Day time is weary, and I caw' dusk dreary,
For lasses in missels are rakin the hay.
When kye come for strippin' and ewes come for clippin',
We think on our soldiers now gone right away.
The courtin gate's idle, no lad flings his bridle
Over the yoke stoup and comes seekin' may.
Wae's heart, but we misses our lads' softest kisses:
The flowers o' the forest have gone right away.
At Martinmas hirin' no ribbon, no tirin',
Where God's penny's earned, and the time's come for play.
No cheapjacks, no prancin', wi' teamster clogs dancin':
The flowers o' the forest have gone right away.
Plough lads from Pannal have crossed o'er the Channel;
Shepherds from Fewston have taken King's pay;
Thackrays from Dacre have sold every acre;
You'll no' find a delver from Haverah to Bray.
Many a lass now is weepin for her man that lies sleepin,
No wrap for his corpse but the cold Flanders clay.
He'll ne'er lift his limmers, he'll ne'er wean his gimmers:
The flowers o' the forest have gone right away.
For lasses in missels are rakin the hay.
When kye come for strippin' and ewes come for clippin',
We think on our soldiers now gone right away.
The courtin gate's idle, no lad flings his bridle
Over the yoke stoup and comes seekin' may.
Wae's heart, but we misses our lads' softest kisses:
The flowers o' the forest have gone right away.
At Martinmas hirin' no ribbon, no tirin',
Where God's penny's earned, and the time's come for play.
No cheapjacks, no prancin', wi' teamster clogs dancin':
The flowers o' the forest have gone right away.
Plough lads from Pannal have crossed o'er the Channel;
Shepherds from Fewston have taken King's pay;
Thackrays from Dacre have sold every acre;
You'll no' find a delver from Haverah to Bray.
Many a lass now is weepin for her man that lies sleepin,
No wrap for his corpse but the cold Flanders clay.
He'll ne'er lift his limmers, he'll ne'er wean his gimmers:
The flowers o' the forest have gone right away.
Note di Greer Gilman da English Folk Music
Strofa 1
caw' = call
missels (mistals) = cowsheds
kye = cows
strippin' = milking
clippin' = shearing
Strofa 2
yoke stoup (yat stoup) = gate post
may = flowers of the hawthorn; greenery for May Day
wae's heart = woe is the heart; waly, waly
Strofa 3
Martinmas: Traditionally, the hiring fairs for farmhands and servants were held at Martinmas, in mid-November. In Yorkshire, they were called the “stattis,” or statutes, after the labour-laws framed in the reign of Edward III. Lads and lasses seeking work would stand in the market place, wearing tokens (the ribbons and tirings of the song) in their hats or buttonholes; farmers and their wives would walk up and down and choose among them. On coming to terms for the year's wages, they would seal the bargain with a fastening penny, which, by the time of the song, was half-a-crown. Then to the pleasures of the fair!
From early in the Middle Ages, Martinmas was a time of feasting and of slaughter, when all the beasts that could not be overwintered on their scant hay were slain and salted or eaten up. The feast of St. Martin, November 11, took on a new and poignant meaning after 1918.
tirin = attiring, adornment
God's penny = earnest-money; a small sum given to a servant when hired.
cheapjacks = travelling hawkers, with a brisk line of patter
Strofa 4
have taken King's pay = enlisted as soldiers
delver = quarryman
I thought at first “Thackerays” might be “thackers” (thatchers), but in both versions I have, it's sung as “thack'ries.” Thackeray is a good Yorkshire surname—perhaps this is a reference to a local family?
Strofa 5
limmers (limbers) = cart shafts
gimmers = young female sheep that have not yet lambed
Strofa 1
caw' = call
missels (mistals) = cowsheds
kye = cows
strippin' = milking
clippin' = shearing
Strofa 2
yoke stoup (yat stoup) = gate post
may = flowers of the hawthorn; greenery for May Day
wae's heart = woe is the heart; waly, waly
Strofa 3
Martinmas: Traditionally, the hiring fairs for farmhands and servants were held at Martinmas, in mid-November. In Yorkshire, they were called the “stattis,” or statutes, after the labour-laws framed in the reign of Edward III. Lads and lasses seeking work would stand in the market place, wearing tokens (the ribbons and tirings of the song) in their hats or buttonholes; farmers and their wives would walk up and down and choose among them. On coming to terms for the year's wages, they would seal the bargain with a fastening penny, which, by the time of the song, was half-a-crown. Then to the pleasures of the fair!
