Many Americans are familiar with at least one verse from this lively song, a parody of the tragic English ballad “Lord Renald, My Son.” Like many traditional ballads, this song is written as a dialogue, probably between Billy and his mother. Frequent repetition makes this especially easy for even young children to learn, and the capturing rhyme makes it a delight to sing. As in most widespread songs, the words may vary according to the country or locality. The following is the best and most complete American version I have found, incidentally, the version published in Hazel Felleman’s The Best Loved Poems of the American People.
Oh, where have you been, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Oh, where have you been, charming Billy?
I have been to seek a wife. She’s the joy of my young life.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Did she ask you to come in, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Did she ask you to come in, charming Billy?
She did ask me to come in. She’s got a dimple in her chin.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Did she ask you to sit down, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Did she ask you to sit down, charming Billy?
She did ask me to sit down with a curtsey to the ground.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Did she set for you a chair, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Did she set for you a chair, charming Billy?
She did set for me a chair. She’s got ringlets in her hair.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
How old is she, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
How old is she, charming Billy?
Three times six, four times seven. twenty-eight and eleven.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
How tall is she, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
How tall is she, charming Billy?
She’s as tall as any pine, straight as a pumpkin vine.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Does she often go to church, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Does she often go to church, charming Billy?
Yes, she often goes to church with her bonnet white as birch.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Can she bake a cherry pie, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Can she bake a cherry pie, charming Billy?
She can bake a cherry pie quick as a cat can wink its eye.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Can she make a pudding well, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Can she make a pudding well, charming Billy?
She can make a pudding well. I can tell it by the smell!
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Can she make a feather bed, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Can she make a feather bed, charming Billy?
She can make the feather bed, place the pillows at the head.
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Can she card and can she spin, Billy Boy, Billy Boy?
Can she card and can she spin, charming Billy?
She can card and she can spin. She can do most anything!
She’s a young thing and cannot leave her mother.
Tune: Willie Lad [19th century, England]
Photograph: This photograph of banjo player Aunt Samanthey was taken by Robert W. Kelley for the August 15, 1955, edition of LIFE magazine. Her name is only a droll coincidence, I assure you.
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