> A.L. Lloyd > Songs > Reynardine
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> Anne Briggs > Songs > Reynardine
> Sandy Denny > Songs > Reynardine

The Mountains High / Upon the Mountains High / Reynardine / Bannero

[ Roud 397 ; Master title: The Mountains High ; Laws P15 ; G/D 2:333 ; Ballad Index LP15 ; Rhinordine at Old Songs ; VWML RoudFS/S377307 ; Bodleian Roud 397 ; trad.]

John Holloway, Joan Black: Later English Broadside Ballads Stephen Sedley: The Seeds of Love

This old ballad of seduction on a mountainside by perhaps an outlaw was published on broadsides late in the 18^th, but mainly in the early to mid-19^th, century and with varying titles, most often (Upon Those) Mountains High, Ryner Dyne, and Rinordine.

John Holloway and Joan Black’s 1975 book Later English Broadside Ballads has a version of Mountains High printed by J. Davenport, 6, George’s Court, St  John’s Gate, West Smithfield, in very probably 1800-1802. They noted:

Irish, though printed in London. Rine = Ryan. For the melody see Journal of the English Folk-Song Society, vol. I (1899-1904), p. 271, under the title One Night Upon My Rambles (cf. the first line).

A.L. Lloyd sang four unaccompanied verses of this ballad with the previously seldom used title Reynardine—hinting with this change of name at possible connections to Reynard the Fox—in 1956 on his Tradition Records LP The Foggy Dew and Other Traditional English Love Songs where he noted:

A girl meets a man on the mountain and surrenders immediately to his persuasion. Who was Reynardine, with his irresistible charm, his glittering eye, his foxy smile? An ordinary man, or an outlaw maybe, or some supernatural lover? Is he that dreadful Mr Fox in the English folk-tale, the elegant gentleman whose bedroom was full of skeletons and buckets of blood? The song does not say. It puts a finger to its lips and preserves the mystery, letting the enigmatic text and dramatic tune hint at unspeakable things.

He recorded Reynardine again in 1966 for his album First Person. He added four more verses, and here he introduced the phrase “his teeth so bright did shine” that was used by many later revival singers. This track was re-released on his 1994 Fellside CD Classic A.L. Lloyd. A.L. Lloyd noted:

A vulpine name for a crafty hero. Mr Fox is a disquieting figure in folk tales. A girl tosses her glass ball into his garden, and when she goes to retrieve it, he holds her prisoner. One thing she must not do if she is ever to regain her freedom: that is, to look under the bed. But she cannot master her curiosity, and one day when the coast seems clear, she looks under the bed, and there, grinning at her is Mr. Fox. In another tale Mr. Fox is an elegant witty lover with a cupboard full of bones and tubs of blood. The dread uncertainty is whether he is man or animal. Similar unease broods within this song. Some commentators have thought it concerns a love affair between an English lady and an Irish outlaw, and have set its date in Elizabeth’s time. Others believe the story is older and consider Reynardine, the “little fox”, to be a supernatural, lycanthropic lover. It was a favourite ballad in both Ireland and England in the nineteenth century. Bebbington of Manchester and Such of London were among several publishers who issued broadsides of the song, and it is widely scattered in North America from Arkansas to Nova Scotia. Mr Gale Huntington found a version scribbled in the back of the logbook of the New Bedford whaler Sharon in 1845. The (very explicitly) Mixolydian tune I use is but one of several attached to the song.

Shirley Collins sang Lloyd’s earlier verses of Reynardine, accompanied by Davy Graham on guitar, in 1964 on their album Folk Roots, New Routes; this track was included in 2002 on Topic’s anthology The Acoustic Folk Box. She also sang Reynardine, accompanying herself on banjo, in 1966 on the privately pressed album Folk Scene. This recording was also included in 2002 on her Fledg’ling 4 CD anthology Within Sound.

