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Oh, the streams of lovely Nancy are divided in three parts,
Where the young men and maidens they do meet their sweethearts;
It is drinking of good liquor caused my heart for to sing,
And the noise in yonder village made the rocks for to ring.
The bright star of Erin so pleasant may shine,
With her hair over her shoulder of a deep, deepish brown;
I delight in her company more than gold I declare,
Although she did slight me, she's the one I love dear.
At the top of this mountain, there my love's castle stands,
It's all overbuilt with ivory on yonder black sand;
Fine arches, fine porches, and diamonds so bright,
It's a pilot for a sailor on a dark winter's night.
On yonder high mountain, where the wild fowl do fly,
There is one amongst them that flies very high;
If I had her in my arms, love, 'near the diamond's black land,
How soon I'd secure her by the sleight of my hand.
At the bottom of this mountain there runs a river clear,
A ship from the Indies did once anchor there;
With her red flags a-flying, and the beating of her drum,
Sweet instruments of music, and the firing of her gun.
So come all you little streamers that walk the meadows gay,
I'll write unto my own true love, wherever she may be;
For her rosy lips entice me, with her tongue she tells me, "No!"
And an angel might direct us right, and where shall we go?
Oh, the streams of lovely Nancy are divided in three parts,
Where the young men and maidens they do meet their sweethearts;
It is drinking of good liquor caused my heart for to sing,
And the noise in yonder village made the rocks for to ring.
Collected during 1929-1930 by Maud Karpeles [1885-1976] and published as #64 in Folk Songs From Newfoundland (Faber and Faber, London, 1934/1971).
The variant in the YouTube video above features an original concertina arrangement by Dick Miles.
