Lyr. Add: ISLE OF BEAUTY, FARE THEE WELL
Thomas H. Bayly, Music arr. T. A. Rawlings

Shades of Evening, close not o'er us,
Leave our lonely bark awhile!
Morn, alas! will not restore us,
Yonder dim and distant isle.
Still my fancy can discover
Sunny spots where friends may dwell;
Darker shadows round us hover,
Isle of beauty, Fare-thee-well!

'Tis the hour when happy faces
Smile around the taper's light;
Who will fill our vacant places?
Who will sing our songs tonight!
Thro' the mist that floats above us,
Faintly sounds the Vesper bell,...
Like a voice from those who love us,
Breathing fondly ... "Fare-the-well!"

When the waves are round me breaking,
As I pace the deck alone,
And my eye in vain is seeking
Some green leaf to rest upon;
What would I not give to wander,
Where my old companions dwell...
Absence makes the heart grow fonder;
Isle of Beauty, "Fare-thee-well!"

Sheet music, Joseph Williams, London, nd (Printed between 1823-1834). The poem and music also appear in "The Odeon," a Collection of Secular Melodies, printed in U. S. A., Boston, 1837).

Lyrics taken from Sheet music Collection, Digital Collections, National Library of Australia, 7pp.
Home- www.nla.gov.au/digicol/
Title page- http://nla.gov.au/nla.mus-vn3362555-sl-v.jpg

Thomas Haynes Bayly, 1797-1839; Thomas A. Rawlings b. 1775. Rawlings' arrangement is bases on a melody by Charles Chapland Whitmore.

The title and last verse of the song come from John Milton-

"When the waves are round me breaking,
As I pace the deck alone,
And my eye in vain is seeking
Some green leaf to rest upon;
What would I give to wander
Where my old companions dwell?
Absence makes the heart grow fonder,
Isle of Beauty, fare thee well!"

This song often is cited as the origin of the phrase, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." The song was popular during the American Civil War, when song sheets were printed by H. De Masran, New York, and others.
@sea @absence