Archie Fisher sang Reynardine in 1968 on his eponymous Transatlantic album, Archie Fisher. This track was also included in 2006 on the Castle Music anthology of British and Irish Folk, Anthems in Eden.

Martin Carthy sang a Reynardine version very similar to Lloyd’s (with the same tune but slightly different words) on his 1969 album with Dave Swarbrick, Prince Heathen. Carthy noted:

To the country person everything around him has its place in the pattern of nature but the fox seems the odd man out. Among other things it seems that he kills for no reason, and although this has been explained by diligent study, at one time it led to people attributing a very sinister aspect to him. He was believed to have magical powers, and there are many stories of foxes appearing as people and threatening them in some evil way (Little Red Riding Hood is one related). The same theme in a very debased form was made famous by Lon Chaney Jr’s many appearances as the Werewolf on film.

Fairport Convention with Sandy Denny singing recorded Reynardine on 22 October 1969 for their seminal album Liege and Lief. This track was included in 2004 on Sandy Denny’s 5 CD Fledg’ling anthology A Boxful of Treasures. An earlier live version recorded on 23 September 1969 in Studio 4, Maida Vale, for the Top Gear / John Peel radio show was broadcast on 27 September 1969 with a repeat on 13 December 1969. This track can be found on the 1992 semi-bootleg From Past Archives, on the 2002 Island CD re-release of Heyday, on Ashley Hutchings’ 2002 and 2006 anthology 5 from the Guv’nor series, and on Fairport’s 2007 anthology Live at the BBC. A Fairport Convention live recording from Cropredy 1983 was released in the following year on their cassette The Boot - 1983 Fairport Reunion. A 1997 Cropredy performance was included in 1998 on The Cropredy Box.

Anne Briggs recorded Reynardine in 1971 for her first solo album, Anne Briggs. This track was reissued in 1990 on her Fellside anthology Classic Anne Briggs and in 1999 on her Topic anthology A Collection, and was included on the Topic compilations English and Scottish Folk Ballads (1996) and English Originals (1999). A.L. Lloyd noted on the original album:

Foxy name, foxy hero. Perhaps, he was an Irish outlaw. The song was widespread in Ireland and in England too, and its common appearance on broadsides, year after year, helped to keep it alive. Words and tune of this version are adapted by me from an Irish original. Some think the song concerns a werewolf. I doubt it.

Bert Jansch sang Reynardine in 1971 on his Transatlantic album Rosemary Lane. He also sang it with Pentanngle on their 1989 album So Early in the Spring. This video of Bert Jansch singing Reynardine is from his 2000 documentary Dreamweaver:

June Tabor sang Reynardine unaccompanied on her 1976 album, Airs and Graces. A live version sung together with Maddy Prior, recorded at Burnley Mechanics on October 1988, was included in 2005 on her Topic anthology Always. She noted on her original album:

Text a collection of English and Irish sets, tune from Sussex. For me the romance and mystery outweigh the horror of the werewolf implication—Errol Flynn rather than Lon Charney.

John Goodluck sang Reynardine in 1977 on his Traditional Sound Recordings album Monday’s Childe.

The John Renbourn Group sang Reynardine in 1977 on their Transatlantic album A Maid in Bedlam.

John Roberts and Tony Barrand sang Reynardine in 1977 on their Folk-Legacy album of ballads of the supernatural, Dark Ships in the Forest. They noted:

Our setting of this song, perhaps best known to-the dramatic mixolydian tune collected in Suffolk by A.L. Lloyd and popularised by him, is to the melody given by Stephen Sedley in The Seeds of Love, which Tony heard in a London folk club. Irish in sentiment and almost certainly so in origin, the song conjures visions of the folk tale’s Mr. Fox, dismembering the young girls he has seduced away to his forest mansion, a sylvan Bluebeard whose bestial cruelty is matched only by his cunning charms.

Muckram Wakes sang Bannero (Reynardine) in 1980 on their Highway album Warbles, Jangles and Reeds. They noted:

Words collected by Roy Harris in Nottinghamshire. Tune Verdi’s Grenadier March from Lewis Winstock’s Songs and Music of the Redcoats.

