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The False Bride

Date January 1970
Track ID 65566
Part 1

Track Information

Original Track ID

SA1970.20.A3

Original Tape ID

SA1970.020

Summary

In this song, a young man goes to the wedding of his former sweetheart, and tells her that she is falsely beguiled. He toasts the bride as the bonny lass that should have been his, but says [to the groom] that she is only his old shoes. He is asked how many blackberries grow in the sea and he replies as many as ships sail in the forest. He says he will take a long sleep and they can cover him over with lilies.

Item Notes

6 verses of 4 lines. This song is commonly known by names such as 'The False Bride', 'I Once had a Lass' or 'It Wisna My Fortune to Get Her'. Some versions end with the protagonist shrugging off the rejection in the sure knowledge that he will find another partner.

See:
Greig-Duncan vol. 6, pp. 310-327, no. 1198
'Bothy Songs & Ballads' (J. Ord, 1930) p. 175
'Traveller's Joy' (M. Yates, 2006) pp. 109-110
'Come Gie's a Sang' (S. Douglas, 1995) pp. 24-25
'Singing Island' (E. MacColl & P. Seeger, 1960) p. 31
'The Sang's the Thing' (S. Douglas, 1992) pp. 226-227
'Last of the Tinsmiths' (S. Douglas, 2006) pp. 173-174
'Irish Street Ballads' (C. O Lochlainn, 1978) pp. 170-171
'Folksongs of Britain & Ireland' (P. Kennedy, 1975) p. 352
'Scottish Studies' 16 (J. Porter & H. Gower, 1972) p. 149
'Jeannie Robertson' (J. Porter & H. Gower, 1995) pp. 244-245
'Traditional Ballad Airs' vol. 2 (W. Christie, 1881) pp. 134-135
'Everyman's Book of English Country Songs' (R. Palmer, 1979) pp. 152-153
'Folk-Song of the North-East' (G. Greig, K. Goldstein, A. Argo, 1963 reprint) art. XXIV

Recording Location

County - Aberdeenshire

Parish - Aberdeen

Village/Place - Aberdeen

Language

English

Genre

Song

Collection

SoSS

Classification

R154 GD1198

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Good