My Boy Billy- Gentry (NC) 1916 Sharp A
[From English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, Sharp/Campbell 1917; Sharp/Karpeles 1932. This version was collected from Mrs. Jane Gentry from Hot Springs, N.C., one of Cecil Sharp's favorite informants from his 1916-1918 ballad trip in the Southern Appalachians.
R. Matteson 2011, 2014]
My Boy Billy (Billy Boy)- Mrs. Jane Gentry; Hot Springs N.C., Sept. 16, 1916; Sharp A
1. O where have you been Billy boy, Billy boy,
O where have you been charming Billy?
I have been to seek a wife,
For the pleasure's of my life;
She's a young girl and cannot leave her mammy.
2 How old is she, Billy boy, Billy boy,
How old is she, charming Billy?
She's a hundred like and nine,
And I hope she will be mine;
She's a young girl and cannot leave her mammy.
3 How tall is she, etc.
She's as tall as any pine,
And as slim as a pumpkin vine;
She's a young girl, etc.
4 Can she make a chicken pie, etc.
She can make a chicken pie
Till it makes the preachers cry;
She's a young girl, etc.
5 Can she roll a boat ashore, etc.
She can roll a boat ashore,
And make her own door.
She's a young girl, etc.