From early in the Middle Ages, Martinmas was a time of feasting and of slaughter, when all the beasts that could not be overwintered on their scant hay were slain and salted or eaten up. The feast of St. Martin, November 11, took on a new and poignant meaning after 1918.
tirin = attiring, adornment
God's penny = earnest-money; a small sum given to a servant when hired.
cheapjacks = travelling hawkers, with a brisk line of patter
Strofa 4
have taken King's pay = enlisted as soldiers
delver = quarryman
I thought at first “Thackerays” might be “thackers” (thatchers), but in both versions I have, it's sung as “thack'ries.” Thackeray is a good Yorkshire surname—perhaps this is a reference to a local family?
Strofa 5
limmers (limbers) = cart shafts
gimmers = young female sheep that have not yet lambed
inviata da Dead End - 20/12/2012 - 15:31
ma ha qualcosa a che vedere con The Flowers Of The Forest citata in The Green Fields Of France (No Man's Land)?
Lorenzo - 20/12/2012 - 15:45
Parrebbe proprio di sì. Vedo di approfondire la cosa tra oggi e domani...
Dead End - 20/12/2012 - 15:50
Lingua: Inglese (Yorkshire)
Da «Songs of the Ridings», raccolta di canzoni in dialetto dello Yorkshire scritte all’inizio del secolo scorso da Frederic William Moorman a partire dalle testimonianze da lui stesso raccolte sul campo tra contadini, minatori, pescatori ed operai di quella contea inglese.
THE FLOWERS OF KNARESBOROUGH FOREST
O! day-time is weary, an' dark o' dusk dreary
For t' lasses i' t' mistal, or rakin' ower t' hay;
When t' kye coom for strippin', or t' yowes for their clippin',
We think on our sowdiers now gone reet away.
The courtin'-gate's idle, nae lad flings his bridle
Ower t' yak-stoup, an' sleely cooms seekin' his may;
The trod by the river is green as a sliver,
For the Flowers o' the Forest have all stown away.
At Marti'mas hirin's, nae ribbins, nae tirin's,
When t' godspenny's addled, an' t' time's coom for play;
Nae Cheap-Jacks, nae dancin', wi' t' teamster' clogs prancin ,
The Flowers o' the Forest are all flown a way.
When at neet church is lowsin', an' t' owd ullet is rousin'
Hissel i' our laithe, wheer he's slummered all t' day,
Wae's t' heart! but we misses our lads' saftest kisses,
Now the Flowers o' the Forest are gone reet away.
Ploo-lads frae Pannal have crossed ower the Channel,
Shipperds frae Fewston have taen the King's pay,
Thackrays frae Dacre have sold ivery acre;
Thou'll finnd ne'er a delver frae Haverah to Bray.
When t' north wind is howlin', an' t' west wind is yowlin',
It's for t' farm lads at sea that us lasses mun pray;
Tassey-Will o' t' new biggin, keepin' watch i' his riggin ,
Lile Jock i' his fo'c'sle, torpedoed i' t' bay.
Mony a lass now is weepin' for her marrow that's sleepin',
Wi' nae bield for his corp but the cowd Flanthers clay;
He'll ne'er lift his limmers, he'll ne'er wean his gimmers:
Ay, there's Flowers o' the Forest are withered away.
«But now they are moaning, on ilka green loaning
The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.»
Jane Elliot (1727-1805)
The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.»
Jane Elliot (1727-1805)
O! day-time is weary, an' dark o' dusk dreary
For t' lasses i' t' mistal, or rakin' ower t' hay;
When t' kye coom for strippin', or t' yowes for their clippin',
We think on our sowdiers now gone reet away.
The courtin'-gate's idle, nae lad flings his bridle
Ower t' yak-stoup, an' sleely cooms seekin' his may;
The trod by the river is green as a sliver,
For the Flowers o' the Forest have all stown away.
At Marti'mas hirin's, nae ribbins, nae tirin's,
When t' godspenny's addled, an' t' time's coom for play;
Nae Cheap-Jacks, nae dancin', wi' t' teamster' clogs prancin ,
The Flowers o' the Forest are all flown a way.
When at neet church is lowsin', an' t' owd ullet is rousin'
Hissel i' our laithe, wheer he's slummered all t' day,
Wae's t' heart! but we misses our lads' saftest kisses,
Now the Flowers o' the Forest are gone reet away.
