bk (1955), p230
Bennett, Virginia. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p113/# 18L [1918/09/13]
Carter, Francis (Mrs.). Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p108/# 18G [1917/09/07]
Chandler, Mrs. Floyd. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p102/# 18B [1916/08/29]
Collins, Shirley. Asch, Moses (ed.) / 124 Folk Songs as Sung and Recorded on Folkways Reco, Robbins, fol (1965), p 42 (False True Love)
Collins, Shirley. Classic Collection, Highpoint HPO 6008, CD (2004), trk# 12 [1967] (False True Love)
Collins, Shirley. False True Lovers, Folkways FG 3564, LP (1959), trk# B.03 (False True Love)
Deeton, Mrs. Clercy. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p113/# 18N [1918/09/19]
Dunagan, Margaret. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p110/# 18H [1917/09/05]
Fitzgerald, Clinton. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p111/# 18I [1918/04/28]
Gentry, Jane Hicks. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p101/# 18A [1916/08/25]
Gentry, Jane Hicks. Smith, Betty N. / Jane Hicks Gentry. A Singer Among Singers, U. Ky, Sof (1998), p146/# 8 [1916/08/25] (Loving Henry)
Griffin, Mrs. G. A.. Morris, Alton C. / Folksongs of Florida, Univ. Florida, Bk (1950), p265/#156 [1934-39] (Pretty Polly or the Scotland Man)
Hall, Mrs.. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p107/# 18F [1914/04]
Hill, John. Cox, John Harrington (ed.) / Folk-Songs of the South, Dover, Sof (1967/1925), p 42/# 9A [1916/01/07]
Hollon, Mrs. Effie. Moore, Ethel & Chauncey (ed.) / Ballads and Folk Songs of the Southwest, Univ. of Okla, Bk (1964), p 50/# 17B [1940s]
Johnson, Ora. Scarborough, Dorothy(ed.) / A Song Catcher in the Southern Mountains, AMS, Bk (1966/1937), p135 [1930]
Johnson, Pete. Niles, John Jacob / Ballad Book of John Jacob Niles, Bramhall House, Bk (1961), p143/N 27 [1933/08] (Lady Margot and Love Henry)
Jones, Laurel. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p113/# 18M [1918/09/17]
Justice, Dick. Anthology of American Folk Music, Smithsonian/Folkways SFW 40090, CD( (1997), trk# 1 [1929/05/20] (Henry Lee)
Keeton, Orilla. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p104/# 18D [1916/09/26]
Landers, Linnie. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p103/# 18C [1916/09/05]
McAllister, Marybird. Abrahams, Roger; & George Foss / Anglo-American Folksong Style, Prentice-Hall, Sof (1968), 6-2 [1958]
Parker, Maggie Hammons. Hammons Family. A Study of a West Virginia Family's Traditions, Library of Congress AAFS L65-L66, LP (1973), trk# 13 [1970/10/23] (Young Henerly)
Richards, Frances (Mrs.). Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p112/# 18K [1918/08/17]
Seeger, Peggy. Folk Songs with the Seegers, Prestige PR 7375, LP (1965), trk# 19 (Little Henry Lee)
Seeger, Peggy. Three Sisters, Prestige International 13029, LP (1960s), trk# B.02 (Henry Lee)
Seeger, Peggy. Heading for Home, Appleseed CD 1076, CD (2003), trk# 11 (Henry Lee)
Small, Dol (Mr.). Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p112/# 18J [1918/05/22]
Sutherland, Mrs.. Sharp & Karpeles / English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, I, Oxford, Bk (1932/1917), p106/# 18E [1914/10/03]
--------------
Loving Henry [Ch 68/Sh 18/Me I-A 5]
Rt - Young Hunting ; Little Scotch-Ee/Scotchee
At - Song of a Lost Hunter ; Lord Henry
Bowerman, Ora Keene. Scarborough, Dorothy(ed.) / A Song Catcher in the Southern Mountains, AMS, Bk (1966/1937), p136b,398 [1930]
Brady, Pete; and the Blazers. Murder Ballads, ABC Paramount ABC 310, LP (196?), trk# A.06
Bright, Judy. This Is Judy Bright, Dot DLP 3575, LP (1965ca), trk# A.04 (Love Henry)
Goodhue, F. M.. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume I, British Ballads and Songs, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p 92/# 14B [1930ca] (Lord Banyan)
