7M. The Colour of Amber (Related to: Sailor Boy/Sweet William also Black is the Colour)
["The Colour of Amber" is the title of several songs related to Died for Love and the extended family. A unique UK version titled "The Colour of Amber" was collected in the UK from traveller Mary Ann Haynes[1] by Mike Yates in 1974. The last stanza is found in Died for Love and the first is similar to a stanza first printed in The Sailing Trade, a version of 7A, Sailor Boy. Haynes text is given in full here:
"The Colour of Amber," sung by Mary Ann Haynes in her home on High Street in Brighton, Sussex in 1974:
Oh, the colour of amber was my love's hair,
And his two blue eyes they enticed me,
And his ruby lips, they being soft and fine,
Oh, many a time they've been pressed to mine.
Oh, I'll go a-fishing in yonder's brook
There I'll catch my love with a line and a hook,
And if he loves me, oh, like I love him,
No man on earth shall part us two.
Now, I wish, I wish, now this is all in vain.
Oh, I wish to God I was a maiden again.
Oh, a maid again I shall never more be,
Whilst apples growed on a orange tree.
The "Coulour of Amber" identifying stanza is the first stanza. This stanza appears similarly in different songs, including one[2] from Newfoundland which has the same title. Haynes' song is made up of floating stanzas as are many of the Died for Love songs. Haynes' fragment has been redone by Silvia Barnes with additional traditional stanzas. Although her version is based on Haynes, it's a cover song with new added stanzas and is not traditional. Here it is:
THE COLOUR OF AMBER - Sylvia Barnes version[3]
The colour of amber was my true love's hair,
And his two blue eyes enticed me,
And his ruby lips, were soft and fine,
And it's many's the time they've been pressed to mine.
For it's I'll go a-fishing all in yonder brook
And I'll catch my love with a line and a hook,
And if he loves me, as I love him,
Then no man on earth shall me and my love twine.
For the laurel grows green, so soft the dew falls down
I met my love as he came to town,
But he turned his head and he did not see
O the tears I shed all for the love of he.
For it's when my apron once it comes so low,
He followed me wherever I might go,
But now it's up and high before,
He passes by and says he loves me no more.
And I wish, I wish, now this is all in vain.
I wish I was a maiden again.
But a maid again that never more be,
When an apple grows on a orange tree.
And I wish I wish my own sweet babe was born,
And smiling on my mammy's knee,
And I was dead and in grave lain,
The long green grass a-growing over me.
As traditional singers have done in the past[4], Barnes has extended Haynes fragment of floating stanzas by adding the "apron" and "I Wish, I Wish" stanzas (Roud 495) which are found in many Died for Love songs. The identifying stanza (colour of amber) is found similarly in the related ballad, Sailor Boy[5]. Here are two "Colour of Amber" identifying stanzas, the first and oldest is from Sailing Trade which is from the Scottish chapbook, Four Excellent New Songs, printed by J. Morren about 1800 in Edinburgh:
The Sailing Trade.
5. The colour of amber is my true love's hair
His red rosy cheeks doth my heart ensnare
His ruby lips are soft, and with charms.
I've lain many a night in his lovely arms.
The second example is Sailor Boy from Sea Songs and Ballads, 1906:
The colour of amber is my true love's hair,
His red rosy cheeks doth my heart ensnare,
His ruby lips are soft, and with charms,
I'd fain lay a night in his lovely arms.
The second stanza from 1906 also appears in John Ashton's Real Sailor Songs. There are dozens of other "colour of amber" examples in both traditional and print versions of 7A, Sailor Boy. The function of this stanza in Sailor Boy is to describe her sailor boy to the captain and/or mates aboard the ship so the maid can find her missing sailor boy. In the US the stanza has been modified and appears as "Black is the Color." This version of Sailor Boy was sung Uncle Rube Cassity of West Liberty, Morgan, KY on October 23, 1937 and retains the first two lines:
Black is the color of my true love's hair,
His face is like a lily fair.
Oh, if ever he returns it will give me great joy,
For none will I have but my sweet soldier boy.
A very similar stanza is found in a different sailor song, Early Early (All) in the Spring[6], from Newfoundland which uses use the same title, "The Colour of Amber."
"The Colour Of Amber." Collected in 1951 from Nicholas (Nick) Davis of St Shott's, NL, by MacEdward Leach.
Oh, the colour of amber is my love's hair,
And her rosy cheeks do my heart ensnare;
Her ruby lips so meek and mild,
Ofttimes have pressed them to those of mine.
As I sailed down the London Shore,
Where the loud cannon balls they roar,
In the midst of danger ofttimes I've been,
Ofttimes I have thought on you, Mary Green.
As I sailed down the London Shore,
I kept writing letters o'er and o'er;
I kept writing letters to you, my dear,
Out of all of them I received but one.
If you wrote letters back to this town,
Out of all of them I received but one;
You're false, oh, false love is none of mine,
Don't speak so hard of a sailmaker.
