Uploaded July 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 days ago
Fair Flowers of Fadie-O / Fair Flowers of Holly-O / Fine Flowers in the Valley / Doon By the Greenwood Sidie O / Greenwood Side / Down by the Greenwood Sidey-o / All Alone and a-Lonely-O / She's Leaned her Back / The Cruel Mither / The Cruel Mother (Child No. 20) - Sung by blind singer and accordion player Dorman Ralph (1923-1999) of St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Recorded by Peter Narvaez between February 22 and June 5, 1986. From the album "Dorman Ralph" (2001) SingSong RALPH-CD1.
Note by Kevin W.:
A traditional Newfoundland variant of Child 20.
The "flowers in the valley" refrain originated in Scotland and has become rare, it survived mostly with Canadian variants of the ballad, often displaying varying degrees of corruption.
Song transcription:
There was a girl in fair London town,
Fair flowers of Holly-o;
She courted of her father's clerk,
In the lone green woods of Bonnie-o.
She had two babes from this young man,
She prayed to god 'twould never be known.
She took a penknife long and sharp,
She pierced it in their tender young hearts.
She buried them under a marble stone,
She prayed to the lord 'twould never be known.
As she was walking her father's hall,
She spied two babes playing a ball.
"Oh, babes, oh, babes, when you were both mine,
I'd dress you up in your silk so fine."
"Oh, mother dear, when we were both yours,
You did not dress us fine or coarse."
"You took a penknife long and sharp,
You pierced it into our tender hearts."
"You buried us under a marble stone,
You prayed to the lord 'twould never be known."
"Heaven is high and hell is low,
And it's down to hell's flames you'll have to go."
Fair Flowers of Fadie-O / Fair Flowers of Holly-O / Fine Flowers in the Valley / Doon By the Greenwood Sidie O / Greenwood Side / Down by the Greenwood Sidey-o / All Alone and a-Lonely-O / She's Leaned her Back / The Cruel Mither / The Cruel Mother (Child No. 20) - Sung by blind singer and accordion player Dorman Ralph (1923-1999) of St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada. Recorded by Peter Narvaez between February 22 and June 5, 1986. From the album "Dorman Ralph" (2001) SingSong RALPH-CD1.
Note by Kevin W.:
A traditional Newfoundland variant of Child 20.
The "flowers in the valley" refrain originated in Scotland and has become rare, it survived mostly with Canadian variants of the ballad, often displaying varying degrees of corruption.
Song transcription:
There was a girl in fair London town,
Fair flowers of Holly-o;
She courted of her father's clerk,
In the lone green woods of Bonnie-o.
She had two babes from this young man,
She prayed to god 'twould never be known.
She took a penknife long and sharp,
She pierced it in their tender young hearts.
She buried them under a marble stone,
She prayed to the lord 'twould never be known.
As she was walking her father's hall,
She spied two babes playing a ball.
"Oh, babes, oh, babes, when you were both mine,
I'd dress you up in your silk so fine."
"Oh, mother dear, when we were both yours,
You did not dress us fine or coarse."
"You took a penknife long and sharp,
You pierced it into our tender hearts."
"You buried us under a marble stone,
You prayed to the lord 'twould never be known."
"Heaven is high and hell is low,
And it's down to hell's flames you'll have to go."
