“You Lovers All”
Description
The girl recalls how her father's anger "drove my love away" to North America. She steals 500 pounds from her father to buy passage across the seas. She does not know where to look, but by chance finds her love quickly; they are married
Notes
This song is very similar to "My Father's Servant Boy," the only substantial difference between the two being that, in this song, the girl and boy sail for America separately. Even the first few words are the same. "Lumpers" would undoubtedly list them as the same song (so, e.g., Roud).
The Index, however, follows a "splitting" policy. My personal suspicion, in any case, is that "My Father's Servant Boy" is the older song, and was rewritten as a broadside to produce this. (Note the presence of a broadside version in Wright.) The kinship could, of course, be the other way -- both look like broadsides, without much softening by tradition. But "My Father's Servant Boy" seems to be slightly more widespread, giving it a slightly greater chance of being original. - RBW
Cross references
- cf. "My Father's Servant Boy" [Laws M11] (plot)
- cf. "Mullinabrone" (plot)
References
- SHenry H525, p. 483, "You Lovers All" (1 text, 1 tune)
- Roud #1910
- BI, HHH525