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How Shall I Your True Love Know?

[ Roud V18911 ; William Shakespeare]

June Tabor and Maddy Prior sang the first of Shakespeare's Ophelia's “Mad Songs”, Hamlet, Act IV Scene 5. on the Silly Sisters' second album, No More to the Dance. They were accompanied Dan Ar Braz, guitar; Huw Warren, keyboards; Bernard O'Neill, cello.

Lyrics

How should I your true love know
From another one?
By his cockle hat and staff
And his sandal shoen.

He is dead and gone, lady,
He is dead and gone;
At his head a grass-green turf
At his heels a stone.

White his shroud as the mountain snow,
Larded with sweet flowers.
That bewept to the grave did go
With true-love showers.