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Sweet William

[ Roud 273 ; Laws K12 ; Ballad Index LK12 ; trad.]

Shirley Collins sang this song in 1958 on her first album, Sweet England. The album's sleeve notes comment:

One of the best known English lyric songs with a variant tune. The words are from English Country Songs by Lucy Broadwood and J. Maitland and the tune is arranged by Shirley Collins.

Mike Waterson sang Sweet William live at the Down River Folk Club, Loughton, in October 20, 1974, together with the Watersons' Pace-Egging Song and Boston Harbour. All three tracks were included in 2004 on the Watersons' 4CD anthology Mighty River of Song. Mike Waterson commented in the album sleeve notes:

We learnt this version of Sweet William from Margaret Birkett of Elterwater—the wife of Frank Birkett from whom we had Dido Bendigo.

He also sang it live five years earlier, at Folk Union One in 1969 (the former Watersons' own folk club held at the Bluebell), which was recorded for the privately pressed LP Bluebell Folk Sing with the title Died for Love. The liner notes commented:

Mike is the last remaining member of the Waterson Family at the Bluebell. He is a great influence on many of the other singers and is one of the founder members of “Folk Union One”. The ballad, Died for Love, has many variants, some of which have survived and remain in our own memories due to the need for self entertainment. During the last two wars it was learnt by most servicemen, be they Air Force, Army or Navy.

This song is also known as Willie the Bold Sailor Boy as sung by Norma Waterson on Song Links - A Celebration of English Traditional Songs and their Australian Variants and as A Sailor's Life as sung by A.L. Lloyd on his album England & Her Traditional Songs, by Martin Carthy on his Second Album and by Sandy Denny on Fairport Convention's third album, Unhalfbricking. Both Mike and Norma finished their song with the final verse of Died for Love.

Lyrics

Shirley Collins sings Sweet William	Mike Waterson sings Sweet William
	It was early, early on a sunny day in spring My love has listed all for to serve the king The wind's blown high and the wind's blown low And we parted, me and my young sailor boy
“Father, father, come build me a boat That over the wide ocean I may go, And every ship that I pass by There I'll enquire of my sailor boy.”	“Oh father, far, will you build me a boat That on the cold ocean I may float? And every king's ship that we pass by I'll make enquiry for my sailor boy.”
I hadn't been sailing but half an hour Before I met a bold man-of-war, “Captain, captain, come tell me true, Is my sweet William on board with you?”	Why, she hadn't been a-sailing so very far upon the deep When did her first king ship she chanced to meet, It's, “Captain, captain, tell me true, Does my sweet William sail on board with you?”
	“What colour is your true love's hair? And what sort of jacket does your true love wear?” “His jacket's blue, it's bright round with gold And his hair it is the same colour as yours.”
“No, kind lady, he is not here. That he has drownded most great I fear. The other night when the wind blew high, That's when we lost your sailor boy.”	“Oh no, fair maiden, I'm afraid he isn't here. But he's been drownded and that I greatly fear. On yon green ocean as we passed by, There we lost sight of your young sailor boy.”
I'll sat me down, I'll write a song, I'll write it neat and I'll write it long. In every verse I'll shed a tear In every line hold Willy dear.	Why, she wrung her hands a little while and tore her hair Much like some maiden in great despair. “Oh happy, happy is the girl,” she cried, “What has her own true lover by her side.”
I wish I wish but it's all in vain, I wish I was a maid again. But a maid, a maid I'll never be, Till apples grow on an orange tree.	Her father he, he come home late at night His looking round for, for his sad delight He went upstairs and the door he broke And he found her hanging by a rope
	And didn't he take him a knife so long and sharp and he cut her down And in her bosom a note was found Been written in blood just to testify That for her true love William she did die
	“Will you dig me a grave so very wide and so very deep And put a marble stone at, at my head and feet And in (the window?) a snow-white dove Just to let the world know that I died for love.”

Acknowledgements

Transcription started by Reinhard Zierke with corrections by Wolfgang Hell and Garry Gillard. Thank you! However, Mike Waterson's singing on this track is very difficult to decipher and I'm sure there are still errors and mishearings, especially in the last verses.