405. Dearest Mae
[Words by Francis Lynch, music by James Power, 1817. Sheet music available from the Library of Congress. Here's the lyrics from a version from 1848; music arranged/ written by L. V. H. Crosby:
"Dearest Mae" (1848)
a Favorite Ethiopian Song,
[Performed] by the Harmoneons
Words by Francis Lynch
Music by L. V. H. Crosby
[Source: pages 143-145 from
"Minstrel Songs, Old and New" (1883)]
1. Now Niggers listen to me; a story I'll relate;
It happen'd in de valley, in the Old Carolina state;
Way down in de meadow, 'twas dare I mow'd de hay;
I always work de harder, when I think eb lubly Mae.
CHORUS 2 times
Oh! dearest Mae you'r lubly as the day,
Your eyes are bright, dey shine at night,
When de moon am gwane away!
2. Old Massa gib me holiday, an' say he'll give me more,
I tank'd him bery kindly, an' shov'd my boat from shore;
So down de river I glides along, wid my heart so light and free,
To de cottage ob my lubly Mae, I'd long'd so much to see.
(CHORUS 2 times)
3. On de banks of de river, whar de trees day hang so low,
De coon among thar branches play, while de mink he keep below;
Oh! dar is de spot an' Mae, she looks so neat,
Her eyes dey sparkle like de stars, her lips are red as beet.
(CHORUS 2 times)
4. Benead de shady old oak tree, we sat for many an hour,
Happy as de Buzzard bird, dat flies about de flow'r;
But, oh, dear Mae, I leff her, she cried when boff we parted,
I bid sweet Mae a long farewell, and back to Massa started.
(CHORUS 2 times)
Dearest Mae is the melody for "Coming Around the Horn" Matteson 2011]
405. Dearest Mae
One of the early minstrel songs in the Stephen C. Foster mode, thiss song appears in The Ethiopian Glee Book; a Collection of Popular Negro Melodies. Arranged for Quartet Clubs (Boston, c. 1850), p. 27, and in Christy's Negro Songster (New York, 1855), pp. 246-7, "Words and Music by A. F. Winnemore." It is also included in Minstrel Songs, Old and New, a Collection of World- Wide, Famous Minstrel and Plantation Songs . . . (New York, 1882), pp. 143-4, where it is designated "Written by Francis Lynch, Composed by L. V. H. Crosby." The North Carolina texts show a number of differences suggestive of oral transmission.
A. Dearest Mae. From K. P. Lewis, Durham, as sung by Dr. Kemp B. Battle at Chapel Hill, in November 1910; text undated. Note by Dr. Brown: "Printed in The Scepter, an old collection of songs. From the K. P. Lewis collection."
1. Come, listen to me, darkies, and a story I'll relate;
It happened in the valley of the old Carolina State.
Way down in the meadow, where I used to mow the hay.
I always worked the harder when I thought of dearest Mae.
Chorus: Oh, dearest Mae, you're as lovely as the day;
Your eyes so bright, they shine at night
When the moon has gone away.
2. Ole massa gave me holiday, I wish he'd give me more;
I thanked him very kindly, and I pushed my boat from shore.
Way down the river I floated, with my heart so light and free,
To the cottage of my lovely girl I longed so much to see.
3 Way down on the river where the trees do hang so low.
The coons among the branches play, and the mink he hides below.
There is the spot where Mae she looked so sweet.
Her eyes did sparkle like the stars, her lips as red as beet.
4 Beneath the shade of an old oak tree we sat for many hours.
As happy as the humming bird that flits among the flowers.
And dearest Mae, when I left her. she wept when both we parted;
I gave her one long farewell kiss, and up the river started.
5. Ole massa he was taken sick and poor ole man he died.
And I was sold way down below close by the river side;
And dearest Mae. when she heard the news, she sickened like a flower.
And now lies dead beneath the tree, where the owl hoots every hour.
Hoo-oo-oo (to tune of regular chorus)
B. Under title 'Plantation Songs.' From Aliss Virginia C. Hall, a Trinity College student; without local address or date ; with note: "This memory is of a gray-whiskered old gentleman bouncing a little boy on his knee and singing to him 'plantation songs' which he had learned as a child from negroes on his father's plantation." Dr. White adds: "probably refers to her grandfather." The text corresponds to A. 2 and chorus.
C. From an informant identified only as Hurns; text without date or address. A combination of stanza 1 and chorus of 'Dearest Mae' with 'Massa Bought a Yaller Gal,' stanza 1 of tlie latter running:
Ole Massa bought a cullud gal.
He bought her from de South.
Her hair it curl so berry tight
She couldn't shut her mouth.
He tuck her to de tailor shop
To sew her mouth up small;
De gal she took in one long breath
And swallowed up tailor and all.
D. From Otis S. Kuykendall, Asheville (with phonograph recording), August 4, 1939. W'itli some verbal differences, tlie same as A, 1, 2, 3, and chorus.
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405 Dearest Mae (Music)
'Dearest Mae.' Sung by Otis Kuykendall, Asheville, July 18, 1939. The singer gave as his title: 'Mae, Dearest Mae.' It is up to the judge, so to speak, when MSON names L.V.H. Crosby as composer, while SRA credits the music to James Power. The tunes, however, are identical! Both publications credit Francis Lynch with having written the words.
F-377
Come, dark - ies, lis - ten to me, and a sto - ry I relate
It hap - pened in this val - ley of the old Car- o - lin - a State.
Way down in the mead-ow, to mow hay,
al - ways worked the hard - est when they told of love to me. Mae, dear - est
Mae, you're as love - ly as the day; Your eyes so bright,
they shine to - night when the moon am gone a - way.
For melodic relationship cf. **SRA 80; *MSON 143-4 (general melodic line of stanza only.)
Scale: Hexatonic (6), plagal. Tonal Center : f. Structure : abcdaiefdia2eifid2 (2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2,2) = abcdcidi (4,4,4,4,4,4) ; cd as well as c1 are somewhat related to a and b. The over-all form would be nmmi (8,8,8) = inverted bar. This is an excellent example for non-conformity of text and music.