The House Carpenter- Bradley (MO) 1928 Randolph B
[From Vance Randolph's Ozark Folksongs, Vol. 1, 1946.
R. Matteson 2013]
The House Carpenter- Sung by Mrs. Tom Bradley (McDonald Co., MO) on Nov. 4, 1928 Randolph B.
"Oh won't you leave your house carpenter,
An' go along with me?
I will take you where th' grass grows green,
On th' banks of th' sweet Willie."
I have seven ships that are landed here,
An' seven more on sea,
And a hundred an' ten jolly soldiers there
All ready for to wait upon me.
She called her children to her knee,
An' kisses she give them three,
Saying, "Stay at home with your father dear,
An' keep him company."
An' then she went into the house,
An' she dressed herself out gay,
She spread a veil all over her face
An' shined on the glitterin' day.
She had not been on board two weeks,
I'm sure it was not three,
Till this beautiful lady was heard for to weep,
An' she wept most bitterly.
She had not been on sea three weeks,
I'm sure it was not four,
Till this beautiful lady throwed herself overboard,
An' her weepin' was heard no more.
If she had of stayed with her house carpenter,
Who always treated her kind,
But now she's sunk to the bottom of the sea,
An' her soul has gone farewell.