Hundley, Holley. Folksongs and Ballads, Vol 3, Augusta Heritage AHR 009, Cas (1991), trk# 2.02 [1989/11/08] (Love Henry)
Jones, Laurel. Sharp, Cecil & Maude Karpeles (eds.) / Eighty English Folk Songs from th, MIT Press, Sof (1968), p 34 [1917ca] (Love Henry)
Keene, Laura. Scarborough, Dorothy(ed.) / A Song Catcher in the Southern Mountains, AMS, Bk (1966/1937), p136 [1930] (Come In Loving Henry)
Kitchens, Bernice. Owens, William A. (ed.) / Texas Folk Songs. 2nd edition, SMU Press, Bk (1976/1950), p 16 [1938]
McKinney, Polly (F.). Cox, John Harrington (ed.) / Folk-Songs of the South, Dover, Sof (1967/1925), p 44/# 9B [1919] (Love Henry)
Paley, Tom. Tom Paley and Peggy Seeger, Elektra EKL 295, LP (1966), trk# A.02 (Love Henry)
Pettit, Katherine. Leach, MacEdward / The Ballad Book, Harper & Row, Bk (1955), p232 [1904ca]
Proffitt, Frank. Frank Proffitt of Reese, North Carolina, Folk Legacy FSA 001, Cas (1962), trk# B.06
Seeger, Peggy. O Love Is Teasin', Elektra 60402-1-U, LP (1957), trk# 1.13
Seeger, Peggy. Our Singing Heritage. Vol I, Elektra EKL 151, LP (1958), trk# 18
Shute, Bill; and Lisa Null. Feathered Maiden and Other Ballads, Green Linnet SIF 1006, LP (1977), trk# A.03
Stafford, Miriam. Berkeley Farms, Folkways FA 2436, LP (1972/1970), trk# B.03
West, Hedy. Ballads, Topic 12T 163, LP (1967), trk# B.04 (Love Henry)
Whittaker, Judy Jane. Randolph, Vance / Ozark Folksongs. Volume I, British Ballads and Songs, Univ. of Missouri, Bk (1980/1946), p 90/ [1928/05/12] (Lord Henry and Lady Mar
Workman, Nimrod. Mother Jones' Will, Rounder 0076, LP (1978), trk# 17
Younger, John. Moore, Ethel & Chauncey (ed.) / Ballads and Folk Songs of the Southwest, Univ. of Okla, Bk (1964), p 47/# 17A [1940s] (Love Henry)
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Lowe Bonnie [Ch 68/Me I-A 5]
Rt - Young Hunting
Klemmedsons. Rackensack. Volume 2, Rimrock LP 279, LP (1972), trk# A.08
Tarleton, Jimmie (Jimmy). Sing Out Reprints, Sing Out, Sof, 11, p 7 (1969) [1930/12/03]
Tarleton, Jimmie (Jimmy). Steel Guitar Rag, Testament T 3302, LP (1967), trk# B.02 [1963/12/04]
----------
Lord of Scotland [Ch 68/Sh 18]
Rt - Young Hunting
Rm - Peter Gray
Edwards, George. Cazden, Norman, et.al. / Folk Songs of the Catskills, SUNY Press, sof (1982), p241/# 65 [1940s]
--------------
Little Scotch-Ee/Scotchee [Ch 68/Sh 18]
Rt - Loving Henry
At - Old Scotch Wall
Heath, Gordan; and Lee Payant. Folksongs and Footnotes, Abbaye 1, LP (1956), trk# A.07
Pierce, Tressie. Sandburg, Carl (ed.) / American Songbag, Harcourt, Sof (1955/1928), p 64
Excerpt from The British Traditional Ballad in North America
by Tristram Coffin 1950, from the section A Critical Biographical Study of the Traditional Ballads of North America
68. YOUNG HUNTING
Texts: American Speech, III, njj Barry, Brit Bids Me, I22/ Belden,Mo.F-S, 34/Brewster, Bids Sgs Ind, 166 / Brown Coll / Bull Tenn FLS, VIII, #3, 72 / Bull U SC# 162, #4 / Cambiaire, Ea Tenn Wstn Va Mt Bids, 28 / Chappeil, F-S Enke Alb, 21 / Cox, F-S South, 42 / Crabtree, Overton Cnty, 283 / Davis, Trd Bid Va, 182 / Delaney's Scotch Song Book (N.Y., 1910), 6 / Duncan, No Hamilton Cnty, 44 / Focus, V, 280 / Garrison, Searcy Cnty, 22 / Gordon, F-S Am, 66 / Harpers Mgz (May 1915), 909 / Henry, F-S So Hgblds, 145 / Hudson, F-S Miss, 77 / Hudson, Spec Miss F-L, #9 / Hummel, OK F-S / JAFL, XX, 252; XXX, 2975 XLIV,
67; HI, 30 / Ky Cnties Mss. / Lunsford and Stringfield, 30 & i F-S So Mts, 22 / McDonald, Selctd F-S Mo, 20 / Morris, F-S Fla, 397 / N.T. Times Mgz, 10 9 '27 / Owens, SW Sings / Owens, Studies Tex F-S, 24 / PTFLS, X, 143 / Randolph, Oz F-S, I, 90 / Randolph, Oz Mt Flk, 203 / Sandburg, Am Sgbag, 64 / Scarborough, Sgctchr So Mts, 134; SharpC, EngF-S So dplchns, # 15 / SharpK, EngF-S So Aplchns, I, 101 / Reed Smith, SC Bids, 107 / Smith and Rufty, Am Anth Old WrU Bids, i$\Va FLS Bull, #s 5 7, 10 / William and Mary Literary Mgz, XXIX, 664.
