Willie o Winsbury

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Willie O Winsbury is Child Ballad #100. It is a traditional Scottish ballad that dates from at least 1775, and is known under a number of different names, including Lord Thomas of Winesberry. The song itself tells the story of a nobleman's daughter who falls in love with a man of lesser stature, usually a servant or sailor. In some versions, the servant turns out to be a lord or noble in disguise. Some people believe that this ballad is based on James V's courtship of and marriage to Madeleine de Valois of France.

The song was recorded by Pentangle on their album Solomon's Seal.

The Great Big Sea song John Barbour, on their Something Beautiful* CD, is based on this ballad.

The Song "Farewell Farewell" recorded by Fairport Convention on Liege and Lief is actually new lyrics (written by Richard Thompson) set to the music of Willie O Winsbury.

The lyrics of the song Sumer Is Icumen In were sung over the melody of Willie O Winsbury, at the end of the 1973 cult classic The Wicker Man.