False Sir John (May Colvin) by Real Clothes published on 2018-03-03T21:59:21Z False Sir John or May Colvin tells the tale of a young woman who elopes with a knight who has promised to marry her but who then tries to murder her to get money, cloths and horses. She manages to kill him instead, and in many versions she is helped to keep this experience from her parents by a resourceful bird. The main variant has been collected frequently from traditional singers in England, Scotland, Ireland and North America. "Lady Isabel and the Elf Knight", "False Sir John", "May Colvin", "The Outlandish Knight" et al. (Child #4; Roud #21) is the English common name representative of a very large class of European ballads. http://www.springthyme.co.uk/ballads/balladtexts/4_LadyIsabel.html ___________________ At a friend's request, here's an appalachian folk cover. Jean Ritchie version 1974. Haven't done one of these literally in years. Added some summer sounds because NYC winters need some light. Sounds from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fES1VjPgFHc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WR_lYPYhCvI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgSmnx2fQ0E Genre Folklore Comment by Geestrücken Great!!! 2018-03-04T12:10:34Z