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The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle

[ Roud 2191 ; Laws H29 ; Ballad Index LH29 ; DT BELLISLE ; trad.]

Edith Fowke: The Penguin Book of Canadian Folk Songs

Ed Trickett sang The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle in 1972 on his Folk-Legacy album The Telling Takes Me Home. He noted:

I was rummaging through an old Sing Out! magazine (1957 – Summer) and I came across this lovely song. Sing Out! gave no credit to its source, however, which proved to be Fowke and Johnston’s Folk Songs of Canada. It was collected by Kenneth Peacock in 1952 and was later printed in his 1965 book Songs of the Newfoundland Outports. The last two verses that I sing were not in the Sing Out! version, but were sent to me by Joe Hickerson, who found them in Greenleaf’s Ballads and Songs of Newfoundland. The theme of the songs suggests a kinship to the many ‘broken token’ songs, where a lover returns in disguise to test the faithfulness of his sweetheart. I’ve always thought that a gutsy thing to do, as well as being a dirty trick. I’m sure one can find other, more enjoyable, ways to test such things. Or perhaps it served as protection for the man who, if he saw his old love no longer cared, could walk away without having to face her.

Archie Fisher recorded Star of the Belle Isle in the 1970s for an album for Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy’s Blackbird label which never saw the light of day. The original tapes were subsequently discovered some 27 years later and so Archie included this and some other tracks in the “Missing Master” section of his 2008 CD Windward Away.

Bryony sang The Star of Belle Isle in 1986 on their Dragon album Last of the Great Whales. They noted:

This song can be found in K. Peacock’s Songs From Newfoundland and The Penguin Book of Canadian Folk Songs. The tune is Irish in origin and the song is based on the recurring theme of “Disguises-Lover-Returns-From-Seas”. The sequel badly needs writing!

Cathal McConnell sang The Bloomin’ Bright Star of Belle Isle in 2000 on his Compass album Long Expectant Comes at Last.

Nuala Kennedy sang The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle in 2010 on her Compass album Tune In. She noted:

A song I learned from my friend and fellow Edinburgh-based Irish fluter and singer Cathal McConnell. He in turn learned it from Ed Trickett’s 1972 album The Telling Takes Me Home. Cathal also recorded a great version of this on his award-winning solo album Long Expectant Comes at Last. He attributes the song as being from his native Co. Fermanagh; Belle Isle being a place very close to Lisbellaw, where his mother was from.

Looking into the background of this song, I came into contact with John Moulden, whose most recent article on it was penned in 2001. There has been some controversy over the origins of this song (whether it was a Native American or an Irish ballad), which seems to have been cleared up by John’s discovery at the Royal Irish Academy, of a scrap from an Irish songbook, dating from between 1800 and 1820. It contained a version of this song which confirmed that it was indeed of Irish origin.

Moulden, John 2001a, The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle: American Native or Irish Immigrant?
Fitzgerald, Patrick and Ickringill, Steve Atlantic Crossroads: Historical connections between Scotland, Ulster and North America
Newtownards (Colourpoint Books) pp. 55-66

Steve Turner sang The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle in 2026 on his Tradition Bearers CD A Host of Furious Fancies.

Lyrics

Ed Trickett sings The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle

One evening for pleasure I rambled
To view the fair fields all alone,
Down by the banks of Loch Erin
Where beauty and pleasure were known.

I spied a fair maid at her labour,
Which caused me to stay for awhile.
I thought her the goddess of beauty,
The blooming bright star of Belle Isle.

I humbled myself to her beauty.
“Fair maid, where do you belong?
Are you from the heavens descended,
Abiding in Cupid’s fair throng?”

“Young man, I will tell you a secret.
’Tis true I’m a maid that is poor,
And to part from my vows and my promise
Is more than my heart can endure.

“Therefore, I’ll remain at my labour
And go through all hardship and toil,
And wait for the lad that has Left me
All alone on the banks of Belle Isle.”

“Fair maiden, I wish not to banter.
’Tis true I came here in disguise.
I came to fulfil my last promise
And hoped to give you a surprise.

“I own you’re the maid I love dearly;
You’ve been in my heart all the while.
For me there is no other damsel
Than the blooming bright star of Belle Isle.”

Now then this young couple gets married,
In wedlock they both join in hand.
May the great God of Heaven protect them
And give them long life in the land.

May the great God of Heaven protect them,
Loyalty be theirs all the while,
And honey will sweeten the comforts
For the blooming bright star of Belle Isle.

Nuala Kennedy sings The Blooming Bright Star of Belle Isle

One evening of late as I rambled,
To view the green fields all alone,
Down by the banks of Lough Erin,
Where beauty and pleasure are known,

‘Twas there I espied a fair female
Which caused me to stay for a while,
I thought her the goddess of beauty;
She’s the blooming bright star of Belle Isle.

I humbled myself to her beauty
“Fair maiden, where do you belong?
Are you from the heavens descended,
And abiding in cupid’s fair throng?”

“Young man, I will tell you a secret
I am a young maid who is poor,
And to part from my vows and my promises
Is more than my heart can endure.

“Therefore I’ll remain at my labour
And I’ll go through all hardship and toil.
And I’ll wait on the lad who has left me
All alone on the banks of Belle Isle.”

“Young maiden I wish not to banter,
And I own I came here in disguise.
I came to fulfil my last promise
And I hoped to give you a surprise.

“I own you’re the maid I love dearly,
And you’ve been in my heart all the while;
For me there is no other damsel
Than the blooming bright star of Belle Isle.”

So now this young couple got married,
And in wedlock they are both joined in hand,
May the great god in heaven protect them
And give them long life on the land.

May the great god in heaven protect them,
and loyalty be theirs all the while,
And honey will sweeten the comforts
of the blooming bright star of Belle Isle.