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Rackabello

[ Roud 29 ; Child 18 ; Ballad Index C018 ; trad.]

Rackabello is one of the many variants of Sir Lionel collected by F.J. Child. Martin Carthy sang it with the Waterdaughters (Lal Waterson with her daughter Maria Gilhooley and Norma Waterson with her daughter Eliza Carthy) joining in on chorus on Waterson:Carthy's second album Common Tongue. He commented in the album's sleeve notes:

Rackabello is found in F.J. Child as a single verse, so, with the help of every version I could lay my hands on, a shoe horn, a great tune from a Hertfordshire woman called Kathleen Williams (actually for the song The Crabfish) and a great band, the story of the slaughter of the giant's pet pig is given full rein. Don't know how long the victim was stuck up the tree, but the story doesn't stick around for the liberation, even if the victim has to. We'll never know.

Compare this song to A.L. Lloyd or Spiers & Boden sing Bold Sir Rylas.

Lyrics

Young Rackabello to the woods he has gone,
Rackabello, Rackabello, riding all alone.

Chorus (after every other verse):

(To me) Rye raddium rudy ida daddium
Di dye daddium rudy ida dandy

Rackabello down the wood late yester e'en,
Woman in the tall tree Rackabello seen.

“Woman oh why do you sit up so high?
Nobody living can come you a-nigh.”

“There's a wild boar living down in the wood,
Cut your throat and he drink your blood.”

Young Rackabello put his horn to his mouth,
Blew it to the north and blew it to the south.

Young Rackabello come to the wild boar's den,
There he saw the bones of a thousand men.

Wild boar struck, he began to run,
Thrashing down the tall trees as he come along.

Fought four hours on a long summer day,
Wild boar struck and he would have run away.

Young Rackabello drew the wee penknife,
Rackabello, Rackabello took away his life.

Rackabello riding through his own front door,
Up jumped the giant from the wild woods of Tor.

Up jumped the giant and Rackabello flew.
“You killed my little pig it's time for you.”

Into his rocks the giant then flew,
Swore to his soul he would tear him in two.

Rackabello, Rackabello drew the sword again,
Rackabello, Rackabello split his head in twain.

Acknowledgements and Links

Transcribed from the singing of Martin Carthy by Garry Gillard; thanks to Barbara (from Baltimore) and to Greer Gilman

See also the Mudcat Café thread Wild Boar: History, Lyrics & Discussion.