A Bold Fisherman Courted Me
Once a bold fisherman courted me,
And stole away my liberty;
He won my heart with a free good will,
Although he’s false I love him still. From the singing of Danny Brazil, Gloucester 9 May 66 and Lemmy Brazil, Gloucester 29 September 1967 (Springthyme 66.5.21 & 67.6.32). In: Shepheard, Peter. Folk Songs and Ballads of the Brazil Family of Gloucester (1967).
Once a bold fisherman courted me,
And stole away my liberty;
He won my heart with a free good will,
Although he’s false I love him still.
Once I wore my apron low,
My loved followed me through frost and snow;
But now my apron is up to my chin,
My love walk by and never call in.
There is an alehouse in this town,
My love walks in and sets himself down;
He takes another strange girl on his knee,
He smiles at her and frowns on me.
Oh grief, oh grief I’ll tell you for why,
It’s because he’s got more gold than I;
Her gold will waste and her beauty will fly,
And in a short time he’ll be poor like I.
I wish to God my baby was born,
Sat smiling on its daddy’s knee;
And me poor girl buried in cold clay,
And the green grass growing all over me.
Down in the meadow the poor girl run,
She was gathering flowers as they sprung;
She gathered them white and she gathered them blue,
Until he gathered her apron full.
Come blow you, blow you stormy winds blow,
Come blow the green leaves from the tree;
She sat herself down and no more spoke,
And alas poor girls her heart it was broke.
Come dig me a grave both long wide and deep,
Put a marble stone at my head and feet;
And in the middle a turtle dove,
For to let the world know I died for love.
I died for love you plainly can see,
I died for one that never loved me;
He won my heart with a free good will,
Although he is false I love him still.
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