Early one morning
Early One Morning is an old English folk song .
text
Early one morning,
Just as the sun was rising,
I heard a maid sing,
In the valley below.
Refrain:
Oh, don't deceive me,
Oh, never leave me,
How could you use
A poor maiden so?
Remember the vows,
That you made to your Mary,
Remember the bow'r,
Where you vowed to be true,
refrain
Oh Gay is the garland,
And fresh are the roses,
I've culled from the garden,
To place upon thy brow.
refrain
Thus sang the poor maiden,
Her sorrows bewailing,
Thus sang the poor maid,
In the valley below.
refrain
Alternative text
Early one morning, just as the sun was rising,
I heard a young maid sing in the valley below:
"Oh don't deceive me, Oh never leave me,
How could you use a poor maiden so?
"Remember the vows that you made to me truly;
Remember how tenderly you nestled close to me.
Gay is the garland, fresh are the roses
I've culled from the garden to bind over thee.
"Here I now wander alone as I wonder
Why did you leave me to sigh and complain?
I ask of the roses, why should I be forsaken?
Why must I here in sorrow remain?
"Through yonder grove, by the spring that is running,
There you and I have so merrily played,
Kissing and courting and gently sporting,
Oh, my innocent heart you've betrayed!
"How could you slight so a pretty girl who loves you,
A pretty girl who loves you so dearly and warm?
Though love's folly is surely but a fancy,
Still it should prove to me sweeter than your scorn.
"Soon you will meet with another pretty maiden,
Some pretty maiden, you'll court her for a while;
Thus ever ranging, turning and changing,
Always seeking for a girl that is new."
Thus sang the maiden, her sorrows bewailing;
Thus the poor maid in the valley below sang:
"Oh don't deceive me, Oh never leave me,
How could you use a poor maiden so?"
Awareness
The folk song is mainly known because in many arrangements such as the BBC Radio 4 UK Theme by Fritz Spiegl found that was played until 2006 every morning on BBC Radio. Another well-known arrangement of the song is by British composer Benjamin Britten .
It was also used as the theme song in the children's program The Friendly Giant .
The King's Singers sing it on their album, Watching the White Wheat . An esoteric version of the song, arranged and sung by Jim Moray , was nominated for the Best Traditional Song category at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2004.
The song has also been used in many television series and films. Samantha sang it in The Witch and Pernell Roberts ( Adam Cartwright ) in the television series Bonanza ("The Advertisement for Abigail Jones"). Early One Morning was also the folk song that Ur-Evil used to get Spike ( Buffy the Vampire Slayer ) to kill people despite his chip and soul. This version of the song is sung by Nana Mouskouri.
In The Knights of the Coconut , Early One Morning is played in the background of the beginning of the story of Sir Launcelot , shortly before his assistant is "fatally" wounded by an arrow.