Brown Girl- Rena Hicks (NC) c.1970 Burton
[Fragment from Burton; Some Ballad Folks, 1973. Rena Hicks married Nathan Hicks, they were first cousins. Story teller, Ray Hicks was one of their children. my grangfather, Maurice Matteson, bought a dulcimer from Nathan around 1935, and collected a few songs from him. Maurice introduced Frank Warner to Nathan and Frank ordered a dulcimer and visited Beech mountain in 1939.
Rena sang the Hicks/Harmon version of this ballad. Cf. Alice Hicks, Sam Harmon; Nora Hicks, Jane Hicks Gentry. The missing lines can be filled from these versions.
R. Matteson 2014]
"Brown Girl" from Rena Hicks, c. 1970; a composite of her written and dictated versions.
"Oh, Mother' come and will me your desire:
For me to marry Fair Eleanor the bride,
Or bring You the Brown girl home?"
"Therefore a blessing I'll do for you,
To bring me the Brown girl home-
She has both house and land,
Fair Eleanor has none."
Lord Thomas dressed his playmates[1] all in green
And hisself in white,
And ever' town he rode through
They took him to be some lord or kite.[2]
He rode till he come to Fair Eleanor's gate'
He jangled at the rang,
There was none so ready as Fair Eieanor herself
To rise and let him come in.
"What news have you brought to me?"
"No news but to ask you to my wedding."
"Bad news, bad news,
For I was expecting to be the bride
And you to be the great bridegroom for to be."
Fair Eleanor asked her dear mother,
"Must I go to Lord Thomas's wedding or stay at home?"
"Therefore a blessing I do for you,
If you will stay at home with me."
"Be me dead or be me alive,
To Lord Thomas's wedding I will go.
Many of Your folks will be there,
Many more of my friends will be there."
She dressed her playmates all in white,
Herself she dressed in green.
And ever' town she rode through
They took her to be some queen.
She rode till she came to Lord Thomas's gate,
She jangled at the rang.
There was none as ready as Lord Thomas
To rise and let her come in.
He took her by her lily-white hand.
"Is this your bride, Lord Thomas?
I think she's wonderful brown.
You could have married as fair a lady
As ever the sun shine on."
"Hold your tongue, Fair Eleanor," he says,
"And throw no flouts on me;
For I love the end of your little finger
Better than the Brown girl's whole body."
He set her by his own bedside.
And the Brown girl had a little keen knife;
It was paved[3] with metal so strong.
She pierced Fair Eleanor to the heart.
"What's the matter, Fair Eleanor?" he said;
"You used to be as red as a rose,
But now your color's faded."
"Are you blind, Lord Thomas?" she said;
"Or can't you very well see
My own heart's blood
Come tricklin' down my knees?"
Lord Thomas had a two-edged sword;
It was paved with metal so strong.
He cut off the Brown girl's head
And stove it against a tree.
"A grave, a grave to be dug,
Dig it both deep and wide.
Bury Fair Eleanor in my arms
And the Brown girl at my feet."
They were buried in the new churchyard.
A brier grew out of his toe,
And a rose out of her breast.
They grew to the tower of the old church,
And there they tied a true lover's knot.
1 merry maids
2 knight