Wildwood Flower

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Wildwood Flower"
Music by	Joseph Philbrick Webster
Lyrics by	Maud Irving
Published	1860
Written	1860
Language	English
Recorded by	Carter Family

"Wildwood Flower" is an American song, best known through performances and recordings by the Carter Family. However, the song predates them. The original title was "I'll Twine 'Mid the Ringlets". The song was written in 1860, with words by Maud Irving and music by Joseph Philbrick Webster (1819-1875).^[1] The tune was used by Woody Guthrie for the verses of his song "The Sinking of the Reuben James" (about the USS Reuben James). Guthrie's song had a tune of his own devising on the chorus.^[2]

Although originally a parlor song, the song had undergone quite a bit of the folk process by the time the Carter Family recorded it. For example, the original first verse was:

I'll twine 'mid the ringlets of my raven black hair,

The lilies so pale and the roses so fair,

The myrtle so bright with an emerald hue,

And the pale aronatus with eyes of bright blue.^[2]

The better-known Carter Family version begins:

Oh, I'll twine with my mingles and waving black hair,

With the roses so red and the lilies so fair,

And the myrtle so bright with the emerald dew,

The pale and the leader and eyes look like blue.^[3]

Other variants exist; for example Iris DeMent sings "…The pale emanita and hyssop so blue…". Joan Baez sings "pale amaleder", but retains the original reference to "raven black hair." Most other singers (Roger McGuinn, for instance) substitute "amaryllis and violets so blue" here.^{[citation needed]}

Plant expert Ed Hume reports that he is unaware of a plant known as aronatus.^[4] It is likely that this is actually Eragrostis, also known as "lovegrass'.

Another famous mondegreen stems from a later verse:

I will dance, I will sing, and my laugh shall be gay

I will charm every heart in this crowd I survey

Most contemporary singers render that second line,

I will charm every heart; in his crown, I will sway.

The final two lines of each verse provides the song's title and central theme:

But I'll long to see him regret the dark hour

He's gone and neglected his pale wildwood flower.

The song has also become a standard instrumental piece for guitarists of all skill levels. In 1955, Hank Thompson and Merle Travis recorded an instrumental that reached number 5 on the Country charts.^[5] In 1960, Joan Baez included it on her Vanguard debut album Joan Baez.

In 1974, Don Bowman appropriated the tune as a background for "Wildwood Weed", a monologue about marijuana.^[6] Performed by Jim Stafford, it peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Country chart.^[7]

In the 2005 film Walk the Line, Reese Witherspoon, playing June Carter, sings "Wildwood Flower" song solo while strumming her autoharp. The film also features an instrumental version performed on guitar by Bill Frisell. Jean Ritchie recorded a version in 1955 and Hobart Smith in 1963, as did Mike Ness did in 1999.

[edit] Notes