“A Distant Land to Roam”

Description

"I remember very well One dark and (dreary) day" when the singer set out for "A distant land to roam." He recalls mother bidding him goodbye and hoping to see him again in a year. But she dies before he returns; he says he will remember her words

Supplemental text

Distant Land to Roam, A
  Partial text(s)

          *** A ***

The Wanderer

From Fred W. Allsopp, Folklore of Romantic Arkansas, Volume II,
p. 201. From the singing of Davis Littus.

I remember very well
  One dark and stormy day,
When I was taking my leave
  To a country far away.

Mother said, "My dear boy,
  I expect to see you next year again
Fare-you-well, fare-you-well,
  If we meet no more on earth.
Meet me in that happy realm."

My mother kissed me then
  Her eyes o'er flowed with tears,
So I left my old home
  In a distant land to roam.

(2 additional stanzas)

Recordings

• The Carter Family, "A Distant Land to Roam" (Victor 40255/Bluebird5433/Montgomery Ward 7020, 1929)

References

1. ADDITIONAL: Fred W. Allsopp, Folklore of Romantic Arkansas, Volume II, p. 201 (1931), "(The Wanderer)" (1 text)
2. ST FORA201 (Partial)
3. Roud #17234
4. BI, FORA201