Folk Song Lyrics

Oh Soldier Soldier

Oh, soldier, soldier will you marry me
With your musket fife and drum?
Oh, how can I marry such a pretty girl as thee
When I got no shoes to put on
Off to the cobbler she did go as fast as she could run,
Bought him a pair of the best that was there
And the soldier put them on

Oh, soldier, soldier will you marry me
With your musket fife and drum?
Oh, how can I marry such a pretty girl as thee
When I got no socks to put on
Off to the habber-dasher she did go as fast as she could run,
Bought him a pair of the best that was there
And the soldier put them on

Oh, soldier, soldier will you marry me
With your musket fife and drum?
Oh, how can I marry such a pretty girl as thee
When I got no pants to put on
Off to the tailor she did go as fast as she could run,
Bought him a pair of the best that was there
And the soldier put them on

Now, soldier, soldier will you marry me
With your musket fife and drum?
Oh, how can I marry such a pretty girl as thee
With a wife and a baby at home

the companion to your song edgar

The Gentleman Soldier (aka The Sentry Box)
Traditional

It's of a gentleman soldier,
as a sentry he did stand,
He kindly saluted a fair maid
by waving of his hand.
So boldly then he kissed her,
and passed it off as a joke.
He drilled her into the sentry box,
wrapped up in a soldier's cloak.

Chorus:
For the drums did go with a rap-a-tap-tap,
And the fifes did loudly play,
Saying: 'Fare you well, my Polly dear,
I must be going away.'

Oh, all night they tossed and tumbled,
till daylight did appear.
The soldier rose, put on his clothes,
saying: 'Fare thee well, my dear,
For the drums they are a-beating,
and the fifes so sweetly play;
If it warn't for that, dear Polly,
along with you I'd stay.'

Chorus

'Now, come, you gentleman soldier,
and won't you marry me?'
'Oh, no, my dearest Polly,
such things can never be,
For married I am already,
and children I have three.
Two wives are allowed in the army,
but one's too many for me!'

Chorus

'If anyone comes a-courting you,
you treat 'em to a glass.
If anyone comes a-courting you,
you say you're a country lass.
You needn't even tell them
that ever you played this joke,
Thet ever you went in a sentry-box,
wrapped up in a soldier's cloak.'

Chorus

'It's come, my gentleman soldier,
why didn't you tell me so?
My parents will be angry
when this they come to know.'
When nine long months was up and past,
this poor girl she brought shame,
For she had a little militia boy,
and she couldn't tell his name.

House Carpenter - traditional

Well met, well met, my own true love
Well met, well met, cried he
I've just returned from the salt, salt sea
And it's all for the love of thee

O I could have married the king's daughter dear
And she would have married me
But I have refused the crown of gold
And it's all for the sake of thee

If you could have married the king's daughter dear
I'm sure you are to blame
For I am married to the house carpenter
And he is a fine young man

If you'll forsake your house carpenter
And come away with me
I'll take you to where the grass grows green
On the banks of the sweet Willie

If I forsake my house carpenter
And come away with thee
What have you got to maintain me upon
And keep me from slavery

I've six ships sailing on the salt, salt sea
A-sailing from dry land
And a hundred and twenty jolly young men
Shall be at thy command

She picked up her poor wee babe
And kisses gave him three
Saying stay right here with the house carpenter
And keep him good company

They had not been at sea two weeks
I'm sure it was not three
When this poor maid began to weep
And she wept most bitterly

O do you weep for your gold, he said
Your houses, your land, or your store?
Or do you weep for your house carpenter
That you never shall see anymore

I do not weep for my gold, she said
My houses, my land or my store
But I do weep for my poor wee babe
That I never shall see anymore

They had not been at sea three weeks
I'm sure it was not four
When in their ship there sprang a leak
And she sank to rise no more

What hills, what hills are those, my love
That are so bright and free
Those are the hill of Heaven, my love
But not for you and me

What hills, what hills, are those, my love
That are so dark and low
Those are the hills of Hell, my love
Where you and I must go

Pretty Good Day
Loudon Wainwright

I slept through the night, I got through to the dawn
I flipped a switch and the light went on
I got out of bed and I put some clothes on
It's a pretty good day so far

I turned the tap, there was cold there was hot
I put on my coat to go to the shop
I stepped outside, and I didn't get shot
It's a pretty good day so far

I didn't hear any sirens or explosions
No murders coming in form those heavy guns
No UN tanks, I didn't see one
It's a pretty good day so far

No snipers in windows, taking a peak
No people panic, running scared through the streets
I didn't see any bodies without arms, legs, or feet
It's a pretty good day

There was plasma bandages and electricity
Food, wood, and water; and the air was smoke free
No camera crews from my TV

It was all such a strange sight to be home
Nobody was frightened, wounded, hungry, or cold
And the children seemed normal, they didn't look old
It's a pretty good day so far

I walked through a park, you would not believe it
There in the park, there were a few trees left
And on some branches, there were a few leaves

I slept through the night, got through to the dawn
I flipped the switch and the light went on
I wrote down my dream, I wrote this song
It's a pretty good day so far

