No Sir, No Sir- Weare/Davis (AR) 1954
[Ozark Folksong Collection Reel 195 Item 3. Collected by Mary Jo Davis for M.C. Parler. This is Wakefield's 1881 text.
R. Matteson 2017]
No Sir, No Sir- Sung by Mrs. Robert Weare and Mary Jo Davis at DeValls Bluff, Arkansas on June 15, 1954
Tell me one thing, tell me truly,
Tell me why you scorn me so,
Tell me why when asked a question,
You should always answer, No.
Refrain: No sir, no sir, no sir, no sir,
No sir, no sir, no sir, No.
My father was a Spanish merchant,
And before he went to sea,
Made me promise that I'd answer,
"No," to all you asked of me.
Refrain:
If while walking in the garden,
Plucking flowers all wet with dew,
Tell me would you be offended,
If I walked and talked with you.
Refrain:
And if while walking in the garden,
I should ask you to be mine,
And should tell you that I love you,
Would you then my heart decline.
Refrain: