Simon & Garfunkel - Scarborough Fair/Canticle Lyrics Meaning

Extract from the Monthly chronicles of North Country Lore and Legends dated Jan 1889 seems this song has been around for a long time mentions sixteenth century in text which i have left with spelling mistakes. Thought some may be of interest.

WHITTINGHAM FAIR.
jjALLADS embodying a series of riddles are
much rarer in the English language than in
the language of Sweden, Denmark, or other
Northern nations. The riddles in these
ballads are sometimes propounded to a knight, sometimes
to a lady, and often to the Evil One himself ; in the
latter case, the demon is sure, of course, to be puzzled and
unable to answer the questions.

In addition to its enigmatical character, the metrical
construction of " Whittingham Fair " is of a duolinear
form, common to many ballads which have descended to
us from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. These
compositions were generally of a rude and simple kind,
consisting of verses of two lines only, with an interval of
rest at the end of each, which the minstrel made use of to
play a symphony (either to lengthen the ballad or to
display his musical skill). Vocalists, when singing such
ballads without instrumental accompaniment, it may be
easily inferred, would introduce some burden to replace
the symphony of the minstrel. Some of these burdens
consisted of short proverbial expressions, such as " 'Tis
merry in the hall, when beards wag all." Others were
mere nonsense lines that went glibly off the tongue,
giving the accent of the music, but having no connection
with the subject of the ballad. Examples of these
burdens are common in the plays of Shakspeare and the

Elizabethan dramatists. The " Willow willow " of Ophe-
lia in " Hamlet," and "Hey ho ! the wind and the rain "
of the clown in "Twelfth Night," are specimens, as are
also the "Fallal la" and the "Tol derol"of our own day.

"Whittingham Fair," like many other old ballads, has
been relegated to the nursery, and is sometimes sung
without the first verse, though it is then evidently in-
complete.

The melody which here accompanies the song we
believe to be the original tune, and is always sung to it in
North and West Northumberland.

Are you go ing to Whit-ting-ham Fair?

Pars - ley, sage, rose - ma - ry and thyme, Re-

jjP^r fljb^fe^g^

mem-ber me to one that lives there, For

once she was a true

lov - er

ine.

Tell her to make me a cambric shirt,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;*

Without any seam or needlework,
Then she shall be a true lover of mine.

Tell her to wash it in yonder well,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;

Where never spring water or rain ever fell,
And she shall be a true lover of mine.

Tell her to dry it on yonder thorn,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;

Which never bore blossom since Adam was born,
Then she shall be a true lover of mine.

Now he has asked me questions three,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;

I hope he'll answer as many for me
Before he shall be a true lover of mine.

Tell him to buy me an acre of land,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;

Betwixt the salt water and the sea sand,
Then he shall be a true lover of mine.

Tell him to plough it with a ram's horn,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;

And sow it all over with one pepper corn,
And he shall be a true lover of mine.

Tell him to sheer't with a sickle of leather,

Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;
And bind it up with a peacock feather,

And he shall be a true lover of mine.

Tell him to thrash it on yonder wall,

Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And never let one corn of it fall,

Then he shall be a true lover of mine.

When he has done and finished his work,

Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme ;
Oh. tell mm to come and he'll have his shirt,

And he shall be a true lover of mine.

The second line of the song " Parsley, sage, rowmary, and
thyme," fullv bears out the condition of being a nonsense line,
having no connection with the lubjeet ; but when we once heard
the ballad the singer achieved a still higher pitch of absurdity by
solemnly chanting "Parsley, sage, grwa merry in time, an the
correct burden.