Pyewackett sang Reynardine in 1981 on their eponymous Dingle’s album, Pyewackett.

Peggy Seeger sang Rinordine in 1986 on her and Ewan MacColl’s ballad album Blood & Roses Volume 5. She noted:

This song, not included in the Child canon, has the feel of a ballad. All the versions hint at supernatural qualities in the lover’s identity. He is sometimes “brought up in Venus’ train”—his castle is there and yet is not there; sometimes he is at home, sometimes not. He flits one step ahead of his mistress as a fox before the hounds. Indeed, his name is that of the fox, Reynardine. Some versions, containing lines like “I have men at my command all on this mountain high” and “I am searching for Council men all in the Judge’s name” suggest that Rinordine might be an outlaw. Whatever his identity, the mysterious, unadorned story has provided grist to many 19^th-century broadside printing presses. These issues spread the song over Ireland, Southern England, Nova Scotia and the United States. My version is from the singing of H.F. Watson, Marion County, West Virginia [1924].

Grace Notes sang Reynardine in 1993 on their first album, Down Falls the Day, This track was also included on their anniversary album 20, where Lynda Hardcastle noted:

I remember, many years ago, hearing Sandy Denny sing Reynardine, just her and a piano. Magical. We use the words from Sandy’s version.

Coope Boyes & Simpson sang Reynardine in 1998 on their CD Hindsight and Jim Boyes sang it at the 1998 Folkfestival Dranouter. They noted:

Jim recalls hearing Bert Lloyd giving a lecture on this song where he described Reynardine as a Bluebeard like character and gave a Gothic description of what the woman discovered when she finally reached his castle—definitely not for the squeamish.

Áine Furey sang Reynardine on her 1999 album Sweetest Summer Rain.

Sperris & Wicca sang Reynardine on their eponymous 1999 album Sperris & Wicca.

Isla St Clair sang Reynardine in 2000 on her CD Murder & Mayhem. She noted:

The ballad, which was sung throughout the British Isles during the nineteenth century, may be of Central European origin. There are several versions of the song. The basic plot is that Reynardine, a vampire, has a castle on the mountain and an insatiable desire for innocent young girls.

Maddy Prior sang Reynardine in 2001 on her CD Arthur the King; this song was later included on her anthology Collections: A Very Best of 1995 to 2005.

Craig Morgan Robson sang Bannero on their 2006 CD Peppers & Tomatoes. They noted:

One of a number of songs about Reynardine, a mysterious character who we suspect may be, if not a werewolf, then perhaps a were-fox! Folklorist Anne Cockburn tell us that the words come from the Reddish Manuscript [VWML RoudFS/S377307] , which started as the account book of a miller in Gonalston (north of Nottingham) and became the Reddish family’s “day book”. The book was started in 1789, but the song was included some time between 1800 and 1803. John Adams had the bright idea of setting the words to Verdi’s Grenadiers’ March [which actually is older than Verdi himself] and the resulting arrangement was performed by the splendid Muckram Wakes. We are grateful to John, Roger Watson and Roy Harris to help in tracking down the background to the song.

Jon Boden sang Reynardine as the 30 April 2011 entry of his project A Folk Song a Day. He returned to it in 2021 on Spiers & Boden’s Hudson album Fallow Ground. He noted in his blog:

I’m totally in love with this song. We started doing a version on the last Remnant Kings tour with wolf noises from the wax cylinder players. I love the line about his teeth shining bright…

and on the album:

It is not necessary to see this song as being literally about a werewolf to appreciate its dark, malevolent poetry. The danger of amorous liaisons for young women before the twentieth century was not primarily a moral one but practical, with high mortality rates during childbirth and with the difficulties of raising a child alone without any help from the state other than the punitive brutality of the poor house. This accounts for the preponderance of this sort of cautionary tale in folk song. One of a number of old songs that were beautifully renovated by A.L. Lloyd and bequeathed to the tradition.

