Penguin: T' Owd Yowe Wi' One Horn

Subject: Penguin: T' Owd Yowe Wi' One Horn ^^
From: Alan of Australia
Date: 01 Jul 00 - 10:08 PM

G'day,
From the Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs, Ed Pellow's rendition of the tune of T'Owd Yowe Wi' One Horn can be found here.

T'OWD YOWE WI' ONE HORN

There was an owd yowe wi' only one horn,
Fifty naw me nonny!
And she picked up her living among the green corn,
So turn the wheel round so bonny!

One day said the pindar to his man,
'Oh dear, Johnny!
I prithee go pen that owd yowe if tha can.'
So turn the wheel round so bonny!

So off went the man to pen this owd yowe,
Fifty naw me nonny!
She knocked him three times among the green corn,
So turn the wheel round so bonny!

Then the butcher was sent for to take this yowe's life,
Fifty naw me nonny!
And along come the butcher a-whetting his knife,
So turn the wheel round so bonny!

The owd yowe she started a-whetting her pegs,
Fifty naw me nonny!
She run at the butcher and broke both his legs,
So turn the wheel round so bonny!

This owd yowe was sent to fight for the king,
Fifty naw me nonny!
She killed horsemen and footmen just as they came in,
So turn the wheel round so bonny!

Sung by Dean Robinson, Scawby Brook, Lincs. (P.G. 1905)

Previous song: The Outlandish Knight.
Next song: Oxford City.

Cheers,
Alan ^^

Subject: RE: Penguin: T' Owd Yowe Wi' One Horn
From: Joe Offer
Date: 13 Jan 05 - 03:19 AM

Here are the notes from Penguin:

T'Owd Yowe wi' one Horn (JSJ II 79)
The words of this song do not amount to much more than a mild piece of country humour. It may be a come-down version of a once-impressive piece, but if so, its former glory has faded out of sight. Yet the shape of the verse and the classical ballad ring of the tune indicate a noble ancestry. We print it mainly for the sake of the melody, which deserves wider recognition. At the same time, many will smile at the mutton-headed pugnacity of the indomitable 'owd yowe'. Percy Grainger recorded this at a folk-song competition, in Brigg, Lincs. It won third prize. This seems to be the only version reported from oral tradition.

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And from the Traditional Ballad Index:

T'Owd Yowe wi' One Horn

DESCRIPTION: Old "yowe" (ewe) resists penning and kicks the farmhand around the yard. The butcher is sent for; the yowe charges him and breaks his legs. She is sent to fight for the king, and kills soldiers in quantity.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1905 (collected from Dean Robinson)
KEYWORDS: farming humorous talltale animal sheep
FOUND IN: Britain(England(Lond))
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Vaughan Williams/Lloyd, p. 82, "T'Owd Yowe wi' One Horn" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #1762
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Grey Goose"
cf. "The Killing of the Big Pig (Iso Sika)"
Notes: This seems to have been collected only once, but cognate stories of big animals that are hard to kill and cook are common (see cross-references). "The Derby Ram" is also connected. -PJS
Kennedy apparently regards it as the same as the piece "The Ewie wi' the Crookit Horn" (#271 in his collection). But neither the plot, nor the words, nor the music is the same. - RBW
Then there's the "Yowie wi' the Crookit Horn", which seems to be slang for an illegal whiskey still. - PJS
File: VWL082

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Subject: RE: Penguin: T' Owd Yowe Wi' One Horn
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 13 Jan 05 - 01:08 PM

Malcolm Douglas, in his notes to "Classic English Folk Songs," says that the 'pindar' was a local official responsible for penning stray livestock.