Hey, I got a girl at the head of the creek
Goin up to see her about 2 times a week
Kiss her on the mouth, sweet as any wine
Wrap herself around me like a sweet potato vine

Goin up Cripple Creek, goin on a run
Goin up Cripple Creek to have a little fun
Goin up Cripple Creek, goin in a whirl
Goin up Cripple Creek to see my little girl

Now the girls up Cripple Creek about half-grown
Jump on a boy like a dog on a bone
Roll my britches up to my knees
Wade ol Cripple Creek whenever I please

Goin up Cripple Creek, goin on a run
Goin up Cripple Creek to have a little fun
Goin up Cripple Creek, goin in a whirl
Goin up Cripple Creek to see my little girl

Now, Cripple Creek's wide and Cripple Creek's deep
Wade old Cripple Creek before I sleep
Hills are steep and the roads are muddy
and I'm so dizzy that I can't stand steady I'm

Goin up Cripple Creek, goin on a run
Goin up Cripple Creek to have a little fun
Goin up Cripple Creek, goin in a whirl
Goin up Cripple Creek to see my little girl.

Wall of Death
Richard Thompson

Chorus:
Let me ride on the wall of death one more time
Let me ride on the wall of death one more time
You can waste your time on the other rides
But this is the nearest to being alive
Oh let me take my chances on the wall of death

You can go with the crazy people in the crooked house
You can fly away on the rocket or spin in the mouse
The tunnel of love might amuse you
And Noah's Ark might confuse you
But let me take my chances on the wall of death

Bridge:
On the wall of death
All the world is far from me
On the wall of death
It's the nearest to being free

You're going nowhere when you ride on the carousel
And maybe you're strong
But what's the good of ringing a bell
The switchback will make you crazy
Beware of the hearded lady
Oh let me take my chances on the wall of death

Chorus:
Let me ride on the wall of death one more time
Let me ride on the wall of death one more time
You can waste your time on the other rides
But this is the nearest to being alive
Oh let me take my chances on the wall of death
Oh let me take my chances on the wall of death
Oh let me take my chances on the wall of death

Crosscut Saw
Warren Zevon

I'm a crosscut saw
Come on drag me across your log
I'm a crosscut saw
Come and drag me across your log
Well I'll cut your wood so easy for you
You gonna say '"hot dog"

Some call me woodchoppin' Danny
Some call me woodcuttin' Sam
I'll cut your wood so good
You will ask me back again

Crosscut saw
Drag me across your log
I'll cut your wood so easy for you
You gonna have to say "hot dog"

Some call me woodchoppin' Sam
Some call me woodcuttin' Dan
I'll cut your wood so good
You know you'll want me back again

I'm a crosscut saw
Come on drag me across your log
Well I'll cut your wood so easy for you
You gonna have to say "hot dog"

Battleship Chains
Warren Zevon

Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long and a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor

Can't use my lips to kiss nobody
Kiss nobody but you
I can't use my legs to chase nobody
Chase nobody but you

You got me tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor

Can't use my arms to hold nobody
Hold nobody but you
Can't use my legs to chase nobody
Chase nobody but you

You got me tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor

Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor

Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor

Can't use my arms to hold nobody
Hold nobody but you
Can't use my heart to love nobody
Love nobody but you

You got me tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor
Tied down with battleship chain
Fifty foot long with a two-ton anchor

those last two are actually more blues than folk, but they're still good songs

Come O My Love

The Winter has gone and the leaves turn green
The Winter has gone and the leaves turn green
Your innocent face, I wish I never had seen

Come o my love and fare you well
Come o my love and fare you well
You slighted me, but I wish you well

The rope was brought and the bow was swung
The rope was brought and the bow was swung
An innocent man you have all hung

Come o my love and see me die
Come o my love and see me die
Lift your innocent face, see me dance in the sky

The Big Rock Candy Mountain - traditional and Harry McClintock

One evening as the sun went down
And the jungle fires were burning,
Down the track came a hobo hiking,
He said, "Boys, I am not turning
I'm heading for a land that's far away
Beside the crystal fountain
I'll see you all this coming fall
In the Big Rock Candy Mountain


Chorus:
Oh the buzzin' of the bees
In the cigarette trees
Near the soda water fountain
At the lemonade springs
Where the bluebird sings
On the big rock candy mountain

In the Big Rock Candy Mountain,
It's a land that's fair and bright,
The handouts grow on bushes
And you sleep out every night.
The boxcars all are empty
And the sun shines every day
I'm bound to go
Where there ain't no snow
Where the sleet don't fall
And the winds don't blow
In the Big Rock Candy Mountain.

Repeat chorus:

In the Big Rock Candy Mountain
You never change your socks
And little streams of alkyhol
Come trickling down the rocks
O the shacks all have to tip their
hats
And the railway bulls are blind
There's a lake of stew
And ginger ale too
And you can paddle
All around it in a big canoe
In the Big Rock Candy Mountain

Repeat chorus:

In the Big Rock Candy Mountain
The cops have wooden legs
The bulldogs all have rubber teeth
And the hens lay soft-boiled eggs
The box-cars all are empty
And the sun shines every day
I'm bound to go
Where there ain't no snow
Where the sleet don't fall
And the winds don't blow
In the Big Rock Candy Mountain.

