The Farmer's Curst Wife- Ritchie (KY) 1917 Sharp C
[Jean Ritchie learned this version she titled "Little Devils" (Sharp C) from Uncle Jason, who was a lawyer and an educated man. Sharp's C version was collected from cousin Sabrina Ritchie in 1917. According to Jean (see interview below) Sabrina learned it from Uncle Jason. The whistle is found in Child A. It's interesting to compare the two texts and see some of the differences. Clearly Sharp didn't understand all the words.
Both Jean and her father and her Uncle Jason had access to books and collected materials from other sources. Jean went to England in 1952 on a Fulbright Scholarship. Some attributions to Uncle Jason are suspect and seem to be Jean's arrangements, which may account for the changes (first verse corrected to rhyme; etc.) and the two added verses. In this case her arrangement is based on traditional family material.]
From: English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians II, 1932
Notes from 1917 edition:
Notes: No. 34. The Farmer's Curst Wife.
Texts without tunes:—Child, No. 278.
Texts with tunes:—Journal of the Folk-Song Society, ii., 184; iii., 131. Dick's Songs of
Robert Burns, No. 331. American variants:—Journal of American Folk-Lore, xix., 298; xxvii., 68.
Lomax's Cowboy Songs, p. no.
"Bell, blubs," stanza 10, version A, may be a corruption of "Beelzebubs." Most of the published versions of this song have whistling refrains
The Farmer's Curst Wife (Little Devils)- Sabrina Ritchie (KY) 1917 Sharp C
There was an old man, who lived near hell,
(Whistle)
He had a little farm and upon it he did dwell,
Sing ti-ro rattle-ing day.
Oh the devil come to him to his plough one day,
Saying: One out of your family I have to have her now.
Oh its neither your son nor your daughter I crave,
But your old scolding wife I have to have her now.
He havest her up all on his back,
Like a old pedlar went packing his pack.
He carried he down to the high gates of hell,
Saying: Rake back the coals and we'll roast her well.
Two little devils came rattling their chains,
She hauled back her cudgels and knock hauled out their brains.
Two more little devils peeped over the wall,
Saying: Take her back daddy, she'll kill us all.
So he harvest her up all on his back,
And went like a bold pedlar, went packing her back.
Seven years gone and seven a-coming back,
She called for the 'bacca she left in the crack.
The women they are so much better than men,
When they go to hell they're sent back again.
_____________________________
LITTLE DEVILS From Jean Ritchie, recorded in 1961
(Child #278)
There was an old man, he lived near hell,
(Whistle)
He had a little farm and upon it did dwell,
Sing hi oh rattle ding day.
Oh the devil come to him one day at his plough,
There's one in your family I have to have now.
Oh its neither your son nor your daughter I crave,
It's your old scoldin' wife and It's her I must have.
So he hobbest her up all on his back,
And like a bold pedlar went a-packin' his pack.
As they drew near the high gates of hell,
Said, rake back the coals, boys, and we'll roast her well.
Oh two little devils come a-rattlin' their chains,
She hauled back her cudgel and knocked out their brains.
Two more little devils peeped over the door,
She hauled back her cudgel killed ninety-nine more.
Two more little devils peeped over the wall,
Said, take her back daddy or she'll kill us all.
So he hobbest her up all on his back,
And like a bold pedlar went a-packin' her back.
Here's your old scoldin' wife and it's her I won't have,
She ain't fit for Heaven, she shan't stay in Hell
Oh it's seven years goin' and seven a-comin' back,
She called for the 'baccer she left in the crack.
Oh the women they are so much better than men,
When they go to hell they get sent back again.
Sowing Seeds of Love for Traditional Music: An interview with Jean Ritchie
Jean Ritchie: Well, Cecil Sharp came to the Hindman Settlement School. Hindman is the county seat of Knott County [Kentucky], which is where my father was born and raised. His grandfather gave the land for the school and encouraged education. In 1917 or 1918 it was very rough around there. They didn't have cars or anything. You had to go by mule and wagon, and if the wagon wouldn't go, you went by mule or you walked. They carried their equipment, and it was quite hard to get around. So, he told all the children around to tell all their parents and the old people that they were there, and that they'd love to hear any songs that the families had. People came out in droves, because they wanted to see this queer man from England, and this funny woman that was with him that made sort of squiggles on the paper.
My sister Una and her cousin Sabrina were there, and they were best friends. Sabrina was Dad's first cousin's daughter. We called him "Uncle" even though he wasn't really our uncle, but he was Uncle Jason Ritchie. So Unie and Sabrina sang for Cecil Sharp because they knew some songs. Then the weekend came and they wanted to sing "Fair Nottamun Town," but they couldn't think of the words. Cecil Sharp got all excited and said, "You must get this!" The other one that he was crazy about was "The Farmer's Cursed Wife," because our family's version has a whistle in it. Sharp had heard that it used to be sung in England with a whistle, but it wasn't anymore, so he was very excited to find it still having the whistle here. So, Unie went home with Sabrina for the weekend, and they got Uncle Jason to sing for them. They learned the songs, and then they came back and sang those two songs. And they sang others too, like "Barbry Ellen," and things that he had coming out of his ears. But he loved these two, "Nottamun Town" and "The Farmer's Cursed Wife," or "The Little Devils," as we call it. And that was their contribution. That's what got printed in Sharp's book when it came out.