BTW, I did find a link to the Women Of The World-Celtic CDs, and it is Nancy McCallion singing the song on Vol. I. I have the CD on hold for me at the library and will listen to the song again to try to determine whether my friend and I simply mis-heard the lyrics she is singing.

I'm still interested in whether the song has trad roots, but I don't have too much time to spend researching the matter right now.