Tune Req:Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair

Subject: Tune Req: Black is the color of my true love'shair
From: GUEST,Philip
Date: 23 Jul 06 - 11:50 PM

Greetings... I would love to find a solo version of "Black is the color of my true love's hair"...Sheet music would be wonderful! It's just hard to get a good copy of folk songs these days... Can anybody help me? If so, email me please...
[e-mail]

Subject: RE: Tune Req: Black is the color of my true love's
From: Amergin
Date: 23 Jul 06 - 11:56 PM

Christy Moore does cover of this on his Live At the Point Album...

Subject: RE: Tune Req: Black is the color of my true love's
From: Peace
Date: 24 Jul 06 - 12:06 AM

Available here for less than $8.00

Subject: RE: Tune Req: Black is the color of my true love'shair
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 24 Jul 06 - 12:25 AM

Do you want a traditional version, or the John Jacob Niles reworking? Have a look for the song title via the onsite search engine (link at the top of every page) and after some reading you'll see why you need to be specific when asking this sort of question.

Subject: RE: Tune Req: Black is the color of my true love's
From: Joe Offer
Date: 25 Jul 06 - 12:27 AM

There are two versions (with MIDI files) in our Digital Tradition Folk song Database (links above). There is a Digital Tradition mirror called Yet Another Digital Tradition that offers our tunes in a variety of formats, including "sheet music." The first version is from John Jacob Niles, and the second is from Cecil Sharp. As Malcolm says, the Niles version is a "reworking," but I think it's the better-known version. I suppose what I sing is a simplified rendition of the Niles version. I don't like his ornamentation, and I don't sing falsetto.
I don't see the song in The Ballad Book of John Jacob Niles. Is the Niles version published in a songbook somewhere?

In another thread, Malcolm pointed out two examples (with sheet music) in the Max Hunter Collection:

Black, Black, Was the Color of My True Love's Hair

Black Is the Color of My True Love's Hair

-Joe Offer- (e-mail sent)