This video shows Jon Boden and The Remnant Kings at the A Folk Song a Day Midsummer Concert at Cecil Sharp House, London, on 23 June 2011:

Josienne Clarke sang Reynardine in 2011 on her and Ben Walker’s CD The Seas Are Deep and in 2022 on her EP Now and Then. Her lyrics are nearly identical to Sandy Denny’s.

Bryony Holden sang Reynardine in 2013 on her Sandy Denny tribute album Across the Purple Sky.

Dave Burland and the Awkward Squad sang Reynardine in 2017 on their FatCat album Okkard.

Martin Simpson sang Reynardine in 2017 on his Topic album Trails & Tribulations. He noted:

There is a suggestion of the ability to shape shift in Reynardine. The male protagonist, “sly, bold, Reynardine”, appears to be able to turn himself into a fox. This element of the story is the work of sly, bold A.L. Lloyd, the folklorist, who was never averse to spicing up a song with his own touches.

Allister Thompson sang Reynardine on his 2017 album Larkrise Revisited.

Jon Bickley sang Reynardine at an Invisible Folk Club podcast that was released in 2018 on the download album Live at the Invisible Folk Club No 9.

Joshua Burnell sang Reynardine the Werefox on his 2018 album Songs From the Seasons.

Hannah Sanders and Ben Savage sang Reynardine on their 2018 album Awake.

Richard Thompson sang Reynardine in his 2020 livestream series from Kore Studios. This was included in 2021 on his download album Live From London.

Cambridge and Walker sang Reynardine on their 2021 CD Wheel and Dive. They noted:

Our arrangement of this classic werefox song has become moody and menacing and is prefaced with a short verse written by Sir Walter Scott.

Polly Paulusma sang Reynardine on her 2021 album of folk songs that influenced Angela Carter, Invisible Music.

Lilian sang Reynardine in 2023 on her Talking Cat album Pareidolia.

You Are Wolf sang Reynardine on their 2023 CD Hare // Hunter // Moth // Ghost. Kerry Andrew noted:

A man seduces a woman on a mountainside, only to turn out to be a fox. The European fox of English folklore comes in many guises, from the medieval French Reynard to Mr Fox. I’m fascinated by this character in all his folkloric forms, and the Fairport Convention version of this traditional song (Roud 397) was one of my first in-roads into folk music.

Lyrics

Mountains High broadside printed by J. Davenport

One night upon my rambles from my belov’d again,
I met a farmer’s daughter all on the lonesome plain
I said, my pretty fair maid, your beauty shines so clear,
All on this lonesome place, I’m glad to find you here.

I said, young man be civil, my company forsake,
And in my own opinion I think you are some rake,
But if my parents they should know, my life they will destroy,
For keeping of your company all on the mountains high.

It is true I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train,
Or seeking for concealment all on the lonesome plain,
Your beauty so intic’d me I could not pass you by,
With my gun I will guard you all on the mountains high.

With that this pretty fair maid she stood all in amaze,
With eyes as bright as amber all on me she did gaze,
With cherry cheeks and ruby lips, she’s the lass all for my eye,
She fainted in my arms, on the mountains high.

I did my best endeavour to bring her too again,
With that she kindly ask’d me I pray, sir, what is your name?
Go to yonder forest, my castle there you’ll find,
Wrote in some lonesome history, call you for Randal Rine.

I said, my pretty fair maid, don’t let your parents know,
For if you do they’ll ruin me, and prove my overthrow;
And if that you should come for me, perhaps you will not find,
Go you to my castle, and call for Randal Rine.

Come all you pretty fair maids a warning take by me,
And do your best endeavour to shun bad company,
Or else, like me, you’ll surely rue until the day you die,
Be warned of the lonesome roads all on the mountains high.

