“The Elfin Knight”

Description

A man (sometimes an "Elfin" knight) and a woman exchange tasks. He offers to marry her if she performs his (impossible) tasks; she shows how she feels by making equally unperformable requests

Notes

The song "My Father Had an Acre of Land" is sometimes listed as a variant of this, but falsely. The basic point of Child #2 is the dialog making impossible demands; in "My Father Had an Acre of Land," the song simply boasts of impossible deeds

The now well-known refrain "Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme" does not appear original to the song, but has been associated with it at least since 1784, when a version appeared in Gammer Gurton's Garland. - RBW

Cross references

• cf. "My Father Had an Acre of Land" (theme)
• cf. "O'er the Hills and Far Away (I)" (floating lyrics)

Recordings

• Sara Cleveland, "Every Rose Grows Merry in Time" (on SCleveland01) {Bronson's #34.1 in addenda}
• Bob & Ron Copper, "An Acre of Land" (on FSB4)
• Liz Jefferies, "Rosemary Lane" (on Voice15)
• Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger, "The Elfin Knight" (on SCMacCollSeeger01)
• Thomas Moran, "Strawberry Lane (The Elfin Knight)" (on FSB4, FSBBAL1)
• Lawrence Older, "Flim-A-Lim-A-Lee" (on LOlder01)
• Anna Underhill, "The Elfin Knight" (on FineTimes)
• Margaret Winters, "Cambric Shirt" (on JThomas01)

References

1. Child 2, "The Elfin Knight" (13 texts)
2. Bronson 2, "The Elfin Knight" (56 versions plus 6 in addenda)
3. BarryEckstormSmyth pp. 3-11, "The Elfin Knight" (4 texts plus a fragment, 2 tunes) {Bronson's #3, #23}
4. Flanders-Ancient1, pp. 51-78, "The Elfin Knight" (12 texts plus 3 fragments, not all from New England; 8 tunes; the "N" text appears to be "My Father Had an Acre of Land") {A=Bronson's #47C=Bronson's #6; F=Bronson's #45}
5. Belden, pp. 1-3, "The Elfin Kinght" (3 texts)
6. Randolph 1, "The Cambric Shirt" (2 texts, 1 tune) {Bronson's #40}
7. Randolph/Cohen, pp. 13-15, "The Cambric Shirt" (1 text, 1 tune -- Randolph's 1A) {Bronson's #40}
8. Eddy 1, "The Elfin Knight" (2 texts, 2 tunes) {Bronson's #39, #43}
9. Gardner/Chickering 47, "A True Lover of Mine" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #38}
10. Davis-More 2, pp. 8-13, "The Elfin Knight" (3 texts, all short, one reconstructed)
11. BrownII 1, "The Elfin Knight" (1 text plus an edited excerpt and a fragment)
12. Chappell-FSRA 1, "The Cambric Shirt" (1 fragment)
13. Brewster 1, "The Elfin Knight" (4 texts plus a fragment, though the "D" text is not a conversation but a series of requests from the singer to his mother; it may be a related song)
14. Flanders/Brown, pp. 194-196, "Scarborough Fair" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #6}
15. Linscott, pp. 169-171, "Blow, Ye Winds, Blow or The Elfin Knight" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #2}
16. Leach, pp. 51-53, ""The Elfin Knight" (2 texts)
17. Peacock, pp. 6-7, "The Cambric Shirt" (2 texts, 2 tunes)
18. Friedman, p. 7, "The Elfin Knight" (2 texts)
19. Fowke/Johnston, pp. 138-139, "A True Lover of Mine" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #32}
20. FSCatskills 40, "Petticoat Lane" (1 text, 1 tune)
21. PBB 15, "The Elfin Knight" (1 text)
22. SharpAp 1 "The Elfin Knight" (2 texts, 2 tunes) {Bronson's #30, #48}
23. Sharp-100E 74, "Scarborough Fair" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #21}
24. Sharp/Karpeles-80E1, "The Lovers' Tasks (The Elfin Knight)" (1 slightly edited text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #30}
25. Niles 2, "The Elfin Knight" (3 texts, 3 tunes, all rather degenerate)
26. Lomax-FSNA 7, "Strawberry Lane" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #23, with some modifications}
27. Chase, pp. 112-113, "The Cambric Shirt" (1 text, 1 tune)
28. Hodgart, p. 26 ,"The Elfin Knight" (1 text)
29. DBuchan 41, "The Elfin Knight" (1 text)
30. MacSeegTrav 1, "The Elfin Knight" (1 text, 1 tune)
31. Stokoe/Reay, pp. 54-55, "Whittingham Fair" (1 text, 1 tune) {Bronson's #22, with key changed}
32. OLochlainn-More 99, "Rosemary Fair" (1 text, 1 tune)
33. Opie-Oxford2 86, "Can you make me a cambric shirt" (2 texts)
34. Baring-Gould-MotherGoose #70, p. 79-80, "(Can you make me a cambric shirt)"
35. Darling-NAS, pp. 19-23, "The Elfin Knight," "The Elfin Knight," "Every Rose Grows Merry in Time," "Flim-A-Lim-A-Lee" (4 texts)
36. Silber-FSWB, p. 151, "Scarborough Fair" (1 text); p. 152, "Cambric Shirt" (1 text)
37. BBI, ZN821, "The elfin knight sits on yon hill"
38. DT 2, SCARFAIR*
39. ADDITIONAL: Walter de la Mare, _Come Hither_, revised edition, 1928; #312, "My Plaid Away" (1 excerpt)
40. Roud #12
41. BI, C002