Local Titles: Little Scotchee, Lord Banyan, Lord Barnet, Lord Barnet and Fair Eleonder, Lord Bonnie, Lord Henry, Love Henry (Henery), Pretty Polly, Proud Lady Margaret, Sir (Lord) Henry and Lady Margaret, Sweet William and Fair EUender, The Faulse Lady, The Old Scotch Well, The Scotland Man.
Story Types:
A: Lord Henry returns from a hunt and is invited to spend the night with his mistress Margaret. He refuses, saying a lady he loves far better (in. SharpK, Eng F-S So Aplchns, N it is his wife) is waiting for him. About to depart, he leans over his horse's neck, her pillow, or the fence to kiss Margaret good-bye, and she stabs him. Henry then reveals he loves Lady Margaret and dies. She, with or without the aid of maids, sisters, etc., throws his body in a well. A bird accuses her of the crime; she attempts to bribe him and then threatens him, all to no avail. In most versions, the bird reveals her guilt.
Examples: Belden, Davis (A), SharpK (A).
B: The story is like that of Type A, but the motive for the killing has been obliterated. Henry refuses to stay for the night as he wishes to see his parents. Examples: Barry (B), Randolph, OzF-S (A).
C: A Ky. Miss. version begins with the girl's walking in the garden where she meets her father-in-law. He asks for his son, and she says her husband is out hunting, but is expected soon. The bird then speaks up and reveals that the lover is dead and his body in the well. The girl tries to bribe the bird, but the bird refuses to cease his accusations. Men dig in the well and find the
body, and the girl, as well as her maid, is hung.
Examples: Hudson (A).
D: The usual story is told. However, the girl commits suicide that night. She leaves her ring on Henry's finger in some versions. Examples: Cambiaire, Scarborough.
E: A corrupted version (The Forsaken Girl series) exists. In it Henry gives the girl's faithlessness as an excuse for his leaving her. She then upbraids him for forsaking her, wishes she were dead, and rues her lot of bearing him or child. Examples: Henry.
F: A confused and corrupt version exists in which the murder occurs outside a barroom. The body is thrown in a well, and the girl announces to all what she has done. The bird sequence has lost its purpose.
Examples: SharpK (H).
G: A lyric has developed from the final stanzas of dialogue between the bird and the girl in which the murder is only mentioned. Examples: SFLQ, VIII, 146.
Discussion: The original story of this ballad (Child A, C, H, K) frequently mentions the king's duckers, who find the body after a hint from the bird. The lady then swears she is innocent and tries to blame her maid. However, a trial by fire leaves the maid unscathed, but consumes the guilty one. Such material, except for traces in Type C, is not in America.
In general, the ballad is far more common in the South than in the North. In fact, the song is extremely rare in British North America, though Barry (JAFL, XVIII, 295) gives a melody without text. Belden, Mo F-S, 35 suspects the presence of a stall copy to have perpetuated the song over here. The similarity of the American versions backs up his opinion. As usual, these versions are compressed, and they lack the dressing up of the dead man and the mounting of him on his horse (Child A-D, G, H, J-K), the recovery of the drowned body (Child A-D, G, H, J-K), and the intoxication of the hero before the murder (Child A, J, K). It may be possible, nevertheless (see Belden, loc. cit.) that remnants of the drinking may be in Davis, Trd Bid Va, C, D; SharpK, Eng F-S So Aplcbns, D; JAFL, XXX, 301; Cambiaire, Ea Tenn Wstn Va Mt Bids; and Brewster, Bids Sgs Ind.
The American Type A stories lack the fire ending and the duckers. Type B reveals how a ballad story can change. With some singer's (or publisher's) caprice the motive for the crime has been obliterated (see Bull Tenn FLS, VIII, $3, 72), although Barry, Brit Bids Me, 126 shows, through a later stanza in his B version, that this group is actually the same as Type A. Type C seems to be an adaption of the Child A, C, H, K series, although the lover is more properly married and the father of the youth is present. The revelation of the crime by a bird is in Child J-K.
