“Lord Randal”

Description

(Lord Randall) comes home; his mother questions him about his day. He answers each question accurately but incompletely, concluding with a request to rest. At last he reveals that his sweetheart has poisoned him.

Notes

A few versions, such as that recorded by Lawrence Older, make Randall's wife, rather than his sweetheart, his murderer. Wonder if she found out about that other girl he was fooling around with. - RBW

And in Grace Carr's version, it's his father who poisons him. It's worth noting that the title "Henry, My Son" almost inevitably denotes a parody version. - PJS

I've seen several sources (notably Davis) mention that John Randolph of Virginia knew the song which sometimes bears his name. The text Randolph cited appears, however, to have been "Wheel of Fortune" or something similar.

Barry et al claim "It is reasonably safe to assert that, of all the English ballads, 'Lord Randall' holds in the United States the leading position, as regards the extent of purely traditional currency. 'Barbara Allen' and 'Lord Thomas' are, no doubt, known to more folk-singers, yet it cannot be said that their popularity is due solely to tradition, since both have been many times reprinted in pocket songsters. On the other hand, we know of no American broadside or songster text of 'Lord Randall.'" - RBW

Cross references

• cf. "Billy Boy"

Recordings

• Grace Carr, "Henry, My Son" (on Saskatch01)
• Sara Cleveland, "My Bonny Bon Boy" (on SCleveland01)
• Mary Delaney, "Buried in Kilkenny" (on Voice17)
• Em & Doreen Elliott, "Henry, My Son" (on Elliotts01)
• Pete Elliott, "Henry, My Son" (on Elliotts01)
• Ewan MacColl, "Lord Randal" (on ESFB1, ESFB2)
• John MacDonald, "Lord Ronald" (on Voice03)
• Lawrence Older, "Johnny Randall" (on LOlder01)
• Paddy Reilly, "Buried in Kilkenny" (on IRTravellers01)
• Jean Ritchie, "Lord Randall" (on JRitchie02)
• Jeannie Robertson, Elizabeth Cronin, Thomas Moran, Colm McDonough, Eirlys & Eddis Thomas [composite] "Lord Randal" (on FSB4, FSBBAL1) {cf. Bronson's #43.2 in addenda}
• Pete Seeger, "Lord Randall" (on PeteSeeger25)

References

1. Child 12, "Lord Randal" (21 texts, 2 tunes) {Bronson's #31, #33}
2. Bronson 12, "Lord Randal" (103 versions plus 9 in addenda)
3. BarryEckstormSmyth pp. 46-72, "Lord Randall" (12 texts plus 3 fragments and 2 quotations from non-Maine sources, 6 tunes plus 1 unrelated item; the "N" text is a rewrite which ends with Randall's accidental death) {Bronson's #42, #37, #16, #72, #23, [], #11; Bronson's #70 is a tune for text "J," which is printed without a melody}
4. Flanders/Olney, pp. 37-39, "Jimmie Rendal"; pp. 200-201, "Lord Randall" (2 texts)
5. Flanders/Brown, pp. 197-198, "Mother, Make My Bed Soon" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #30}
6. Flanders-Ancient1, pp. 175-207, "Lord Randall" (13 texts plus 6 fragments, 12 tunes) {H=Bronson's #30}
7. Linscott, pp. 191-193, "Dirante, My Son or Lord Randall" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #12}
8. Davis-Ballads 6, "Lord Randal" (15 texts [two of them in an appendix] plus a fragment; 4 tunes entitled "John Willow, My Son," "Johnny Rillus," Johnny Rilla," "Lord Randal"; 2 more versions mentioned in Appendix A) {Bronson's #64, #28, (F version not reproduced), #58}
9. Belden, pp. 24-28, "Lord Randall" (5 texts, 1 tune) {Bronson's #41}
10. Randolph 5, "Johnny Randolph" (4 texts, 3 tunes) {A=Bronson's #21, B=#26, D=#96}
11. Eddy 5, "Lord Randal" (4 texts, 3 tunes) {Bronson's #73, #95, #94}
12. Gardner/Chickering 3, "The Cup of Cold Poison" (1 text)
13. Davis-More 7, pp. 51-60, "Lord Randal" (5 texts plus an excerpt, 3 tunes)
14. BrownII 6, "Lord Randall" (3 texts)
15. Chappell-FSRA 4, "Lorendo" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #8}
16. Hudson 4, pp. 69-70, "Lord Randall" (2 texts)
17. Scarborough-SongCatcher, pp. 178-180, "Lord Randall" (1 text, with local title "Randal, My Son")
18. Brewster 7, "Lord Randall" (1 text)
19. Creighton/Senior, pp. 9-11, "Lord Randal" (2 texts plus 1 fragment, 2 tunes) {Bronson's #48, #86}
20. Leach, pp. 81-85, "Lord Randal" (4 texts)
21. OBB 66, "Lord Randal" (1 text)
22. Friedman, p. 178, "Lord Randall" (3 texts)
23. Warner 107, "Lord Randall"; 108, "Jimmy Ransome" (2 texts, 1 tune)
24. SharpAp 7 "Lord Randal" (13 texts, 13 tunes) {Bronson's #13, #14, #17, #74, #3, #56, #47, #53, #54, #49, #63, #68, #62}
25. Sharp-100E 18, "Lord Rendal" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #90}
26. Niles 9, "Lord Randall" (2 texts, 2 tunes)
27. Gummere, pp. 168+336-337, "Lord Randal" (1 text)
28. Sharp/Karpeles-80E 7, "John Randolph (Lord Randal)" (1 text, 1 tune -- an expanded composite version) {Bronson's #53}
29. Ritchie-Southern, pp. 50-51, "Lord Randal" (1 text, 1 tune)
30. Scott-BoA, pp. 23-24, "Lord Ronald" (1 text, 1 tune)
31. Hodgart, p. 34, "Lord Randal" (1 text)
32. JHCox 4, "Lord Randall" (6 texts plus mention of 6 more)
33. JHCoxIIA, #3, pp. 14-15, "The Jealous Lover" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #38}
34. Ord, pp. 458-459, "Lord Randal" (1 text)
35. LPound-ABS, 1, p. 3, "Johnny Randall"; p. 4, "Jimmy Randolph" (2 texts)
36. MacSeegTrav 4, "Lord Randall" (2 texts, 2 tunes)
37. Opie-Oxford2 44, "Where have you been today, Billy, my son" (3 texts)
38. Baring-Gould-MotherGoose #287, pp. 167-168, "(Where have you been today, Billy, my son)"
39. Montgomerie-ScottishNR 199, "The Wee Croodin Doo" (1 text)
40. TBB 11, "Lord Randal" (1 text)
41. SHenry H814, p. 415, "Lord Ronald" (1 text, 1 tune, incorrectly labelled "Child 92")
42. Darling-NAS, pp. 43-44, "Lord Randall"; "Johnny Randall" (2 texts)
43. Silber-FSWB, p. 346, "Lord Randall" (1 text)
44. DT 12, LORDRAN1* LORDRNLD* EELHENRY* EELHENR2
45. ADDITIONAL: Frank Harte _Songs of Dublin_, second edition, Ossian, 1993, pp. 30-31, "Henry, My Son" (1 text, 1 tune)
46. Roud #10
47. BI, C012