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Come Let Us Sing/Twelve Apostles
Traditional Folk hymn
ARTIST: from Josephine McGill
SHEET MUSIC: http://books.google.com/books?id=MTfLKPG6i3AC&pg=PA129&lpg=PA124&dq=%22Beautiful+hills+of+Galilee%22&ie=ISO-8859-1&output=html
CATEGORY: Traditional and Public Domain Gospel
DATE: 1800s
RECORDING INFO: Come Let Us Sing [Sh 207]
Rt - Twelve Apostles; Ten Commandments
Armstrong Family. Wheel of the Year. Thirty Years with the Armstrong Family, Flying Fish FF70 594, CD (1992), trk# 25
Burton, Elizabeth; and Otto Burton. Moore, Ethel & Chauncey O.(ed.) / Ballads and Folk Songs of the Southwes, Univ. of Okla, Bk (1964), p239/#115 [1930s]
Ritchie, Jean; & Sons. Mountain Born, Greenhays 70725, CD (1995), trk# 12
OTHER NAMES: "Twelve Apostles"
RELATED TO: "Ten Commandments," "Green Grow The Rushes, O" songs
SOURCES: The Sound of the Dove: Singing in Appalachian Primitive Baptist churches By Beverly Bush Patterson
NOTES: "Come Let Us Sing" or "Twelve Apostles" is a folk hymn that originated in England that was collected in the Kentucky mountains. Josephine McGill wrote and article about it and some of her lyrics can be seen online (lyrics incomplete). I've included two version from Cornwall from the 1800s. A related version collected by Cecil Sharp titled, "Ten Commandments," with music, can be viewed on-line:
http://books.google.com/books?id=p6oQAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA229&dq=%22twelve+are+the+twelve+apostles%22&cd=4#v=onepage&q=%22twelve%20are%20the%20twelve%20apostles%22&f=false
Essentially this is related to the "Green Grow The Rushes, O" songs: The Twelve Prophets, or The Carol Of The Twelve Numbers, or The Teaching Song, or The Dilly Song). It is cumulative in structure, with each verse built up from the previous verse by appending a new stanza. The first verse is:
I'll sing you one, O
Green grow the rushes, O
What is your one, O?
One is one and all alone
And it evermore shall be so.
TWELVE APOSTLES- Kentucky folk hymn from Josephine McGill (lyrics incomplete)
"Come let us sing!"
"What will you sing?"
"I will sing of one-
One, one to be left alone, lone to be that lonely,
Two, two are little lost babes, my darlin' grater.
Three they are drivers,
Four are Gospel preachers,
Five's a ferryman on his boat
THE TWELVE APOSTLES (trad. Ozarks) Isabel Spradley, Van Buren, Arkansas. From V. Randolph, 1982, Ozark Folksongs, ed. Norm Cohen, p. 426-429, with music.
"Come an' I will sing!"
"What will you sing?"
"I will sing of two."
"Two of the little white babes,
Dressed in the mournin' green.
"Come an' I will sing!"
"What will you sing?"
"I will sing of three."
"What of the three?"
"Three of them were strangers,
Two of the little white babes,
Dressed in the mournin' green.
(Verses continue in this form)
"Four of the gospel preachers,
"Five of the ferrymen in the boat,
"Six of the cheerful waiters,
"Seven of the seven stars in the sky,
"Eight of the eight archangels,
"Nine of the sunshines bright and fair,
"Ten of the ten commandments,
"'Leven of the saints that has gone to heaven,
"Twelve of the twelve apostles,
A CORNISH CAROL from Notes and Queries - Page 485; Oxford Journals 1885
Tbe following carol has, from time ont of mind, been sung at Padstow and other places in the east of Cornwall. It is not easy to explain with certainty the meaning of some of the lines, and it Ib possible that the present text is not in exact accordance with the original writing. It has, however, been suggested that "the lilly white babes" are Christ and St. John, " the strangers" are the Magi, " the gospel preachers" are the four Evangelists, "the ferryman" is Charon, " the charming waiters" are possibly the shepherds, "the arch angels" are the heavenly host, and " the eleven going to heaven" are the disciples after the death of Judas. The other lines await elucidation, and, in fact, the whole carol affords ground for discussion as to its explanation.
First Voice: Come, and I will sing you.
Second Voice: What will you ring me ?
First Voice: I will sing you one, O.
Second Voice: What is your one, O;
First Voice: One of them is God alone,
And for ever remains so.
The first four lines are then repeated, with the alteration of "one, O" to "two, O," after which it is commenced all over again, and so on, after the addition of each new verse.
"Two of them are lilly white babes
Dressed all in green, O.
Three of them are strangers,
Four are the gospel preachers,
Five is the ferryman in the boat,
Six are the charming waiters,
Seven are the seven stars in the sky,
Eight are the eight arch angels,
Nine is the moonshine bright and clear,
Ten are the ten commandments,
Eleven of them are going to heaven,
Twelve are the twelve apostles."
The tune to which this carol has always been sung is very plain and simple, contains but few notes, and is a great favourite with the children in the east of Cornwall." I am told by a person well acquainted with carols and church music that it is not known to be in any of the printed collections. George C. Boase. 15, Queen Anne'g Gate, Westminster.
The Critic, Volume 39 By Carolyn Shipman 1901: it was a very much corrupted form of an old Cornish carol. This was their version of it:
First Voice: Come and I will sing you—
All: What will you sing me !
First Voice: I will sing you one, O !
All: What is your one, O ?
First Voice: One of them is all alone,
And ever will remain so.
All: One of them, etc.
Second Voice: Come and I will sing you—
All: What will you sing me ?
Second Voice: I will sing you two, O !
All: What is your two, O ?
Second Voice: Two of them are lily white maids,
Dressed all in green, O !
All: One of them is all alone,
And ever will remain so.
Third Voice: Come, and I will sing you—
All: What will you sing me ?
Third Voice: I will sing you three, O!
All: What is your three, O ?
Third Voice: Three of them are strangers.
ALL: Two of them are lily white maids.
Dressed all in green, O !
One of them is all alone,
And ever will remain so! (And so on until twelve is reached)
Third Voice: Come, and I will sing you—
All: What will you sing me ?
Third Voice: I will sing you twelve, O !
All: What is your twelve, O ?
Third Voice: Twelve are the twelve apostles.
All: Eleven of them have gone to heaven,
Ten are the Ten Commandments.
Nine is the moonlight bright and clear;
Eight are the eight archangels,
Seven are the seven stars in the sky,
Six are the cheerful waiters!
Five are the ferrymen in the boats,
Four are the gospel preachers.
Three of them are strangers,
Two of them are lily white maids,
Dressed all in green, O!
One of them is all alone,
And ever will remain so!
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