The song has been subjected to much corruption. (See Zielonko, Some American Variants of Child Ballads, 93 ff.) The parrot stanzas of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight (Child 4) have attached themselves to it both here and in Great Britain (Child I and Davis, op. cit^ A), while it has also mingled with its own derivative, The False Toung Man (SharpC, Eng F-S So Aplchns,
333, note, and # 94) ; Henry, F-S So Hghlds, 146; JAFL, XLIV, 67; and my Type E.) Types D and F are almost self-explanatory. The former is either a rationalization of the antiquated "fire" judgment or a localization, while the latter is one of those hybrids that is certain to occur if any song wanders long enough.
The confusion of the Scarborough, Sgrtchr So Mts, B text should be noted. The parrot and the girl, who are so often both named Polly, become completely confused, and the story vanishes in nonsense. In addition, Brewster, op. cit., 166 prints a version of The Trooper and the Maid, (299) that is about half Young Hunting. See Type C under 299.
See Zielonko, op. cit., 93 ff. for study of selected New World texts.
Young Hunting From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Young Hunting" is a traditional folk song, collected by Francis James Child as Child Ballad number 68,[1], and has its origin in Scotland.[2] Like most traditional songs, numerous variants of the song exist worldwide, notably under the title of "Henry Lee" and "Love Henry" in the United States[3] and "Earl Richard" and sometimes "The Proud Girl" in the United Kingdom.
The song, which can be traced back as far as the 18th century, narrates the tale of a the eponymous protagonist, Young Hunting, who tells a woman, who may have borne him a child, that he is in love with another, more beautiful woman. Despite this, she persuades him to drink until he is drunk, then to come to her bedroom, or at least kiss her farewell. The woman then stabs him to death. She throws his body in the river — sometimes with the help of one of the other women of the town, whom she bribes with a diamond ring — and is taunted by a bird. She tries to lure the bird down from the tree but it tells her that she will kill it if it comes within reach. When the search for Young Hunting starts, she either denies seeing him or claims that he left earlier, but when Hunting's remains are found, in order to revoke her guilt, she reveals that she murdered him is later burned at the stake. Nick Cave, who covered the song, referred to the song as "a story about the fury of a scorned woman."[4]
Variants and origins
American variants of the song are more widely known as the song has been physically released. One of the earliest recorded variants was performed by blues singer Dick Justice in 1929 under the title "Henry Lee." The recording was anthologised in the first of Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music,[5] released in 1952. Judy Henske included a version of the song titled "Love Henry" — a title collected by Cecil Sharp in September 1916 from Orilla Keeton in Mountfair, Virginia[6] — on her eponymous debut album[7] in 1963. Australian post-punk band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds covered the song under the title "Henry Lee", which was based lyrically on Dick Justice's version,[2] with English alternative rock musician PJ Harvey in 1995. This version was included as a track on the band's 1996 album Murder Ballads.[8]
English variants of the song, which are closely structed on the original Scottish versions, are also known under the titles "Earl Richard" and "The Proud Girl." A version of the song, credited as "Earl Richard", was recorded by English folk singer Tim Hart in 1969 and its liner notes state: "[the song] [...] is a shorter version of the ballad 'Young Hunting.' [...] this version comes from Motherwell's Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border."[9] John Spiers and Jon Bode recorded a version of the English variant in 2001 on the album Through & Through and credited the author as "Miss Stephenson of Glasgow" and said it was written in 1825.[6] "The Proud Girl" is an arrangement of the song by A.L. Lloyd that was performed at the Top Lock Folk Club in Runcorn, Cheshire on November 5, 1972. This performance, which was the basis of Frankie Armstrong's 1997 version,[10], was released in 2010 on An Evening with A.L. Lloyd.[11] and was noted to have been traced back three generations further.
