O My Love is Dead

AKAOh My Love is Gone
Down by the sea shore
They never will marry,
The constant lovers
The drowned lover
Forsaken mermaid
First Published this version ca 1855
LyricsTrad/CowellMusicTradRoudRN466
Music Hall PerformersSam Cowell
Folk performancesCollected from the singing of (before 1914 only, many more on VWML site):
Parsons, James, England : Devon 1888
Whitfield, H. ‘s grandfather, England : Devon, 1889
Jarvis, Mr., England : Somerset, 1904
Bishop, James, England : Somerset 1905
Lake, James, England : Hampshire 1906
Digweed, George, England : Hampshire : 1906
Webb, Mrs., England : Worcestershire, 1906
Hann, Jane, England : Dorset, 1906
Vincent, Joseph, England : Dorset, 1906
Welsh, Henry, England : Dorset 1906
Weese, Supt. W.J., USA : Missouri, 1906
Robb, Alexander, Scotland, 1907
Laney, Richard, England : Hampshire, 1907
Godfrey, William, England : Hampshire, 1907
Shepherd, Daddy, England : Gloucestershire, 1908
Clemmons, Grace, USA : Missouri, 1910
Pratley, William, England : Oxfordshire , 1911

Modern performances
See Mainly Norfolk
Version #1: from the Comic & Sentimental Music Hall Song Book No.1 (c1859-1862)*
 
As I was a walking down by the sea shore,
Where the winds and the waves and the waters did roar:
With the wind and the waves and the waters all round.
I heard a young maid making sorrowful sound,

Singing o,o,o, oh my love's dead! Him I adore,
And I ne-ever, no ne-ever, shall see my love no more.
Singing o,o,o, oh my love's dead! Him I adore,
And I ne-ever, no ne-ever, shall see my love no more.

She'd a voice like a nightingale, and skin like a dove,
And the song what she sung was consarning of love.
I asked her to marry myself, could she please?
But her answer was "No! My love's in the seas."

I said I had silver and gold too, besides
In a coach and six horses with me she should ride.
"No I ne-ever will marry nor be any man's wife,
But I'll mourn for my true love as long as I've life,"

Then she stretched forth her arms and she gave a great leap
From the rocks what was high to the seas what was deep,
Saying, "The shell of the oyster shall make me my bed
And the shrimps of the sea shall swim over my head."

And now every night just as eight bells is seen
When the moon shines so white on the seas whats so green
These two constant lovers in all their young charms,
Rolling over the waves locked in each other's arms.

[Spoken] Yes they are all roving over and over…
[Final chorus]
Singing o,o,o, oh my love's dead! Whom I adore,
And we ne-ever, no ne-ever, shall part any more.
Singing o,o,o, oh my love's dead! Whom I adore,
And I ne-ever, no ne-ever, shall part any more.

*Idiosyncrasies of spelling partially removed, Cowell would liberally replace Ws withe Vs and wice wersa...

Version #2: from Scott's English Songbook (1926)
Words by Charles Sloman, Arranged by T Westrop
Sung by Sam Cowell

As I was a'valking down by the sea shore,
Vere loud vistling vinds and vaters do roar:
Vith the sky for a kivering, the sand for the ground
I heard a loud woice making sorrowful sound,

Crying Oh! my love's dead whom I adore,
So I never shall see my true Lovier no more.

She'd a woice like a sy-ringe, and hair like a dove,
And the song what she sung vas consarning of love.
She vas the fairest of critters that ever vas seen
Her shoes vas vite satin, her bonnet pea-green

I told her I'd jewels and diamonds in store,
Vith plenty of fine golden metal galore,
But she answer'd her hand to nobody she'd give 
For she'd weep for her Villiam as long as she'd live

She looked down on the vilds of the vide vatery vaste 
And to pitch in her head first she made a very great haste, 
Shouting out, now I'll dwell with the lobsters and crabs, 
And live all my days with soles, mussels and dabs

This original version of this song is probably from the 17th century. It is one of a number of older traditional songs that were sung as burlesques in the early music hall, other examples include Lord Lovell and Billy Taylor. The way that we sing the songs today bears the mark of the time they spent in the Halls. This phenomena is discussed more in the entry on Lord Lovell.

Sam Cowell was an early music hall performer, and this is the sort of thing he would have been singing in the 1840s. Cowell sang it in the “mock cockney” of the day for comedic effect and the spelling in contemporary versions reflects this. I have provided two different versions, one with a modernised spelling, one without . Early music Hall performers were often great improvisers and would vary the songs according to their audience and the two versions give a flavour of how the words might vary. Cowell’s version is often credited to Charles Sloman, another influential songwriter and performer in the early Halls.

Charles Sloman (1808-1870) was also an influential singer and songwriter active in the period when Music Halls were developing. He was often billed as The Only English Improvisatore reflecting the legend that he was able to make up a comic song on any subject suggested to him by his audience. He seems to have started performing in tavern concert rooms at the age of 8 and was later a regular at the Coal Hole, Evans’ and Cyder Cellars, song and supper rooms that in the 1840s and 50s attracted a bohemian clientele. He wrote a number of comic songs which were performed by the likes of Sam Cowell, JW Sharp and others. Contemporary reports suggest that his singing voice was absolutely awful, but that he held an audience in the palm of his hand as a result of his comic personality. Despite his reputation as a comic, he wrote many serious ballads, some which reflected his Jewish background. One such song which has entered into traditional singing is The maid of Judah (RN13789).

Sources:

A beautiful version from Dave Webber and Anni Fentiman:

Last Updated on May 5, 2021 by John Baxter | Published: July 4, 2020

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