“Wildwood Flower”

Description

The singer prepares to deck herself out with flowers in her hair, in response to her former lover who now has abandoned her. She promises to behave joyfully and forget she knew him, and make him regret that he "neglected his pale wildwood flower"

Cross references

• cf. "Reuben James" (tune)

Recordings

• The Carter Family, "Wildwood Flower" (Victor V-40000, 1929; Montgomery Ward M-4432, 1934; rec. 1928) (Melotone 5-11-65, 1935); as "The A. P. Carter Family," "Wildwood Flower" (Acme 996, n.d.)
• Carter Sisters & Mother Maybelle, "Wildwood Flower" (Columbia 21138, 1953)
• John D. Mounce et al, "Wildwood Flower" (on MusOzarks01)
• James Roberts, "Frail Wildwood Flower" (Gennett 6566 [as Wikel Miller]/Conqueror 7254 [as Joe Reeves], 1929; rec. 1928)

References

1. BrownIII 263, "The Pale Wildwood Flower" (3 texts plus a fragment)
2. Ritchie-SingFam, pp. 248-249, "[Pale Wildwood Flower]" (1 text, 1 tune)
3. Cohen/Seeger/Wood, pp. 50-51, "Wildwood Flower" (1 text, 1 tune)
4. Randolph 798, "The Wildwood Flower" (2 texts, 1 tune)
5. Randolph/Cohen, pp. 500-501, "The Wildwood Flower" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 798A)
6. Silber-FSWB, p. 166, "Wildwood Flower" (1 text)
7. DT, WILDWFLR*
8. Roud #757
9. BI, JRSF248