Related songs
The song is closely related to another Child Ballad, "Young Benjie", as it not only deals with a similar theme, but almost identical story, in which a male lover is murdered and thrown in a river by his female companion. "Child Waters" and "The False Lover Won Back", both murder ballads and Child Ballads, are similar and all four songs may have the same origin.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds version "Henry Lee"
Single by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds with PJ Harvey
from the album Murder Ballads
B-side "King Kong Kitchee Kitchee Ki-Mi-O"
Released February 26, 1996
Format CD single, 7" vinyl
Recorded 1995 at Sing Sing and Metropolis Studios in Melbourne, Australia and Wessex and Worldwide Studios in London, United Kingdom
Genre Alternative rock, folk rock, blues rock
Length 3:58
Label Mute
Writer(s) Traditional, arranged by Nick Cave
Producer Tony Cohen, Victor Van Vugt
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds with PJ Harvey singles chronology
"Where the Wild Roses Grow"
(1995) "Henry Lee"
(1996) "Into My Arms"
(1997)
"Henry Lee" is a variant of "Young Hunting" and the fifteenth single, and second and final from their ninth studio album Murder Ballads, by Australian post-punk band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released as a domestic single on February 26, 1996. The song, which features Cave's then-girlfriend and English alternative rock musician PJ Harvey, diverges significantly in terms of musical composition in comparison to other more traditional versions of "Henry Lee" and as previously stated, was based lyrically on Dick Justice's version of the song.[2]
Recording
Like the single's predecessor, "Where the Wild Roses Grow", "Henry Lee" is a duet and features PJ Harvey. The bulk of the studio version of the song was recorded by The Bad Seeds at Sing Sing Studios and Metropolis Studios in Melbourne with Cave's vocal track. Harvey's vocal track was recorded at Wessex and Worldwide Studios in London. A demo version of the song which was sent to Harvey featured Bad Seed member Blixa Bargeld performing guide vocals. The single's two b-sides are other American murder ballads, following the album's theme and did not feature Harvey, however, the cover of "Knoxville Girl" features James Johnston on acoustic guitar. This cover does not feature The Bad Seeds.
Track listing
All songs of traditional origin and arranged by Nick Cave.
7" vinyl
1."Henry Lee" - 3:58
2."King Kong Kitchee Kitchee Ki-Mi-O" - 3:09
CD single
1."Henry Lee" - 3:58
2."King Kong Kitchee Kitchee Ki-Mi-O" - 3:09
3."Knoxville Girl" - 3:34
Music video
Directed by Rocky Schenck,[12] the promotional music video for "Henry Lee" features one scene throughout; Nick Cave, in the role of Henry Lee, and PJ Harvey, in the role of his lover, singing the duet. There is a constant green backdrop in the background of the video. This format contrasted the former format used by Schenck for "Where the Wild Roses Grow" which focused on cinematography and several scenes. Body language is a stand-out feature of the video and after many varying forms of it, the pair slow dance at the end of the video.
Chart positions Chart (1996) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[13] 36
Swedish Singles Chart[14] 35
Finnish Top 20 Singles[14] 15
External links
Eleven known variants of the song from Francis James Child's Popular English and Scottish Ballads
References
1.^ Francis James Child, Popular English and Scottish Ballads Volume II: 54-113 Transcriptions available at Sacred Texts: "Young Hunting"
2.^ a b c Bonner, Michael (2010). "Cave's duet with Polly Harvey on "Henry Lee" borrowed from several versions of a traditional song that traces it lineage all the way back to the ancient Scottish folk ballad "Young Hunting." The Murder Ballads take leans most on Dick Justice's 1929 recording...". Uncut (September 2010): p.51.
3.^ Burt, Olive W. (1958). American Murder Ballads and their Stories. New York, New York: Oxford University Press.
4.^ Nick Cave. "This song is an old Scottish murder ballad that I read in a book somewhere and played around with. It's, um, a story about the fury of a scorned woman." Extracts from a performance at BBC's Songwriters' Circle in 1999. Video of performance available on YouTube. Retrieved on April 4, 2011.
5.^ "Smithsonian Folkways - Anthology of American Folk Music - Various Artists". Folkways. http://www.folkways.si.edu/albumdetails.aspx?itemid=2426. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
6.^ a b Zierke, Reinhard (January 20, 2011). "Young Hunting / Earl Richard / Love Henry / The Proud Girl". English Folk and Other Good Music. http://www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/~zierke/tony.rose/songs/younghunting.html. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
7.^ "Judy Henske". JudyHenske.com. http://www.judyhenske.com/judyhenske.php. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
8.^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Murder Ballads - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds | AllMusic". allMusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/murder-ballads-r231482. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
9.^ (1969) ""Earl Richard" [...] is a shorter version of the ballad 'Young Hunting.' [...] This version comes from Motherwell's Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border.", p. 3 [LP]. Album notes for Folk Songs of Old England Vol. 2 by Tim Hart. England: Ad Rhythm (ARPS 4).
10.^ (1997) "Bert Lloyd gave Frankie this chilling version of "Young Hunting," which he seems to have based chiefly on that given to Walter Scott by James Hogg, the "Ettrick Shepherd", who had it from his mother.", p. 3 [CD]. Album notes for Till the Grass O'ergrew the Corn by Frankie Armstrong. England: Fellside Recordings (FECD116).
11.^ "An Evening With A.L. Lloyd: Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Evening-L-Lloyd/dp/B003UT62BY. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
12.^ "DNA | Commercial & Music Video Directors | Rocky Schenck". David Naylor & Associates. http://www.dnala.com/director/?director=Rocky-Schenck. Retrieved April 5, 2011.
