Lyr Add: Chesley Town

Subject: Lyr Add: CHESLEY TOWN
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 27 Dec 06 - 09:45 PM

I've been playing this song for over 40 years now, and have no information on where it comes from. I learned it from my friend Luke Faust, back in the early 60's, and play it on banjo. He learned it from a young woman who was passing through Greenwich Village in the late 50's. These are the words Luke wrote out for me.
Anybody have any further information on lyrics or origin for this one? I've been playing this song again and will probably play it in front of an audience for the first time soon. No sense rushing in to things.

Chesley Town

Monday morning off to school
Friday evening home
Brother comb my sweetheart's hair
As we go marching home

Brother won't you play me a game of ball
Brother won't you toss me a stone
Brother don't comb my sweatheart's hair
As we go marching home

I won't play you no game of ball
I won't toss you no stone
I won't play no games at all
Brother leave me alone

The elder threw the younger down
Threw him to the ground
He took out his little pen knife
And gave him a deathly wound

Met his mother as he turned around home
Looking for her son John
I left him in a lonesome place
A long, long lesson to learn

Met his sweetheart as he turned around home
Looking for her love John
I left him in the new schoolhouse
His books to carry home

She took her harp all in her hand
All tied with a silver string
She went above his lonely grave
So sweetly she did sing

That she sang the red fish out of the sea
The wild birds out of their nests
Sang her true love out of his grave
So he can't find no rest

Go home, go home you ramblin' reed
Weep no more on me
I'm going to some golden place
My face no more you'll see

I suspect this is a Child ballad... maybe called Two Brothers?

Jerry

Subject: RE: Chesley Town
From: Peace
Date: 27 Dec 06 - 10:04 PM

You might care to check here, Jerry.

Subject: RE: Chesley Town
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 27 Dec 06 - 10:13 PM

Thanks, Peaqce:

That refreshes my memory. I have sung the "He took off his Holland shirt" verse, and also the verse about laying him in a lonesome grave, the bible at his head, the testament at his feet.

That's what I get for no trusting my memory. I just typed up the lyrics that Luke wrote down, and having scanned the ones you posted, I realized that there were three or four verses I sing that weren't included on Luke's lyric sheet (and he sang them, too, which is where I learned them.)

Looks like I'll have to set aside twenty minutes for singing this one.

Gotta learn to use Google more..

Jerry

Subject: RE: Chesley Town
From: Peace
Date: 27 Dec 06 - 11:31 PM

The thing is that it sometimes isn't our memories playing tricks. I coulda sworn I was doing a few trad numbers just the way I learned them. Turns out I'd added this here and taken that away from there, picked up a stanza somewhere else, and VOILA.