Ploo-lads frae Pannal have crossed ower the Channel,
Shipperds frae Fewston have taen the King's pay,
Thackrays frae Dacre have sold ivery acre;
Thou'll finnd ne'er a delver frae Haverah to Bray.
When t' north wind is howlin', an' t' west wind is yowlin',
It's for t' farm lads at sea that us lasses mun pray;
Tassey-Will o' t' new biggin, keepin' watch i' his riggin ,
Lile Jock i' his fo'c'sle, torpedoed i' t' bay.
Mony a lass now is weepin' for her marrow that's sleepin',
Wi' nae bield for his corp but the cowd Flanthers clay;
He'll ne'er lift his limmers, he'll ne'er wean his gimmers:
Ay, there's Flowers o' the Forest are withered away.
Notes about "The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest" (arranged alphabetically)
Acre : a land measure (0.4 hectare)
Addled : earned
Bield : shelter
Cheap-Jacks : hawkers
Corp : corpse
Delver : quarryman (M)
Flanthers : Flanders
Gimmers : ewe lambs (M); poetic licence: a gimmer is an ewe between first and second shearing
Godspenny : earnest money (M); token payment made upon hiring
Kye : cows
Laithe : barn (M)
Limmers : wagon-shafts (M)
Lowsin' : loosing: letting out, emptying
Marrow : match, partner, betrothed (as marrow is to bone )
Marti'mas hirin' : the farm-hand hiring fair at Martinmas 11th November
May : maiden, girl (and her permission)
Mistal : cow shed (Lit. dung-stall )
Mun : must
New biggin : new house or farm (big, to build)
Ploo-lads : plough-men
Saftest : softest
Sliver : branch of a leafing tree (M)
Stown : stolen
Strippin' : milking
Teamster' clogs : wooden-soled boots of the wagon handlers
Thackrays : a family name among the trades; Moorman is teasing, here
Tirin's : attire, gay apparel, esp. head-wear
Trod : footpath
Ullet : owl
Wae's : woe is
Yak-stoup : oak-post (M)
Yowes : ewes, female sheep
Acre : a land measure (0.4 hectare)
Addled : earned
Bield : shelter
Cheap-Jacks : hawkers
Corp : corpse
Delver : quarryman (M)
Flanthers : Flanders
Gimmers : ewe lambs (M); poetic licence: a gimmer is an ewe between first and second shearing
Godspenny : earnest money (M); token payment made upon hiring
Kye : cows
Laithe : barn (M)
Limmers : wagon-shafts (M)
Lowsin' : loosing: letting out, emptying
Marrow : match, partner, betrothed (as marrow is to bone )
Marti'mas hirin' : the farm-hand hiring fair at Martinmas 11th November
May : maiden, girl (and her permission)
Mistal : cow shed (Lit. dung-stall )
Mun : must
New biggin : new house or farm (big, to build)
Ploo-lads : plough-men
Saftest : softest
Sliver : branch of a leafing tree (M)
Stown : stolen
Strippin' : milking
Teamster' clogs : wooden-soled boots of the wagon handlers
Thackrays : a family name among the trades; Moorman is teasing, here
Tirin's : attire, gay apparel, esp. head-wear
Trod : footpath
Ullet : owl
Wae's : woe is
Yak-stoup : oak-post (M)
Yowes : ewes, female sheep
inviata da Dead End - 20/12/2012 - 18:30
Scopro ora, Lorenzo, che i due versi citati da Moorman per introdurre la sua canzone sono proprio quelli di «Flowers of the Forest», antichissima canzone scozzese, la cui versione più nota è quella della poetessa settecentesca Jean Elliot, citata da Bogle nel refrain della sua «No Man’s Land»...
Dead End - 20/12/2012 - 18:52
Quello di "The Flowers of the Forest" fu il motivo che un suonatore di cornamusa intonò il 27 aprile 1978 al Putney Vale Cemetery di Londra durante la cerimonia di inumazione della folk rock singer Sandy Denny, morta a soli 31 anni. (en.wikipedia)
Bernart Bartleby - 29/4/2015 - 15:31
Lingua: Scozzese (Hybrid Scots-English)
La struggente versione scozzese offerta da Dick Gaughan
Incisa insieme ad Andy Irvine nel loro disco intitolato “Parallel Lines” pubblicato nel 1982.