13.^ "NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS - The Official Charts Company". UK Singles Chart. http://www.theofficialcharts.com/artist/_/nick%20cave%20&%20the%20bad%20seeds/#singles. Retrieved April 5, 2011.
14.^ a b "australian-charts.com - Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds & PJ Harvey - Henry Lee". Australian-Charts. http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Nick+Cave+And+The+Bad+Seeds+%26+PJ+Harvey&titel=Henry+Lee&cat=s. Retrieved April 5, 2011.
Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music
Young Hunting / Earl Richard / Love Henry / The Proud Girl
[Roud 47; Child 68; Ballad Index C068; trad.]
This 30-verse long ballad of jealousy and murder was sung unaccompanied by Tony Rose as title track of his first album, Young Hunting. He commented in the album sleeve notes:
The story of Young Hunting is basically a simple one—a jilted girl gains revenge by killing her former lover—and yet the song is one of the most powerful and compelling I have heard. Perhaps more than anything this is due to the drama and mystery lent to the story by the recurring hints of magic and the supernatural—the talking bird, the floating candle used to indicate the place of a drowned body, the body of the murdered man bleeding in the presence of the murderer, and the final trial by ordeal. This is a fine reworking of the ballad by Peter Nalder, and the tune I got from Peter too.
Tim Hart and Maddy Prior recorded a much shorter form [Child 68F] with the name Earl Richard for their second duo album, Folk Songs of Old England Vol. 2. The record's sleeve notes comment:
This song concerns the murder of Earl Richard by his jealous lover, and is a shorter version of the ballad Young Hunting. In the latter stanzas a bird speaks to the murderess, and while this could be a reference to the transfiguration of the soul of her victim, it is more probable that the bird plays an innocent role, since speaking birds like the mythological phoenix in earlier times and later the parrot, are universal as messengers throughout folklore. This version comes from Motherwell's Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border.
John Spiers and Jon Boden recorded Earl Richard in 2001 for their Fellside CD Through & Through, and Jon Boden sang it as the June 28, 2010 entry of his project A Folk Song a Day. He also commented in the CD liner notes:
A version of Young Hunting noted from a Miss Stephenson of Glasgow in 1825. Talking birds are not uncommon in traditional ballads but this one is unusually moral and immune to bribery, a stark contrast to the behaviour of the human characters.
A variant of Young Hunting called Love Henry was collected by Cecil Sharp in September 1916 from Mrs Orilla Keeton, Mount Fair, Virginia. June Tabor recorded it with Mark Emerson playing violin in March 1990 at Wytherston Studios. This demo was included in the Hokey Pokey charity compilation Circle Dance and later on her 4 CD anthology Always. She commented in the latter's notes:
I've often found it amusing and distressing the way the great ballads metamorphosed when they crossed the water. Something as disturbing as Young Hunting with its supernatural references, with the corpse bleeding when the murderer approaches and the real weight of horror that is in that tale of murder and the attempted concealment by the former true love, turns into a kind of Disneyfied version that becomes Love Henry. And yet it still has so much strength. Now I appreciate much more the power of the Appalachian versions, whereas I might once have said, “Yes, but it's not as good as the original.” This one sneaked through because it's got so many good lines in it. Particularly,
Then up and spoke a pretty little bird
Exceeding on a willow tree
You've got to sing a song with that in it! The bird flies away into the sunset to star in the sequel, while everybody else dies unhappily ever after.
Martin Simpson sang Love Henry on his 2005 CD Kind Letters. This recording was also included in the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2007 compilation.
A.L. Lloyd sang another variant of Young Hunting called The Proud Girl live at the Top Lock Folk Club, Runcorn, on November 5, 1972. This concert was published in 2010 on the Fellside CD An Evening with A.L. Lloyd.
And Frankie Armstrong sang The Proud Girl in 1996 on her ballads album Till the Grass O'ergrew the Corn. The sleeve notes commented:
Bert Lloyd gave Frankie this chilling version of Young Hunting, which he seems to have based chiefly on that given to Walter Scott by James Hogg, the “Ettrick Shepherd”, who had it from his mother. There can be few more imperious female protagonists in balladry: on learning of her love's falseness, she reacts with a ferocity worthy of a heroine from Greek tragedy. One reason for the power of ballad texts is that the bareness of their telling leaves space for singers and listeners to fill in the parts which are missing: they positively demand that we set our imaginations to work. Was it really pride that sparked the girl's action, or true love turned to hate? Did she keep the corpse so close because she still loved him? The candles which burn so bright may, says Child, allude to the practice of floating a loaf with a consecrated candle on it to divine the whereabouts of a drowned body. The inquisitive and tale-telling bird has been identified by folklorists as housing the soul of the dead man.