Straightway I went to her father's house,
And it's on this fair maid I did call;
Her father spoke me this reply,
Sayin', daughter dear, don't you love the boy.
I asked this father what he did mean,
Or would his daughter married be,
To some other young man to be a wife,
For I will go farther and take a life.
Now since my love has a man received,
A single life I will still remain;
I will plough the seas till the day I die,
I will split the waves till 'neath them I lie.
Clearly the Newfoundland variant of "Early Early in the Spring" has a different plot than the Sailor Boy (Sweet William) and is substantially different than Haynes ballad of the same title. The "Colour of Amber" stanza has simply replaced the usual opening stanza of "Early, Early." There are at least three collected versions of the Newfoundland ballad with the "Colour of Amber" title and one recording by Anita Best and Pamela Morgan. It is however possible that Haynes' stanza came from another source-- a source similar to love songs sung in the US.
Black is the Colour
As stated earlier, the "Colour Of Amber" stanza is found in "Sailor Boy (Sweet William)." A similar stanza is found in the famous US folk song "Black is the Color" which was popularized by John Jacob Niles[7]. Although Niles text is slightly different, they seem to be from the same original source. Here's Niles first stanza:
Black is the color of my true love’s hair,
Her lips are something rosy fair.
The prettiest face and the daintiest hands,
I love the grass whereon she stands.
It should be pointed out that the spelling of "colour" in the US is "color" and most versions from the US use the American spelling. Niles text is very similar to the text collected earlier (1916) by Cecil Sharp from Lizzie Roberts in North Carolina:
But black is the color of my true love’s hair,
Her face is like some rosy fair.
The prettiest face and the neatest hands,
I love the ground whereon he stands[8].
First we'll look at other examples of versions of the identifying stanza found in Sailor Boy (Sweet William) in the US. In some cases "Sailor" has been changed to "Soldier." Many of the identifying stanzas are now only two lines, the last two being replaced by lines related specifically to Soldier/Sailor Boy:
BLACK IS THE COLOR- sung by a Missouri woman with a guitar; from a field recording in the possession of the late Bil Godsey, Champaign, Illinois before late 1950s[9].
Chorus: Black, black is the color of my true love's hair,
His face is like some lily fair.
If ever he returns it will give me great joy,
For none can I love but my sweet sailor boy.
Oh Ma, oh Mother, go build me a boat
That I may on the ocean float,
And call to the ships as they pass by,
Tell me, pray, have you seen my sweet sailor boy.
She built her a boat on the deep, deep main,
And she spied three ships come out from Spain,
And she called to the captain as they passed by,
Tell me, pray, have you seen my sweet sailor boy?
Chorus.
"Oh no," said the captain, "That never can be,
"For your love was drowned in the deep salt sea,
"There off Rock Island as we passed by,
"It was there that we lost your sweet sailor boy."
She stove her boat into the rocks,
And I thought that the poor lady's heart was broke.
She wrung her hands and she tore her hair
Just like someone in deep despair.
Chorus.
Go dig me a grave both wide and deep,
Place a marble slab at my head and feet,
And on my breast place a mourning dove
To show to the world I died for love.
A similar stanza is found in Sweet William, Sharp A from EFSSA in 1916[10]. It is the second of seven stanzas:
1. A soldier's trade is cruel life;
It robs those ladies of their heart's delight,
Causes them for to weep and mourn
The loss of soldier boy never to return.
2. Yellow was the colour of my true love's hair,
Cheeks was like a lily fair.
If he returns it'll give me joy;
Never love any but a sweet soldier boy.
A variation of the complete stanza is found in the 2nd stanza of this Sailor Boy variant from West Virginia titled, Moment's River Side, which dates back to circa 1901 but is surely much older. The first four stanzas follow[11]:
MOMENT'S RIVER SIDE
Way down on Moment's River side
The wind blew fair with gentle guide;
A pretty maid that sat and mourned;
"What shall I do? My true love's gone.
"His rosy cheeks, his coal-black hair,
Has drawn my heart all in a snare;
His ruby lips so soft and fine,
Ten thousand times I've thrust in mine.
"And if ten thousand were in a row,
My love would make the brightest show,
The brightest show of every one;
I'll have my love or I'll have none.
"I'll build myself a little boat,
And on the ocean I will float,
And every ship that I pass by,
I'll enquire for my sweet sailor boy."
The first stanza is similar to the 1686 broadside, "Constant Lady and the False-Hearted Squire," a parallel ballad used in the Died for Love songs. This is a version of Sailor Boy, type C, which is the oldest form. In the three broadside of C from the early 1800s and the traditional versions, "moment's river side" has been shown to be a corruption of "murmurin' river side." The second stanza is the "colour of amber" stanza.
In this short study, it has been shown that:
1. The earliest extant "colour of amber" stanza is found "Sailing Trade" published in a Scottish chapbook printed around 1800. The colour of amber stanza is probably Scottish and when present in traditional versions of Sailor Boy indicates a Scottish origin.
