> John Kirkpatrick > Songs > Brass Monkey: An Acre of Land
> Martin Carthy > Songs > Brass Monkey: An Acre of Land

An Acre of Land / Sing Ivy

[ Roud 21093 ; Ballad Index K300 ; trad.]

An Acre of Land is part of Child #2: The Elfin Knight and was sung by John Kirkpatrick on Brass Monkey's third album Sound and Rumour. Martin Carthy commented in the record's sleeve notes:

An Acre of Land has the sort of archaic tune, and The Rambling Comber the sort of loping 5/4 tune that was by no means uncommon among country singers at the turn of the century—but not so common now (except with people like us).

Pete Coe sang An Acre of Land in 2004 on his CD In Paper Houses. He commented in his liner notes:

A version of Scarborough Fair, where the young man is carrying out increasingly surreal tasks to prove his love. Our version is based on the one sung by William Mason from Hampshire to Balfour Gardiner in 1906 and Roy Palmer published it in Room for Company under the title Sing Ivy.

Compare this to Jim Copper's version of An Acre of Land of 1952 on the album Come Write Me Down.

Lyrics

Oh my father he left me an acre of land
    Sing ovy sing ivy
My father he left me an acre of land
    And a bunch of green holly and ivy

I ploughed it with an ox's horn
I ploughed it with an ox's horn

I sowed it with two peppering corns
I sowed it with two peppering corns

And I rolled it with a rolling pin
I rolled it with a rolling pin

I reaped it with my little penknife
I reaped it with my little penknife

And I thrashed it out with a goose's quill
I thrashed it out with a goose's quill

And I stowed it all in a mouse's hole
I stowed it all in a mouse's hole

Then off to the mill with a team of rats
Then off to the mill with a team of rats

My team of rats came rattling back
    Sing ovy sing ivy
My team of rats came rattling back
With fifty-five guineas and an empty sack
    And a bunch of green holly and ivy

Acknowledgements

Transcribed by Garry Gillard.