Brian Peters sang Young Hunting on the 1997 Fellside anthology Ballads.
Lyrics
Young Hunting- Tony Rose (c. 1982) Rose's version and tune came from Pete Nalder - Rose noted on the album sleeve that it was a 'fine reworking of the ballad' by Nalder.
As she was a-walking all alone
And down in a leafy wood
She has heard the sound of a bridle reins;
And she hoped that it might be for good.
“Come down, come down, you fine young man,
You're welcome home to me,
To my cosy bed and the charcoal red
And the candles that burns so free.”
“Oh I can't come down and I won't come down
And nor I come into your arms at all
For a finer girl than ten of you
Is a-waiting beneath the town wall.”
“Oh well, a finer girl than ten of me
I wonder now how that might be?
For a finer girl than ten of me
I'm sure that you never didn't see.”
Then and he has leaned him across his saddle
Oh for a kiss before they did part,
And she has taken a keen, long knife
And she's stabbed him to the heart.
Saying, “Lie there, lie there, you fine young man,
Until the flesh it rots from your bones
And that finer girl than ten of me
Can weary waiting alone.”
But as she walked up on the high highway
She's spied a little bird up in the tree,
Saying, “Oh how could you kill that fine young man
As he was a-kissing of thee?”
“Come down, come down, you pretty little bird
And sit upon my right knee,
And your cage shall be made of the glittering gold
And the spokes of the best ivory.”
“I can't come down and I won't come down
Nor sit upon your right knee,
For as you did serve that fine young man
I know that you would serve me.”
“Oh, then I wish I had my bended bow
And my arrow close to my knee.
I would fire a dart that would pierce your heart
As you sit there a-pipin' on that tree.”
“Ah, but you've not got your bended bow
And nor your arrows close to your knee.
So I'll fly across the sea to that young man's home
And tell them what I did see.”
So she's gone back to her own house
And she's crossed the threshold with a moan,
And she has taken that fine young man
And she's walled him behind the stones.
And she has kept that fine young man
For full three-quarters of a year
Till a heavy smell began to spread
And it filled her heart with fear.
So she's called unto the servant girl
And this to her did she say:
“There is a fine and a young man in my room
And but it's time that he was away.”
So the one of them's took him by the shoulders,
And the other one's took him by the feet
And they've thrown his body in the River Clyde
And that run so clear and so sweet.
And they had not crossed a rig of land,
A rig and barely one,
Before they saw his old father come a-riding
All along.
“Oh where you've been, my gay lady?
And where have you been so late?
For we've come a-seeking for my only son
Who used to visit your gates.”
And there came a-seeking for this fine young man
A-many lords and many knights.
And there came a-weeping for this fine young man
Full a-many's the lady bright.
And now the ladies turned them around and about
And they made such a mournful sound,
Saying, “We greatly fear that your son is dead
And he lies neath the water and drowned.”
“So, who will dive from either bank
For gold and for fee?”
And the young men dived from either bank
But his body they could not see.
Then up and speaks that pretty little bird
A-sitting up high in the tree,
Saying, “Oh, cease your diving, you divers bold,
For I'd have you to listen to me.”
“And I'd have you to cease your day diving
And to dive all into the night.
For under the water where his body lies
The candles they burn so bright.”
So the divers ceased their day diving
And they dived all into the night.
And under the water where his body lay,
The candles they burned so bright.
And they have raised his body up
From out the deepest part,
And they've seen the wound deep into his chest
And the turf all across his heart.
And when his father did see this dreadful wound
He made such a mournful sound,
Saying, “Oh, who has killed my only son
Who used to follow my hounds?”
Then up and speaks the pretty little bird,
Saying, “What needs all this din?
For it was his light leman took his life
And then threw his body in.”
“Oh, blame not me,” the lady says,
“For it was the servant girl.”
So they built a fire of the oak and ash
And they put that servant girl in.
But the fire wouldn't take upon her cheek
And the fire wouldn't take upon her chin,
And nor would it take upon her hair
For she was free from the sin.
And when the servant girl touched the clay cold corpse,
A drop it never bled.
But when the lady laid a hand upon it
The ground was soon covered with red.
So they've taken out the servant girl
And they've put the lady in.
And the fire it reached a ruddy red,
And all because of her sin.
And the fire took fast upon her cheek,
And the fire took fast upon her chin,
And it sang in the points of her yellow hair,
And 'twas all because of her sin.
June Tabor sings Love Henry
As Lady Margaret was a-going to her bed
She heard the sound of a musical horn;
It made her feel both glad and sad,
To think it was her brother John, John,
Coming in from his wild hunt.
Who should it be but her love, Henry,
Returning from his king, king,
Returning from his king?