A.L. Lloyd sings Reynardine on The Foggy Dew

One evening as I rambled among the leaves so fine
I overheard a young woman conversing with Reynardine.

Her hair was black, her eyes were blue, her mouth was red as wine.
And he smiled to look upon her, did this sly bold Reynardine.

He said, “If by chance you look for me perhaps you’ll not me find.
But I’ll be in my castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

Sun and dark, she followed him, his eyes did brightly shine
And he led her over the mountains, did this sly bold Reynardine.

A.L. Lloyd sings Reynardine on First Person

One evening as I rambled among the springing thyme
I overheard a young woman conversing with Reynardine.

Her hair was black, her eyes were blue and her mouth was red as wine.
And he smiled as he looked upon them, did this sly bold Reynardine.

She said, “Young man, be civil and my company forsake.
For to my good opinion I fear you are a rake.”

He said, “My dear, I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train.
But I’m searching for concealment all from the judge’s men.”

Her cherry cheek and ruby lip, they lost their former dye.
And she fell into his arms there all on the mountain high.

They hadn’t kissed but once or twice till she come to again.
And modestly she asked him pray tell to me your name.

He says, “If by chance you look for me, by chance you’ll not me find.
But I’ll be in my castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

Day and night she followed him, his teeth so bright did shine.
And he led her over the mountain, did this sly bold Reynardine.

Shirley Collins sings Reynardine

One evening as I rambled among the leaves so green
I overheard a young woman converse with Reynardine.

Her hair was black, her eyes were blue, her lips were red as wine
And he smiled to gaze upon her, did this sly bold Reynardine.

He said, “If perchance you look for me perhaps you’ll not me find.
But I’ll be in my castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

Sun and dark, she followed him, his eyes did brightly shine
And he led her over the mountain, did this sly bold Reynardine.

Martin Carthy sings Reynardine

One evening as I rambled among the springing thyme,
I overheard a young woman converse with Reynardine.

Her hair was black and her eyes were blue, her lips were red as wine.
And he smiled as he looked upon them, did this sly bold Reynardine.

She says, “Young man, be civil, my company forsake.
Oh for to my good opinion I fear you are a rake.”

“Oh no, I am no rake,” he cries, “brought up in Venus’ train,
But I’m searching for concealment all from the judge’s men.”

Her cherry cheeks and her ruby lips they lost their former dye,
As she fell into his arms all on the mountain high.

They had not kissed but once or twice when she came to again
And most modestly she asked him oh pray tell to me your name.

“Oh, if by chance you look for me, by chance you’ll not me find.
For I’ll be in my green castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

Oh, day and night she followed him, his cheeks all bright did shine,
As he led her over the mountain, did this sly bold Reynardine.

Sandy Denny sings Fairport Convention’s version of Reynardine

One evening as I rambled among the leaves so green,
I overheard a young woman converse with Reynardine.

Her hair was black, her eyes were blue, her lips as red as wine,
And he smiled to gaze upon her, did that sly, bold Reynardine.

She said, “Kind sir, be civil, my company forsake,
For in my own opinion I fear you are some rake.”

“Oh no,” he said, “no rake am I, brought up in Venus’ train,
But I’m seeking for concealment all along the lonesome plain.”

“Your beauty so enticed me, I could not pass it by,
So it’s with my gun I’ll guard you all on the mountains high.”

“And if by chance you should look for me, perhaps you’ll not me find,
For I’ll be in my castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

Sun and dark she followed him, his teeth did brightly shine,
And he led her up a-the mountains, did that sly, bold Reynardine.

Anne Briggs sings Reynardine

One evening as I rambled amongst the springing thyme,
I overheard a young woman conversing with Reynardine.

And her hair was black and her eyes were blue, her mouth as red as wine,
And he smiled as he looked upon her, did this sly bold Reynardine.

And she says, “Young man, be civil, my company forsake,
For to my good opinion I fear you are a rake.”

And he said, “My dear, well I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train.
But I’m searching for concealment all from the judge’s men.”

