Subject: RE: Bunch of thyme
From:
Susanne (skw)
Date: 22 Jun 99 - 06:18 PM
Enough trivia?
[1975:] The first song Cecil Sharp ever collected, from a gardener called John England(!), was a variant of this song, in which flower symbolism is used in a manner reminiscent of Ophelia's mad speeches in 'Hamlet'. (Shakespeare probably knew the song, since it is a good deal older than Sharp; it was first noted in 1689.) (Karl Dallas, notes 'The Electric Muse' 12)
[1979:] [Bunch of Thyme] Versions may be found in Ireland and Britain. It is closely connected with another song using symbols, The Seeds of Love. Thyme stands for hope and/or virginity. (Loesberg III, 76)
[1984:] I learned this from Muriel Graves from the Lake District in England in a folk club in 1967. Little did I think that by bringing it back to Ireland I was going to write a page in the annals of folk history and launch Foster and Allen to stardom. (Christy Moore Song Book 44)
[1984:] [Bunch of Thyme] This is perhaps one of the finest of all songs heard in the seventies. The words are reminiscent of those in Schubert's Heideröslein - yet they say more, especially the chorus. James Reeves in his chapter on "The Lingua Franca" in 'The Everlasting Circle' deals with the relation between specific flowers and human qualities. He defines thyme as virginity (though clearly it means far more than this in the above song), the rose as wanton passion, etc. It is difficult to know whether to write "thyme" or "time" at several places where either word would make sense, for there is a very subtle overlap between the two words. [...] The song is not one of the most popular but is still well known and is heard fairly regularly. (Ailie Munro, Revival 163)
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sj
