The Butcher’s Boy

September 12th, 2008 by Auriea

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The Butcher’s Boy by Half Asleep

Another lovely contemporary rendition of an american (Appalachian in this case) folk song.
Another tragedy for a young girl in the lyrics…


She went upstairs to make her bed
And not one word to her mother said

Her mother she went upstairs too
Saying, “Daughter, oh daughter, what troubles you?”

“Oh mother, oh mother, I cannot tell
That butcher’s boy I love so well

He courted me my life away
And now at home he will not stay”

“There is a place in London town
Where that butcher’s boy goes and sits down

He takes that strange girl on his knee
And tells to her what he won’t tell me”

Her father he came up from work
Saying, “Where is my daughter, she seems so hurt”

He went upstairs to give her hope
And found her hanging from a rope

He took his knife and cut her down
And in her bosom these words were found

“Go dig my grave both wide and deep
Place a marble slab at my head and feet

And over my coffin, place a snow white dove
To warn the world that I died of love

alternate lyrics and sheet music here


4 Responses to “The Butcher’s Boy”

  1. That was really beatiful :] I loved it

  2. Emriss

    Interesting use of words in that last line: “To warn the world that I died of love”…

    Warn the world? Of what, I wonder? And ‘died OF love’, rather than something along the lines of ‘for want of’, as is usually used in similar songs.

    It was no ‘The Other Tune’, but it was still a lovely peice of work. Where do you FIND all these weird songs, anyway?

  3. Emriss

    Edit on above: I meant ‘The Only Tune’. My mistake.

  4. Irleman

    This song is…just… well, quoting Mr. L-craft, unspeakable. I have no words to describe it. All i can say is that it tore my heart and somehow got deep into me. If the game features it… then wow… it will be even better than I had expected.

    Hey, Emriss, actually there’s nothing wrong with the lyrics. “To warn” the world is just another way of saying she wished the world to be aware of her suffering. And “to die of love” is a structure widely used in poetry. It’s the same of dying of a cancer, or of any other malaise. It’s just her illness was that unrequited love.

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