Re: Submitted for your approval...

[Padraic Brown <pbrown@polaris.umuc.edu>]

On Tue, 19 Jan 1999, John Cowan wrote:

> Padrig Bryn yscrifef:
> 
> > Plus, the collection this comes from is getting on
> > towards 400 years old.
> 
> I suppose this is the ancestor of the familiar "riddle-song";
> the (somewhat illogical) lyrics of the version I learned are:

Yep.  NPR a few weeks back did a history of this song, giving versions
from the current Appalachian (which you cite below) back to 15th century
French (where the Latin tags at the end of each line come from).

> 	I gave my love a cherry without no stone,
> 	I gave my love a chicken without no bone,
> 	I gave my love a ring without no end [In],
> 	I gave my love a baby with no cryin'.

A ring!  I knew I forgot a verse, but couldn't remember it.  It wasn't in
some of the older versions either...

> 
> (Apologies to Padrig, who gets this message twice or thrice.)

That's allright.  I don't think the original ended up on Celticonlang,
though; so anyone not with Sessiwn has no clue what this is about. :-S

Padraic/Padrig/etc.

> 
> -- 
> John Cowan	http://www.ccil.org/~cowan		cowan@ccil.org
> 	You tollerday donsk?  N.  You tolkatiff scowegian?  Nn.
> 	You spigotty anglease?  Nnn.  You phonio saxo?  Nnnn.
> 		Clear all so!  'Tis a Jute.... (Finnegans Wake 16.5)
>