The Whistling Gypsy (Leo McQuire) with lyrics, MIDIs & video
See also: Gypsy Laddie-O (Collected by Peacock)
And also: Raggle-Taggle Gypsy (Irish Descendants)
And also: Roving Gypsy (Collected by Leach)
The whistling Gypsy came over the hill,
Down through the valley so shady;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
And he won the heart of a lady.
A-dee-do-a-dee-do-die-day,
A-dee-do-a-dee-day-o;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
And he won the heart of a lady.
She left her father's castle gate,
She left her own true lover;
She left her servants and her estate,
To follow the Gypsy rover.
A-dee-do-a-dee-do-die-day,
A-dee-do-a-dee-day-o;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
And he won the heart of a lady.
Her father saddled his fastest steed,
Roamed the valley all over;
Sought his daughter at great speed,
And the whistling Gypsy rover.
A-dee-do-a-dee-do-die-day,
A-dee-do-a-dee-day-o;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
And he won the heart of a lady.
He came at last to a mansion fine,
Down by the river Calyde;
And there was music and there was wine,
For the Gypsy and his lady.
A-dee-do-a-dee-do-die-day,
A-dee-do-a-dee-day-o;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
And he won the heart of a lady.
"He's no Gypsy, my father," she said,
"But lord of the freelands all over;
And I will stay till my dying day,
With my whistling Gypsy rover.
A-dee-do-a-dee-do-die-day,
A-dee-do-a-dee-day-o;
He whistled and he sang till the green woods rang,
And he won the heart of a lady.
####.... Imitation of an 18th century British ballad [Child ballad #200] The English And Scottish Popular Ballads (1882-1898) edited by Francis James Child (Dover, 1965). Also sometimes considered a variant of a British broadside ballad, Gypsy Laddie, published by W. Stephenson (Gateshead) sometime between 1821 and 1838, and archived at the Bodleian Library Broadside Ballads, shelfmark: Harding B 11(1446) ....####
This imitation of a well-known ballad was composed c.1950 by Leo McGuire of Dublin, Ireland, on a dare that he could not compose an Irish ballad with a happy ending. It was recorded by numerous artists, including The Clancy Brothers, The Kingston Trio, Elton Hayes, The Seekers, Carmel Quinn and Glenn Yarbrough.
The YouTube video above features the Sirens of Sterling performing a variant at the New York Renaissance Faire on 19 August 2007.
A variant was also collected in 1958 from Freeman Bennett of St.Paul's, NL, by Kenneth Peacock and published as Gypsy Laddie-O in Songs Of The Newfoundland Outports, Volume 1, p.194, by the National Museum of Canada (1965) Crown Copyrights Reserved.
See more Child Ballad variants from Newfoundland and Labrador.
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Notes On Guitar Tabs:
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All guitar tabs have been contributed by visitors to this site and represent their interpretation of the tune. We are unable to verify their accuracy.
The [G] Whistling [D] Rover came [G] over the [D] hill,
[G] Down through the [D] valley so [G] shady [D];
He [G] whistled and he [D] sang till the [G] green woods [C] rang,
And [G] he won the [D] heart of a [G] l-[C] ady. [G] [D7]
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