The Floo’ers o’ the Forest
Incisa insieme ad Andy Irvine nel loro disco intitolato “Parallel Lines” pubblicato nel 1982.
The Floo’ers o’ the Forest
THE FLOO’ERS O’ THE FOREST
I’ve heard them lilting, at our yowe-milking,
Lasses a-lilting afore the dawn o’ day;
Noo they are moaning on ilka green loaning;
“The Floo’ers o’ the Forest are a’ wede away.
As buchts, in the morning, nae blythe lads are scorning;
The lasses are lonely and dowie and wae.
Nae daffin’, nae gabbin’, but sighing and sobbing,
Ilk ane lifts her leglen, and hies her away.
In hairst, at the shearing, nae youths now are jeering,
The bandsters are lyart, and runkled and grey.
At fair or at preaching, nae wooing, nae fleeching,
The Floo’ers o’ the Forest are a’ wede away.
At e’en, in the gloaming, nae stossies are roaming,
‘Bout stacks wi’ the lasses at bogle to play.
But ilk ane sits drearie, lamenting her dearie,
The Floo’ers o’ the Forest are a’ wede away.
Dule and wae for the order sent our lads to the border;
The English, for ance, by guile wan the day:
The Floo’ers of the Forest, that foucht aye the foremost,
The prime o’ our land are cauld in the clay.
We’ll hae nae mair lilting, at the yowe-milking,
Women and bairns are dowie and wae.
Sighing and moaning, on ilka green loaning,
The Floo’ers of the forest are all wede away.
I’ve heard them lilting, at our yowe-milking,
Lasses a-lilting afore the dawn o’ day;
Noo they are moaning on ilka green loaning;
“The Floo’ers o’ the Forest are a’ wede away.
As buchts, in the morning, nae blythe lads are scorning;
The lasses are lonely and dowie and wae.
Nae daffin’, nae gabbin’, but sighing and sobbing,
Ilk ane lifts her leglen, and hies her away.
In hairst, at the shearing, nae youths now are jeering,
The bandsters are lyart, and runkled and grey.
At fair or at preaching, nae wooing, nae fleeching,
The Floo’ers o’ the Forest are a’ wede away.
At e’en, in the gloaming, nae stossies are roaming,
‘Bout stacks wi’ the lasses at bogle to play.
But ilk ane sits drearie, lamenting her dearie,
The Floo’ers o’ the Forest are a’ wede away.
Dule and wae for the order sent our lads to the border;
The English, for ance, by guile wan the day:
The Floo’ers of the Forest, that foucht aye the foremost,
The prime o’ our land are cauld in the clay.
We’ll hae nae mair lilting, at the yowe-milking,
Women and bairns are dowie and wae.
Sighing and moaning, on ilka green loaning,
The Floo’ers of the forest are all wede away.
inviata da Bernart Bartleby - 29/4/2015 - 23:02
Anche per The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest (come per The Flowers of the Forest del versante scozzese) il punto di arrivo della canzone viene da lontano. Tutto ebbe inizio con la battaglia di Flodden del 1513 una battaglia cruciale nella storia della Scozia e dell’Inghilterra del giovane Enrico VIII. Come in Scozia anche in Inghilterra poco dopo la battaglia iniziarono a circolare delle ballate sugli eventi e i personaggi coinvolti.Tra le molte rielaborazioni di tutto questo materiale tradizionale troviamo la poesia di Frederic William Moorman pubblicata nel 1918 in The Song of the Ridings con il titolo “The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest”.
Professore di lingua inglese nell’Università di Leeds si appassionò nello studio del dialetto e della storia locale e pubblicò poco prima della sua morte un libretto con poesie di sua composizione nel dialetto dello Yorkshire. Un paio di queste vennero messe in musica (The Dalesman’s Litany e The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest).
La poesia è un chiaro omaggio al testo di Lady Jane Elliot, (Flowers of the Forest: I’ve heard them lilting) ma la guerra diventa quella contemporanea, la Prima Guerra Mondiale e i fiori della foresta sono gli uomini che sono partiti dai villaggi nei pressi della foresta di Knaresborough e che sono morti nella battaglia delle Fiandre. Nel 1977 furono le sorelle Norma e Elaine Waterson (della rinomata famiglia di cantanti tradizionali dello Yorkshire) a mettere in musica la poesia di Moorman per dedicarla al nonno che aveva combattuto in quella guerra
In Terre Celtiche Blog ho dedicato un paio di puntate all'argomento
Flowers of the Forest è un titolo che richiama una serie di testi e di canzoni, come melodia è diventato un brano cerimoniale nei funerali delle forze armate in tutto il Commonwealth, tra i brani per cornamusa nei funerali scozzesi.
