Billy Boy- Gardner (Louisiana) 1871
[Curiously this version is given by the editors of The Ballad Minstrelsy of Scotland, Robert Alison and Alexander Gardner without date or source as from the "plains of Louisiana." I assume this is a poetic reference to Louisiana and not a literal one-- still I'm listing it as the source state.
This is based on a print version (Ditson 1847 or a reprint) not a traditional version.
R. Matteson 2011, 2014]
Billy Boy- The ballad minstrelsy of Scotland: Romantic and Historical; by Robert Alison, Alexander Gardner; 1871:
And away in the sunny south, on the once gay, but lately devastated plains of Louisiana, the following lively strain, which sounds somewhat like a burlesque of the tragic ballad, may be heard:—
"' Oh, where have yon been, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Oh, where have yon been, charming Billy?'
'I have been to seek a wife—she's the joy of my life—
She's a young thing, and cannot leave her mother!'
"Did she ask you to come in, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Did she ask yon to come in, charming Billy?'
'Yes, she asked me to come in, with a dimple in her chin—
She's a young thing, and cannot leave her mother! "
"Did she bid you take a chair, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Did she bid you take a chair, charming Billy?'
'Yes, she bade me take a chair, with a ringlet in her hair—
She's a young thing, and cannot leave her mother!"
"Is she often seen at church, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Is she often seen at church, charming Billy?'
Yes, she's often seen at church, with a bonnet white as birch—
She's a young thing, and cannot leave her mother!'
'Oh, is she very tall, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Oh, is she very tall, charming Billy?'
'She's tall as a pine, and straight as a pumpkin vine-
She 's a young thing, and cannot leave her mother!"
"Can she make a cherry pie, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Can she make a cherry pie, charming Billy?'
"She can bake a cherry pie, in the twinkle of an eye—
She's a young thing, and cannot leave her mother?'"