And her cherry cheeks and her ruby lips they lost their former dye,
And she’s fell into his arms there all on the mountain high.

And they hadn’t kissed but once or twice till she came to again,
And it’s modestly she asked him, “Pray tell to me your name.”

“Well, if by chance you ask for me, perhaps you’ll not me find,
I’ll be in my green castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

And it’s day and night she followed him his, teeth so bright did shine.
And he led her over the mountain, did the sly bold Reynardine.

June Tabor sings Reynardine

One night upon my rambles, two miles below Fermoy,
I met a farmer’s daughter all on the mountains high.
I said, “My pretty fair maid, I’m glad to meet you here
All on this lonesome mountain, your beauty shines so clear.”

She said, “Young man, be civil, my company forsake,
For it’s to my good opinion I fear you are some rake.
If my parents they should come to know, my life they would destroy,
For keeping of your company all on the mountains high.”

He said, “My dear, I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train,
But I’m seeking for concealment all on the lonesome plain.
Your beauty so enticed me, I could not pass you by,
But it’s with my gun I’ll guard you all on the mountains high.”

Now her cherry cheeks and her ruby lips, they lost their former dye,
And she fainted into his arms there, all on the mountains high.
Now they had not kissed there once nor twice when she come to again,
And at that she kindly asked him, “Pray tell to me your name.”

“If by chance you ask for me, perhaps you’ll not me find.
I’ll be in my castle; enquire for Reynardine.”
Sun and dark she followed him, his teeth so bright did shine,
And he led her over the mountain, that sly bold Reynardine.

John Roberts and Tony Barrand sing Reynardine

One evening as I rambled, two miles below Fermoy,
I met a pretty fair maiden all on the mountains high.
He said, “My pretty fair maiden, your beauty shines most clear,
And on this lonesome mountain I’m glad to meet you here.”

She said, “Young man, be civil, my company forsake,
For to my good opinion I fear you are a rake.
And if my parents came to know, my life they would destroy,
For keeping of you company all on the mountains high.”

“Oh, no, my dear, I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train,
But I’m searching for concealment all from the judge’s men;
Your beauty has ensnared me, I cannot pass you by,
And with my gun I’ll guard you all on the mountains high.”

Her cherry cheeks and ruby lips, they lost their former dye,
And she fell into his arms there, all on the mountains high;
He had not kissed her once or twice when she came to again,
And modestly she asked him, “Oh, sir, what is your name?”

“Well, if by chance you look for me, by chance you’ll not me find,
’Tis writ in ancient history, my name is Reynardine.”
Sun and dark she followed him, his teeth so bright did shine,
And he led her over the mountains, that sly bold Reynardine.

So come all you pretty fair maidens, this warning take by me:
Never go a-roving and shun bad company,
For if you do you’ll surely rue until the day you die,
And beware of meeting Reynardine all on the mountains high.

Muckram Wakes sing Bannero (Reynardine)

One night of late I rambled a mile below Bannero
I met a farmer’s daughter all on the mountains high.
𝄆 I said, “My pretty fair maid, your beauty shines so clear
And on the lofty mountains I’m glad to see you here.” 𝄇

She said, “Young man, be civil, my company forsake,
For to my great opinion I fear you are a rake.
𝄆 And if my parents they should know, my life they will destroy,
For keeping of your company all on the mountains high.” 𝄇

“Indeed I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train,
I’m seeking for concealment all from the judge’s men.
𝄆 Your beauty so enticèd me, I could not pass you by,
So with my gun I’ll guard you all on the mountains high.” 𝄇

This pretty little maiden, she stood all amazed,
With eyes as bright as diamonds she did upon me gaze.
𝄆 Her cherry cheeks and ruby lips they lost their former dye
She fell into my arms all on the mountains high. 𝄇

I kissed her once, I kissed her twice, she came to me again
And said, “Young man, be civil and tell to me your name.”
𝄆 “Go you to yonder forest, my castle there you’ll find.
I will be in my garden, and call for Reynardine.” 𝄇

Come all you pretty maidens, a warning take by me,
Be careful when you ramble and shun bad company.
𝄆 For if you don’t you’ll surely rue until the day you die,
Beware of meeting Reynardine all on the mountains high. 𝄇

Peggy Seeger sings Rinordine

One morning as I rambled two miles below Palm Roy,
I met a farmer’s daughter all on the mountain high.