“Come down, come down, Love Henry
And stay all night with me.
You shall have a cheer of a cheerful girl
The best I can give thee, thee,
The best I can give thee.”
“I shan't come down and I won't come down
And stay all night with thee.
There's a girl by the city wall
I love far better than thee, thee,
I love far better than thee.”
He's leaned across his saddle trim
To give her a kiss so sweet;
And with a penknife in her right hand
She's wounded him in full deep, deep,
She's wounded him in full deep.
“Woe be, woe be, Lady Margaret,
Woe be, woe be to thee;
Don't you see my thick heart's blood
Run a-trickling down my knee, knee,
Run a-trickling down my knee?”
She's called unto a maid of hers:
“The secret keep on me,
And all the fair robes on my body
Shall always be to thee, thee,
Shall always be to thee.”
One's taken him by the long yellow hair,
The other one by the feet;
They throwed him into the well water
Which was both cold and deep, deep,
Which was both cold and deep.
”Lie there, lie there, Love Henry
Until the flesh rots off your bones.
There's a girl by the city wall
Thinks long on your coming home, home,
Thinks long on your coming home.”
It's up and spoke a pretty little bird
Exceeding on a willow tree:
“There never was a girl by the city wall
He loved far better than thee, thee,
He loved far better than thee.”
“Come down, come down, my pretty little bird
And sit all on my knee.
Your cage shall be made of the beaten gold
And the bars of ivory, -ry,
And the bars of ivory.”
“I shan't come down and I won't come down
And sit all on your knee.
For you have murdered your own true love;
Far sooner you would kill me, me,
Far sooner you would kill me.”
“O, if I had an arrow in my hand,
My bow on a tuneful string,
I'd fire a dart to pierce your heart
So you could no longer sing, sing,
You could no longer sing.”
“O, if you had an arrow in your hand,
Your bow on a tuneful string,
I'd spread my wings and fly away
And tune my voice to sing, sing,
And tune my voice to sing.”
Tim Hart and Maddy Prior sing Earl Richard
Earl Richard is a-hunting gone,
As fast as he could ride
His hunting horn hung round his neck
And broadsword by his side
He rode till he came to my lady's gate
He telled out the pin
And answered yes she had said
To rise and let him in
“Oh light, oh light, Earl Richard,” she said,
“Oh light and stay the night
You shall have cheer with charcoal clear
And candles burning bright”
“I will not light, I cannot light
I cannot light at all
A fairer lady than ten of you
Is waiting now at Richard's hall.”
He stooped down from his milk white steed
To kiss her rosy cheek
She had a pen knife in her hand
And wounded him so deep
“Oh lie ye there, oh lie ye there
Oh lie ye there till morn
A fairer lady than ten of me
Will think long of your coming home.”
She's called the servants one by one
She's called them two by two
“I have a dead man in my bower
I wish he were away.”
Then one's a-take him by the hands
The other by the feet
They've thrown him in the deep draw-well
Full fifty fathom deep
Then up bespake a little bird
That sits upon a tree
“Go home, go home you false lady
And pay your maids a fee.”
“Come down, come down, oh my pretty bird
That sits upon the tree,
I have a cage of beaten gold
That I will give to thee.”
“Go home, go home you false lady
And pay your maids a fee.
For as you have done to Earl Richard
So would you do to me.”
“If I had an arrow in my hand
And a bow bent on a string
I'd shoot a dart at thy proud heart
Among the leaves so green.”
LOVE HENRY
(Words and Music by Bob Dylan)
1993 Special Rider Music
"Get down, get down, Love Henry," she cried,
"And stay all night with me.
I have gold chains, and the finest I have
I'll apply them all to thee."
"I can't get down and I shan't get down,
Or stay all night with thee.
Some pretty little girl in Cornersville
I love far better than thee."
He layed his head on a pillow of down.
Kisses she gave him three.
With a penny knife that she held in her hand
She murdered mortal he.
"Get well, get well, Love Henry, " She cried,
"Get well, get well," said she.
"Oh don't you see my own heart's blood
Come flowin' down so free?"
She took him by his long yellow hair,
And also by his feet.
She plunged him into well water, where
It runs both cold and deep.
"Lie there, lie there, Love Henry," she cried,
"Til the flesh rots off your bones.
Some pretty little girl in Cornersville
Will mourn for your return."
Hush up, hush up, my parrot, she cried,
Don't tell no news on me,
Or these costly beads around my neck,
I'll apply them all to thee.
"Fly down, fly down, pretty parrot," she cried,
"And light on my right knee.
The doors to your cage shall be decked with gold
And hung on a willow tree."
"I won't fly down, I can't fly down
And light on your right knee.
A girl who would murder her own true love
Would kill a little bird like me."