Monday, January 13, 2003

I like to rise

Sarah, ma blonde, sings this traditional paean to country life.
She and the Black Sheep Morris have been singing this song since way back in the last millennium each May Day morning after dancing the sun up at Goldie Mill in Guelph.
Here she's squeezing out a stick dance.

Listen by clicking here.




I like to rise

in the winter when the skies are gray
we hedge and we ditch our times away
but in the summer when the sun shines gay
we go ramble in the new mown hay

I like to rise when the sun she rises
early in the morning
I like to hear them small birds singing
merrily upon the laylum
it's all for the life of a country child
to ramble in the new mown hay

in the spring we sow at the harvest mow
that is how the seasons round they go
but of all the times to choose I may
I go ramble in the new mown hay

in the autumn when the oak leaves turn
we gather all the wood that's fit to burn
we stow and we stack and we pile away
and go ramble in the new mown hay


lyrics/music traditional
arrangement copyright 2003 randy sutherland

from the CD 'the sky starts at your feet'

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

You guys are SOOOOOOO beautiful.

Thanks for being you:)

Love Madeleine Bachan Kaur

Anonymous said...

Thank you. My 5 year old boy sings this song in his wonderful kindergarten class in Fairfax, CA. the harmony is so beautiful...he heard your singing, stood completely still, listened, and then hummed quietly along while he played......

randy sutherland said...

That's great. Nice to hear. Thank you.

Laura lee said...

Hello,
I just came across your site, I was wondering if/how I could get a CD? I am a student at the U of G, and i really like the song 'i like ot rise" but my computer won't let me listen to it on the website here.
Thanks
Laura
lcampb09@uoguelph.ca

Anonymous said...

I came across this beautiful rendition of an old song by accident, and it took me back to days singing in English country pubs with large groups of Morris dancers - we weren't so polished, but we were loud!
Thanks for bringing a tear to the eye of an ex-pat now living in Texas.

randy sutherland said...

Thanks Bernard - this is a great song for group singing and for me that is a beautiful aspect of music, bringing people together to share. Thanks for taking the time to comment.

Anonymous said...

I stumbled upon this site and enjoyed the very charming performance of this song. I was googling the lyrics to the "Country Life" and up you came! The same song until the title of Country Life is on a 1975 record by The Watersons called "For Pence and Spicy Ale."

Thanks for putting the lyrics up there. Now I have to find out what "laylum" means.

randy sutherland said...

Let me know if you find out what laylum means, I'm curious too. Thanks.

Bernard Hylands said...

Some other sources show the word as "layland", which refers to land left untilled or fallow (according to Webster's dictionary) - just the sort of place where small birds might be expected to sing!

randy sutherland said...

That certainly makes sense. Thanks!