The king’s man took into the wood
to catch some coneys, fleet and good
He caught a flicker in his eye
as flash of gold went bounding by.
It was a stag with antlers tall,
surely the lord of wood stags all.
He left his hounds in thicket green
Catch this creature he had seen
With a hey ho to the wood we go
for to catch him with the bolt and bow.
With a hey hei watch him fly
as the lord of the wood we follow.
The king’s Lady on her palfrey white
went a-riding in the sunshine bright.
when came a sound upon the trail
as doe of silver past did sail.
To see the doe made her heart bloom
and so she took off through the broom
to touch with her own gentle hand
this hind most lovely in the land.
With a hey ho to the wood we go
to see the hart in the summer’s glow.
With a hey hei watch them fly
as through the wood we follow.
Into a clearing verdant green
the golden stag ran, clearly seen.
The silver doe met his stride
as the Lady and king’s man did ride
The king’s man poised to bring them down
as gift to serve before the crown.
The Lady saw his bolt on high
and galloped ‘ere where the bold would fly
With a hey ho to the wood we go
though the hunt we now forgo.
With a hey hei watch them fly
as into the wood we follow.
The lady’s hands rushed to her breast
where now the bolt did redly rest.
The yoman looked where the Lady fell
amid the leaves of mossy dell,
The golden hind did lift her head,
and then his sliver lady lead
the bold young hunter unto her side
to pull the bolt ere lady die.
With a hey ho to the wood we go
to find them in a thicket low.
With a hey hei watch them fly
as into the wood we follow.
Though it broke his heart in two
He tore the wounding arrow through.
as the Lady weakly swooned
The doe’s kiss staunched the bleeding wound
With queen, yet living, in his arms,
the king’s man fled the clearing’s charms.
At the charger’s side the palfrey ran
from this kingdom not of man.
With a hey ho to the wood we go to
the realm of stag and merry doe.
With a hey hei watch them fly
as into the wood we follow.
As the noble stag walked with his mate
In the greeny wood with a steady gait
The sun sank down and the bright moon shone
And the clearing was once more alone.
Liner Notes
#harp #acoustic #folk #medieval #fantasy
This is an old set of lyrics that needed work, as it was written as an exhaustively long ballad. I rediscovered them earlier in February, and I realized that with some editing, I could have a nice little “trad” folk song that would be good around a fire some cold evening.
There’s a little mystical sense – the stag and his doe are clearly supernatural creatures — and the story has a happier ending than it could have. I’ve enjoyed spending time with this piece, setting it, and then making a more workable song from it.
That greeny wood is a good place, especially in the bitter winter.
