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> Martin Carthy > Songs > The Bows of London / Wood—Wilson—Carthy: Two Sisters
> June Tabor > Songs > The Wind and Rain + The Falls of Richmond

The Two Sisters / The Bows of London / The Wind and Rain

[ Roud 8 ; Child 10 ; Ballad Index C010 ; trad.]

Francis Child lists 26 versions of this ballad as #10 in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads.

Frankie Armstrong sang The Two Sisters on her 1972 Topic LP Lovely on the Water. A.L. Lloyd commented in the album's liner notes:

On the continent this ballad was a straightforward realistic lyrical tragedy, but as often happened when it spread to the North it picked up supernatural bits, including the savage notion of the singing bones that reveal a crime. Realistic English versions sometimes called The Berkshire Tragedy, exist side by side with Scots-Scandinavian magical ones. Sundry sets of the ballad carry various refrains, including “Bow down, bow down” (a dance instruction?) and “Binnorie o Binnorie” (said to be the invention of Sir Walter Scott). The present refrain, about swans swimming bonny, probably got attached to the song in Ireland, where they're great on swans. Frankie's version derives mainly from a set noted by Frank Kidson from an Irish singer in Liverpool.

Muckram Wakes sang The Two Sisters in 1976 on their eponymous Trailer LP Muckram Wakes. Helen Hockenhull (the former Helen Watson in Muckram Wakes) recorded this spon again in 2001 with Grace Notes for their Fellside CD Anchored to the Time. Pete and Chris Coe, who played as session musicians on Muckram Wakes album, but not on The Two Sisters, recorded this song in the same year for their Trailer album Out of Season, Out of Rhyme.

Martin Carthy and Dave Swarbrick recorded this song with the title The Bows of London live on February 23, 1990 at Focal Point, St. Louis, MO, USA for their album Life and Limb; this recording was also included in the Martin Carthy anthology The Definitive Collection. Another live version, also from St. Louis, was recorded by Peter Bellamy on August 16, 1991 in the Botanical Gardens and released on The Carthy Chronicles.

Martin Carthy commented in the Life and Limb sleeve notes:

Ever since I head Jody Stecher sing a luminous song called The Wind and the Rain—a version of The Two Sisters— I have wanted to sing it. Its overwhelming feature is its concentration on that aspect of the story dealing with the building from the murder victim's remains of a fiddle which then takes on a life of its own and ultimately unmasks the murderer. Having found my own efforts at singing this to be as unconvincing as my efforts at American songs usually are, I cast around for a tune from this side of the water, came upon The Bows of London and then tried to stay close to Jody's words. A “bow” is the bend in a river.

Roger Wilson sang an Appalachian version of The Two Sisters on on the album Wood—Wilson—Carthy. Both he and Chris Wood played violin; Martin Carthy does not appear on this track.

June Tabor sang The Wind and Rain live in Dorsten, Germany in April 1991. She was accompanied by Mark Emerson, viola, and Giles Lewin, violin. This recording was included in 2005 on her anthology Always. She commented in the album's booklet:

There were lots of versions of this song (The Two Sisters) about but Jody Stecher's on Going up on the Mountain had a kind of immediacy on it. I like the refrain—probably it's the English in me; talking about the weather—but it was particularly the verse about making a little fiddle out of her breastbone and how the sound would melt a heart of stone. I thought that was a really nice way of putting it. It told the story very strongly. It's a good one to do with voice and fiddles. Mark put a tune called The Falls of Richmond in the middle.

The Witches of Elswick sang The Two Sisters in 2003 on their first album, Out of Bed. They commented in their liner notes:

We first heard this song by John McCormick at Bacca Pipes Folk Club in Keighley. However due to the cheap pints only the tune and story stuck in our heads, so we created this version from the many Child(ish) ones.

Jim Moray sang Two Sisters in 2003 too on his CD Sweet England.

Kerfuffle learned another version of Two Sisters as sung by George Fradley of Derbyshire. They recorded it in 2008 for their fourth CD, To the Ground.

Emily Portman and Rachel Newton sang Two Sisters in 2010 on Emily's CD The Glamoury.