Repeat chorus:

In the Big Rock Candy Mountain,
The jails are made of tin.
You can slip right out again,
As soon as they put you in.
There ain't no short-handled shovels,
No axes, saws nor picks,
I'm bound to stay
Where you sleep all day,
Where they hung the jerk
That invented work
In the Big Rock Candy Mountain.


Repeat chorus:

great song

It was great to see some of those songs exposed a few years ago with the O Brother, Where Art Thou? movie.

funny, cosidering my love of the music, i've yet to see the film

Oh Shenandoah - traditional

Oh, Shenandoah, I long to hear you,
Away, you rolling river
Oh, Shenandoah, I long to hear you
Away, I'm bound away, cross the wide Missouri.

Oh, Shenandoah, I love your daughter,
Away, you rolling river
Oh, Shenandoah, I love your daughter
Away, I'm bound away, cross the wide Missouri.

Oh, Shenandoah, I'm bound to leave you,
Away, you rolling river
Oh, Shenandoah, I'm bound to leave you
Away, I'm bound away, cross the wide Missouri.

Oh, Shenandoah, I long to see you,
Away, you rolling river
Oh, Shenandoah, I long to see you
Away, I'm bound away, cross the wide Missouri.

Rosa Lee McFall - traditional


Out on the lonely hillside in a cabin low and small
Lived the sweetest rose of color my rosie mcfall
Her eyes were bright and shining and her voice was sweet to me
Knew that I would always love her and I hoped that she loved me

My eyes turned to me, my darlin' and this is what she said:
You know that I would always love you when you and I are wed.
Then God way up in heaven one day for her did call
I lost my bride, oh how I loved her, my rosie mcfall

I searched this wide world over through cities great and small
But I never found another like my rosie mcfall

Silver Dagger

(traditional)

Don't sing love songs, you'll wake my mother
She's sleeping here right by my side
And in her right hand a silver dagger,
She says that I can't be your bride.

All men are false, says my mother,
They'll tell you wicked, lovin' lies.
The very next evening, they'll court another,
Leave you alone to pine and sigh.

My daddy is a handsome devil
He's got a chain five miles long,
And on every link a heart does dangle
Of another maid he's loved and wronged.

Go court another tender maiden,
And hope that she will be your wife,
For I've been warned, and I've decided
To sleep alone all of my life.

The Foksong Army

Tom Lehrer

We are the folk song army,
Every one of us cares.
We all hate poverty, war, and injustice
Unlike the rest of you squares.

There are innocuous folk songs, yeah,
But we regard 'em with scorn.
The folks who sing 'em have no social conscience,
Why, they don't even care if Jimmy Crack Corn


If you feel dissatisfaction,
Strum your frustrations away.
Some people may prefer action,
But give me a folk song any old day.

The tune don't have to be clever,
And it don't matter if you put a couple extra syllables into a line.
It sounds more ethnic if it ain't good English
And it don't even gotta rhyme... (excuse me: rhyne!)

Remember the war against Franco?*
That's the kind where each of us belongs.
Though he may have won all the battles,
We had all the good songs!

So join in the folk song army!
Guitars are the weapons we bring
To the fight against poverty, war, and injustice.
Ready, aim, sing!

http://members.aol.com/quentncree/lehrer/folksong.htm

nice one acquiunk

Green fields of France
(aka Willie McBride)
Eric Bogle


Well how do you do, young Willie McBride,
do you mind if I sit here down by your graveside
And rest for a while 'neath the warm summer sun
I've been working all day and I'm nearly done.
I see by your gravestone you were only nineteen
when you joined the dead heroes of nineteen-sixteen.
I hope you died well and I hope you died clean
Or Willie McBride, was it slow and obscene.

Chorus:
Did they beat the drum slowly,
did they play the fife lowly,
did they sound the dead-march
as they lowered you down.
did the band play the Last post and chorus.
Did the pipes play the 'Flowers of the forest'.

Did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind
In some faithful heart is your memory enshrined
Although you died back in nineteen sixteen
In that same faithful heart are you forever nineteen
Or are you a stranger without even a name
Enclosed and forever behind the glass frame
In a old photograph, torn and battered and stained
And faded to yellow in a brown leather frame.

The sun now it shines on the green fields of France
There's a warm summer breeze, it makes the red poppies dance
And look how the sun shines from under the clouds
There's no gas, no barbed wire, there's no guns firing now
But here in this graveyard it's still no-man's-land
The countless white crosses in mute witness stand
To man's blind indifference to his fellow man
To a whole generation that were butchered and damned.

Now Willie McBride I can't help wonder why
Do all those who lie here know why they died?
did they believe when they answered the cause
Did they really believe that this war would end wars?
Well the sorrows, the suffering, the glory. the pain
The killing and dying was all done in vain
For young Willie McBride it all happened again
And again, and again, and again, and again.