Jack Orion Jack Orion was as good fiddler As ever fiddled on a string And he could drive young women mad By the tune his wires would sing But he would fiddle the fish out of salt water Water from bare marble stone Or the milk from out of a maiden's breast Though baby she had none And there he played in the castle hall And there he played them fast asleep Except it was for the young countess And for love she stayed awake And first he played them a slow slow air And then he played it brisk and gay And it's O dear love behind her hand And the lady she did say And the day has dawned and the cocks have crown And flapped their wings so wide it's you Must come up to my chamber there And lie down by my side So he lapped his fiddle in a cloth of green And he stole out on his tiptoe And he's off back to his young boy Tom As fast as he could go Ere the day has dawned and the cocks have crowed And flapped their wings so wide I'm bid to go up to that lady's door And stretch out by her side Lie down lie down my good master And here's a blanket to your hand I'll waken you in as good a time As any cock in the land Oh Tom took the fiddle into his hand And he fiddled and he sang for half an hour Until he played him fast asleep And he's off to the lady's bower And when he come to the countess' door He twirled so softly at the pin And the lady true to her promise Rose up and let him in He did not take that lady gay To bolster nor to bed but down Upon the hard cold bedroom floor Right soon he had her laid And neither did he kiss her when he came Nor when from her he did go But in at the lady's bedroom window The moon like a coal did glow Oh ragged are your stockings love And stubbly is your cheek and chin And tousled is that yellow hair That I saw late yestre'en Me stockings belong to my boy Tom But they were the first came to my hand And the wind did tousle my yellow hair As I road over the land Tom took the fiddle into his hand And he fiddled and he played so saucily And he's off back to his master's house As fast as go could he Then up when up my good master Why snore you there so loud For there Is not a cock in all this land But has flapped his wings and crowed Jack Orion took the fiddle into his hand And he fiddled and he played so merrily And he's off away to the lady's house As fast as a go could he And when he come to the lady's door He twirled so softly at the ring O my dear it's your true love Rise up and let me in She said surely you didn't leave behind A golden brooch nor a velvet glove Or are you returned back again To taste more of my love Jack Orion he swore a bloody oath By oak by ash by bitter thorn Lady I never was in this room Since the day that I was born Oh then it was your own boy Tom That cruelly has beguiled me And woe that the blood of that ruffian boy Should spring in my body Jack Orion took off to his own house Saying Tom my boy come here to me And he hanged that boy from his own gatepost As high as the willow tree Sung by Martin Carthy on Martin Carthy & Dave Swarbrick's But Two Came By LP (and the CD re-release). Child #67 GAZ apr00
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!