Lyrics

Martin Carthy sings The Bows of London

There were two little sisters a-walking alone
    Hey the gay and the grinding
Two little sisters a-walking alone
    By the bonny bonny bows of London

And the eldest pushed her sister in
Pushed her sister into the stream

Oh she pushed her in and she watched her drown
Watched her body floating down

Oh she floated up and she floated down
Floats till she come to the miller's dam

And out and come the miller's son
Father dear here swims a swan

Oh they laid her out on the bank to die
Fool with a fiddle come a-riding by

And he took some strands of her long yellow hair
Took some strands of her long yellow hair

And he made some strings from this yellow hair
Made some strings from this yellow hair

And he made fiddle pegs from her long fingerbone
Made fiddle pegs from her long fingerbone

And he made a fiddle out of her breastbone
Sound would pierce the heart of a stone

But the only tune that the fiddle would play
Was oh the bows of London
The only tune the fiddle would play
Was the bonny bonny bows of London

So the fool's gone away to the king's high hall
There was music dancing and all

And he laid this fiddle all down on a stone
Played so loud it played all alone

It sang yonder sits my father the king
Yonder sits my father the king

And yonder sits my mother the queen
How she'll grieve at my burying

And yonder she sits my sister Anne
She who drownded me in the stream

Roger Wilson sings The Two Sisters

There lived an old lord by the Northern Sea
Bow wee down
There lived an old lord by the Northern Sea

Bow and balance to me
There lived an old lord by the Northern Sea
And he had daughters one, two, three
I'll be true to my love, if my love'll be true to me

A young man came a courting there
And he made a choice of the youngest fair
He brought the youngest a beaver hat
The oldest sister didn't like that

As they walked down to the waters brim
The oldest pushed the youngest in
Oh sister, oh sister, lend me your hand
And you may have my house and land

She floated down to the miller's dam
The miller drew her safe to land
And off of her fingers took five gold rings
And into the water he plunged her again

The Witches of Elswick sing The Two Sisters

There were two sisters lived in a bower,
    Oh the wind and rain,
There were two sisters lived in a bower,
    Oh the dreadful wind and rain.

Johnny courted the eldest with a gay gold ring,
But he loved the youngest above all things.

Johnny courted the eldest with a brooche and knife,
But he loved the youngest with all his life.

Oh the eldest envied the sister fair
For her pretty little face and her long flowing hair.

“Now sister, sister, come to yon sea strand,
And see our father's ships a-coming home to land.”

And the eldest pushed the youngest in
For she knew, her sister, she could not swim.

Some times she sank, and some times she swam,
Until she came to the miller's dam.

Oh the miller standing at his door
And he saw her drowning by the shore.

“Oh miller, I'll give you this gay gold chain
If you bring me back to my father again.”

And the miller took that gay gold chain
And he pushed her back in the water again.

Her father's knight he came riding by
And this fair maid's body chanced to spy.

Oh he took three locks of her long yellow hair
And with them strung a bow so fair.

And what did he do with her breast bone?
He made it a fiddle to play upon.

And what did he do with her veins so blue?
He made fiddle strings to play a tune.

And what did he do with her fingers slight?
He made little pegs to hold them tight.

And the only tune that the fiddle would play
Was oh the wind and rain,
And the only tune that the fiddle would play
Was oh the dreadful wind and rain.

(repeat last verse)

Emily Portman and Rachel Newton sing Two Sisters

Two little sisters living in a bower
    Oleanda yolling
The youngest was the fairest flower
    Down by the waters rolling

A noble knight came riding by,
The two little sisters caught his eye

He courted the eldest with diamonds and rings
But the youngest he loved above all things.

“Sister oh sister, come down to the broom
And we’ll hear the black birds changing their tune.”

She’s taken her sister gently by the hand
And led her down to the river strand.

And when they came to the rivers brim
The eldest pushed her sister in.

“Sister oh sister, lend to me your hand
And you’ll be the heir to my riches and land.”

”Sister oh sister, that will never be
Till salt and oatmeal grow both of a tree.”

”Sister oh sister, reach me but your glove
And you shall have my own true love.”

“I will lend you neither hand nor glove
But I will have your own true love.

“For your cherry cheeks and your long yellow hair
Made me a maiden for evermore.”

Sometimes she sank, sometimes she swam,
Until she came to the millers dam.

Miller and his daughter stood at the door
And watched her floating down by the shore.

“Father oh father, draw your dam,
For there’s either a mermaid or a milk-white swan.”

The miller he dragged her out on to the shore
And he stripped her of all she wore.

He laid her body on the bank to dry,
A minstrel he came riding by.

He made a harp out of her breast-bone
Whose sound could melt a heart of stone.

He took three looks from her long yellow hair
And with them strung the harp so rare.

He took the harp to the kings high hall
And there was the court assembled all.

He laid the harp upon a stone
And it began to play alone.

The only tune the harp would play was,
The only tune that the harp would play was

It sang, “yonder sits my love the king
How he’ll weep at my burying.

”Yonder sits my sister the queen
She drowned me in the cold cold stream.”

Acknowledgements

The Bows of London transcribed by Garry Gillard. Roger Wilson's Two Sisters lyrics from the record's sleeve notes. Garry Gillard thanks Wolfgang Hell.