Hi,

The problem with these songs based on the Unfortunate Swain is that every stanza but two (stanzas 7 and 8) is a floater. As an example, let's use a short version collected by George Butterworth:

            Down in those meadows fresh & gay,
            Plucking flowers the other day,
            I plucked those flowers both red and blues,
            I little thought what love could do

            The roses are such prickly flowers
            They should be gathered when they are green,
            I pricked my finger into the bone,
            I left the sweetest rose behind.

            I leaned my back against an oak,
            I thought it was a trusty tree,
            But first it bent,then it broke,
            And so did my false love to me.

            In yonder deep there swims a ship,
            She swims as deep as deep can be,
            Not half so deep as I am in love,
            I little care if I sink or swim.

It's not "Deep in Love" unless you put the last stanza first then it's "Deep in Love." Right now it's "Down in those Meadows" based on the "Unfortunate Swain" identifying stanza or it could be called "Unfortunate Swain" if the singer or collector even knew it came from that broadside.

Or if it began with the third stanza:

            I leaned my back against an oak,
            I thought it was a trusty tree,
            But first it bent, then it broke,
            And so did my false love to me.

Now it's titled "I Leaned my Back" or "Trusty Tree." Each stanza is an autonomous floater.

If only two stanzas-- it makes it easier to name :)

Richie