2. The "colour of amber" stanza is found in versions of "Sailor Boy/Sweet William" in North America and the UK.
3. The "Black is the color" stanzas found in the Appalachians in the early 1900s are similar to, or based on the "colour of amber" stanza. Usually the last two lines in the US Sailor Boy versions appear: "If ever he returns it will give me great joy/For none will I have but my sweet soldier boy."
4. The Newfoundland song, "Colour of Amber," is a variant of "Early, Early in the Spring" (Laws M1 Roud #152) and uses the "colour of amber" stanza as its opening stanza.
5. "The Colour of Amber" is the title of song which was collected in the UK from traveller Mary Ann Haynes by Mike Yates in 1974. The first stanza (colour of amber) sung by Haynes is similar to the stanza from Sailing Trade while her last stanza (I wish, I wish) is found similarly in the Died for Love songs.
R. Matteson 2017]
_________________________________________
Footnotes:
1. This brief biography of Haynes is from Mike Yates - March 2003: One of the first Gypsy singers that I met was Mary Ann Haynes. I had been told that her son, Ted, was a singer and I drove down to Sussex one Sunday afternoon, looking for his trailer. Eventually, I found Ted and his trailer in a field. He was busy and directed me to his mother, who 'knew all the old songs'. Mary lived in High Street, Brighton, where, according to Ted, she was known to 'everybody'. High Street turned out to be a narrow street off the sea-front and was full of large tower blocks. I started knocking on doors, only to be told that nobody knew a Mrs Haynes. I found that when I mentioned that she was a Gypsy doors were closed very quickly in my face. I began to wonder if I would ever find Mary, and was about to give up, when a lady said that there were no Gypsies in the area, only 'an Italian looking lady'. This was, of course, Mary. When I arrived she was sleeping off a lunchtime session in the pub, but, once roused, she set about making a cup of tea and, having said that I knew her son (sort of), she began to sing as soon as I mentioned songs. Mary had been born in 1905, in a Faversham waggon parked behind The Coach and Horses in Portsmouth, Hampshire. Her father, Richard Milest, was a horse-dealer whose family would accompany him across England during the summer as he made his way from fair to fair. "We used to go to the Vinegar & Pepper Fair at Bristol, then to Chichester, Lewes, Canterbury and Oxford, then up to Appleby and back down to Yalding." Mary's husband died suddenly, leaving her with a large family, and, having settled in Brighton, she worked as a flower-seller, earning enough to support her family. Mary died in 1977.
2. "The Colour of Amber" sung by Nicholas (Nick) Davis of St Shott's, NL, collected by MacEdward Leach, 1951. This song is a variant of Early, Early in the Spring (Laws M1 Roud #152) which uses the "colour of amber" stanza as its opening stanza. The stanza is usually associated with Sailor Boy and the earliest printing of it is in a Scottish chapbook as a stanza of the ballad, Sailing Trade. It is also associated with opening stanza of "Black is the Color," a folk song known in North Carolina and popularized by John Jacob Niles.
3. Transcribed by Tim Radford. Sylvia Barnes heard a cover of Haynes song sung by Tina Smith at the Whitby festival.
4. See Lucy Stewart's versions of "I Wish, I Wish" and "Love is Teasing" which use the same stanzas to end both songs.
5. The second example The Sailor Boy, #LXXXVI is from Sea Songs and Ballads By Christopher Stone, Cyprian Bridge, Cyprian Arthur George as published by The Clarendon Press, 1906. This version is identical to Ashton's (1891) and was probably taken from his book, Real Sailor Songs.
6. This Newfoundland song is a variant of Early, Early in the Spring (Laws M1 Roud #152) which is based on the late 17th century Seaman's Complaint for his Unkind Mistress, of Wapping. For comparison, here are the first three stanzas of a version of Early, Early in the Spring from Mamie Poindexter, Pine Valley Calhoun County from AP Hudson, 1936 Folksongs of Mississippi:
Early, early in the spring
I was cast on board to serve my king,
Leaving my dearest dear behind,
Who often told me that her heart was mine.
As I was sailing on the sea,
I had an opportunity
Of writings letters to my dear,
But not one word from her could I hear.
I rode till I came to her father's hall
And for my love began to call.
Her father made me this reply:
"Begone young man, she has you denied.
7. Niles released a recording of "Black is the Color" on RCA in 1941. He recollection that he wrote the ballad (or the music) between 1916 and 1921 is not trustworthy. Considering Niles many fabrications, it's just as likely that he reworked Sharp's song which was published in 1917.
8. From English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, 1917 and also in volume 2 of the 1932 edition.
9. The source of this version is Mudcat Forum. It's very similar to other traditional versions except the first verse is a chorus (see Sharp A without first stanza). In my opinion the unidentified singer/guitarist was May Kennedy McCord whose version was covered by the Beers family.
10. Sharp A is sung by William Wells of North Carolina.
11. From John Harrigton Cox, 1925, Folk-Songs Of The South, pp. 353-354. In another version of the same title, the informant says this variant was "brought into the community in 1901."