the earliest broadside says it's to be sung to the tune of Barbara Allen.
Date please.

I was quoting Steve Gardham, who displayed it on the screen during a talk about it. I'l take his word for it that the sheet he had was in fact the earliest known one. Not long after Pepys, anyway.


Was Barbara Allen only ever sung to one tune? I honestly don't know.

Certainly not (more like 200 of them), but mentioning it like that in the song sheet implies that at that time and place the printer had a particular one in mind and expected their buyers to know it. (I'm not sure when the earliest printing of a tune for it was - I suppose it's documented in Bronson).