Flowers of the Forest: I’ve heard them lilting (Lady Jean Elliot)
Flowers of the Forest (Fairport Convention)
Flowers of the Forest: I’ve seen the smiling of Fortune beguiling.. (Alison Rutherford)
Flowers of the Forest: Adieu, ye Streams that smoothly glide (anonimo in SMM)
The Green Fields of France (Eric Bogle)
The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest (Frederic William Moorman)
Flodden Field
come consuetudine con video, testi, traduzioni, analisi del testo
Professore di lingua inglese nell’Università di Leeds si appassionò nello studio del dialetto e della storia locale e pubblicò poco prima della sua morte un libretto con poesie di sua composizione nel dialetto dello Yorkshire. Un paio di queste vennero messe in musica (The Dalesman’s Litany e The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest).
La poesia è un chiaro omaggio al testo di Lady Jane Elliot, (Flowers of the Forest: I’ve heard them lilting) ma la guerra diventa quella contemporanea, la Prima Guerra Mondiale e i fiori della foresta sono gli uomini che sono partiti dai villaggi nei pressi della foresta di Knaresborough e che sono morti nella battaglia delle Fiandre. Nel 1977 furono le sorelle Norma e Elaine Waterson (della rinomata famiglia di cantanti tradizionali dello Yorkshire) a mettere in musica la poesia di Moorman per dedicarla al nonno che aveva combattuto in quella guerra
In Terre Celtiche Blog ho dedicato un paio di puntate all'argomento
Flowers of the Forest è un titolo che richiama una serie di testi e di canzoni, come melodia è diventato un brano cerimoniale nei funerali delle forze armate in tutto il Commonwealth, tra i brani per cornamusa nei funerali scozzesi.
Flowers of the Forest: I’ve heard them lilting (Lady Jean Elliot)
Flowers of the Forest (Fairport Convention)
Flowers of the Forest: I’ve seen the smiling of Fortune beguiling.. (Alison Rutherford)
Flowers of the Forest: Adieu, ye Streams that smoothly glide (anonimo in SMM)
The Green Fields of France (Eric Bogle)
The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest (Frederic William Moorman)
Flodden Field
Flowers of the Forest | Terre Celtiche Blog
Flowers of the Forest è un titolo che richiama una serie di testi e di canzoni, come melodia è diventato un brano cerimoniale nei funerali delle forze
come consuetudine con video, testi, traduzioni, analisi del testo
Cattia Salto - 5/4/2021 - 11:39
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Versi di Frederic William Moorman (1872-1918), dalla raccolta “Songs of the Ridings”
Musica di Lal & Norma Waterson.
Nell’album intitolato “A True Hearted Girl” del 1977.
Interpretata anche da e insieme a Martin Carthy.
Interpretata anche da June Tabor insieme alla The Lone Tree Orchestra nell’album “We Died in Hell - They Called it Passchendaele” del 1993.
Testo trovato su English Folk Music
Frederic William Moorman – predecessore di J. R. R. Tolkien sulla cattedra di lingua e letteratura inglese dell’Università di Leeds – pubblicò diverse raccolte di storie e poesie tradizionali dello Yorkshire, molte delle quali nel dialetto della regione.
“I fiori della foresta” sono qui i giovani inglesi che hanno trovato la morte nelle trincee delle Fiandre durante la Grande Guerra ma i versi (come conferma Norma Waterson nelle note al disco) derivano da una canzone di molto più antica, “The Flowers of Knaresborough Forest” (Knaresborough è una cittadina del North Yorkshire), che raccontava della battaglia di Flodden, Northumberland, del 9 settembre 1513 quando le forze d'invasione scozzesi condotte dal re Giacomo IV di Scozia furono sonoramente sconfitte dall'esercito inglese guidato da Thomas Howard, conte di Surrey.
La Waterson dedicò la canzone al nonno, soldato nella prima guerra fin dal primo giorno, miracolosamente sopravvissuto alle trincee, alle pallottole, alle baionette, alle bombe e ai gas e morto di “spagnola” (l’epidemia di influenza che all’epoca uccise milioni di persone in tutta Europa) tre settimane dopo aver fatto ritorno a casa…