I said, “My dear, my fair one, your beauty shine so clear.
All on this lonely mountain I’m glad to see you here.

“Your beauty has ensnared me, I cannot pass you by,
But with my gun I’ll guard you all on the mountain high.”

These words had scarce been spoken, she fell in a maze,
Her eves as bright as diamonds all on me she did gaze.

Her rosy lips and cheeks they lost their former hue,
And she fell in my arms silent as morning dew.

I had but kissed her once or twice, she come to again.
And modestly she asked me, “Pray sir, what is your name?”

“Go look in yonder forest, my castle you will find
’Tis wrote in ancient history my name is Ryner Dyne.

“But now, my dear, my fair one don’t let vour parents know.
For they may prove my ruin, also my overthrow.

“If you come to yonder forest, perhaps you’ll not me find.
Enquire at my castle, ask for Ryner Dyne.”

She sought him to his forest perhaps she did him find,
But she’s not in that castle nor is Ryner Dyne.

Coope Boyes & Simpson sing Reynardine

One evening as I rambled among the springing thyme,
I overheard a female conversing with Reynardine.

Her hair was black, her eyes were blue and her lips as red as wine,
And he smiled to look upon her, this sly bold Reynardine.

She says, “Young man, be civil and my company forsake,
For in my good opinion I fear you are some rake.”

“Oh no, my dear, I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train,
But I’m searching for concealment all from the judge’s men.”

Her cherry cheeks, her ruby lips they lost their former dye,
And she fell into his arms there all on the mountain high.

They hadn’t kissed but once or twice till she came to again,
And quite modestly she asked him, “Pray tell to me your name.”

He says, “If by chance you look for me, perhaps you’ll not me find.
But I’ll be in my castle, enquire for Reynardine.”

And it’s day and night she followed him and his teeth so bright did shine,
And he’s led her over the mountain, this sly bold Reynardine.

Craig Morgan Robson sing Bannero

One night as late I rambled a mile below Bannero
I met a farmer’s daughter all on the mountains high.
𝄆 I said, “My pretty fair maid, your beauty shines so clear
And on these lofty mountains I’m glad to meet you here.” 𝄇

She said, “Kind sir, be civil, my company forsake,
For to my great opinion I fear you are some rake.
𝄆 And if my parents came to know, my life they would destroy,
For keeping of your company all on the mountains high.” 𝄇

I said, “Fair maid, I am no rake brought up in Venus’ train,
But I’m seeking for concealment all from the judge’s men.
𝄆 Your beauty so enticèd me, I could not pass you by,
And with my gun I’ll guard you all on the mountains high.” 𝄇

This pretty little fair maid, she stood all amazed,
With eyes as bright as diamonds she did upon me gaze.
𝄆 Her ruby lips and cherry cheeks they lost their former dye
She fainted in my arms there all on the mountains high. 𝄇

I kissed her once, I kissed her twice, till she came to again
And said, “Kind sir, be civil and tell to me your name.”
𝄆 “Go you to yonder forest, it’s there you will me find.
For I’ll be in my castle, enquire for Reynardine.” 𝄇

Come all you pretty fair maids, a warning take by me,
And never go night-rambling and shun bad company.
𝄆 Unless you do you’ll surely rue until the day you die,
Beware of meeting Reynardine all on the mountains high. 𝄇

Acknowledgements and Links

Transcriptions by Garry Gillard and Reinhard Zierke; except for the John Roberts and Tony Barrand version, which is pinched from their website.