#03465
Nancy From London (Pamela Morgan) video

See also: Nancy From London (3-Variants)
(Kenneth Peacock)
#2261: YouTube video from gdgest
©2013 ~ Used with permission ~

Oh, Nancy from London, a clear purling stream,
Was courted by Willie on board of the Fame;
Was courted by Willie a long time ago,
Now he's on the sea sailing
where the stormy winds blow.

Those cold stormy winds, love,
makes my poor heart ache,
Causes my parlour window
to tremble and shake;
God knows where my love lies
so far from the shore,
I'll pray for his welfare,
what can I do more?

A ship in distress, love, is a terrible sight,
Like an army of soldiers all going to fight;
A soldier can lay down his firearms and run,
But a sailor must yield to whatever might come.

Soldiers and sailors drink a health to their wives,
Young men loves their sweethearts
as they loves their lives;
Let the punch bowl go 'round
with a full glass in hand,
Drink a health to lovely Nancy
who I leaved on dry land.

Green grows the rushes and the tops of them small,
For love is a flower that blooms o'er us all;
For the green leaves will wither,
and the roots will decay,
But the red rose will flourish
when my love comes from sea.

####.... Traditional - Author unknown ....####
The video above features a live performance by Pamela Morgan at the 1981 Newfoundland Folk Festival where she was the mistress of ceremonies for the Maid Of Newfoundland performers. Pamela Morgan learned this variant from the singing of Moses (Uncle Mose) Harris [1911-?] of Lethbridge, Bonavista Bay, NL.

See more songs by Pamela Morgan.

A variant was collected in 1929 from Manuel Roberts [1906-1955] of Wesleyville and Stephen Mullins [1891-1987] of Bonavista aboard the SS Sagona, and published as #33B, Lovely Nancy From England (pp.74-75) in Ballads And Sea Songs Of Newfoundland, by Elisabeth Bristol Greenleaf and Grace Yarrow Mansfield (Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1933; and Folklore Associates, Hatboro, PA, 1968).

Note: Purling (present participle of the verb purl):
Def 2: (of a stream or river) Flow with a swirling motion and babbling sound.



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