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> John Kirkpatrick > Songs > Brass Monkey: The Streams of Lovely Nancy

The Streams of Lovely Nancy

[ Roud 688 ; Ballad Index VWL098 ; trad.]

Tony Rose sang The Streams of Lovely Nancy in 1976 on The Second Folk Review Record. The album notes comment:

The basis of this version is that collected by Hammond in 1905. A collated text from various sources is printed in The Penguin Book of English Folk Songs.

Harry Cox sang just the second verse as the fragment On Yon Lofty Mountain in a recording by Peter Kennedy from December 1953. This was published on his CD anthology What Will Become of England?.

Linda Adams sang The Streams of Lovely Nancy in 1994 on the extended CD reissue of the Fellside anthology A Selection from The Penguin Book of English Folk Songs. On Brass Monkey's fifth album Flame of Fire, John Kirkpatrick sang a variant that starts quite similar but ends with two quite different verses. He commented in the record's sleeve notes:

The Streams of Lovely Nancy is a song that never loses its mystery and beauty despite turning up in numerous guises all across Southern England. Part of its appeal is that you're never quite sure what's going on exactly. This tune was sung by William Stokes, aged 64, of Chew Stoke in somerset to Cecil Sharp as he cycled past on August 29, 1906. Also published in Book 2 of The Crystal Spring [Maud Karpeles' selection of Sharp's songs.]

Nancy Kerr and James Fagan sang The Streams of Lovely Nancy in 1997 on their first duo album, Starry Gazy Pie. They commented in their sleeve notes:

This song exists in countless different forms, none of which particularly enlightens us as to its original meaning. Various explanations suggest that it's related to Faithful Emma, that the first verse forms part of an early hymn, and that ‘Nancy’ is a reference to the river Nantsian. However this version, from a book of Cornish songs, has reduced it to a simple exchange between two typically-named lovers.

Jackie Oates recorded The Streams of Lovely Nancy in 2006 for her eponymous first album, Jackie Oates.

This video is from the Eden Project, Cornwall, in April 2007. It doesn't say who the musicians are, though:

Jon Boden sang The Streams of Lovely Nancy as the June 4, 2011 entry of his project A Folk Song a Day. He noted in his blog:

Surreal little number this one. We have a currently-dormant version of this with Bellowhead that may well make a comeback at some point. The melody here is a bit of a mash up of the Bellowhead tune and James & Nancy’s excellent version on Starry Gazy Pie.

Lyrics

Linda Adams sings The Streams of Lovely Nancy

Oh, the streams of lovely Nancy are divided in three parts
Where the young men and the maidens they do meet their sweethearts.
It is drinking of good liquor caused my heart for to sing
And the noise in yonder village made the rocks for to ring.

At the top of this mountain, there my love's castle stands,
It's all overbuilt with iv'ry on yonder black sand.
Fine arches, fine porches, and diamonds so bright,
It's a pilot for a sailor on a dark winter's night.

On yonder high mountain where the wild fowl do fly
There is one amongst them that flies very high.
If I had her in my arms, love, near the diamond's black land
How soon I would secure her by the sleight of my hand.

At the bottom of this mountain there runs a river clear.
A ship from the Indies did once anchor there,
With her red flags a-flying and the beating of her drum,
Sweet instruments of music and the firing of her gun.

So come all you little streamers that walk the meadows gay.
I'll write to my own true love wherever she may be,
For her rosy lips entice me, with her tongue she tells me “No,”
And an angel might direct us, right, and where shall we go?

John Kirkpatrick sings The Streams of Lovely Nancy

Oh, the streams of lovely Nancy they divide in three parts
Where young men and maidens do meet their sweethearts.
It's drinking of strong liquor makes the hearts for to sing
And the noise in yonder valley makes the rocks for to ring.

On yonder high mountain a castle does stand.
It's builded of ivory near to yonder black strand,
It's builded of ivory and diamonds so bright,
It's a pilot for a sailor on a dark winter's night.

On yonder high mountain where the wild fowl do fly
There is one amongst them that flies very high.
If I had my true love for a night on that strand,
How soon I would secure her by the slight of my hand.

At the foot of yonder mountain there runs a river clear.
A boat from the Indies did once anchor there,
With red flags a-flying and the beating of the drum,
Sweet instruments of music and the firing of her gun.

Our sailor and his true love were a-walking along
Said the sailor to his true love, “I will sing you a song
You're a false-hearted woman for your tongue it tells me “No”
Fare the well, my lovely Nancy, far away from you I'll go.”

“We sailed away from London to Liverpool town
And there we spied lasses, some fair and some brown.
But of all the fine lasses I ever did see,
Oh, the voice of my angel is the darling for me.”

“I will go, love, to some nunnery and there end my life,
I never will marry nor yet make a wife.
True-hearted and constant forever I'll remain.
I never shall be married till my sailor comes again.”

Links

See also the Mudcat Café thread Penguin: Streams of Lovely Nancy.