The Carter Family - Wildwood Flower
Oh, I'll twine with my mingles
and waving black hair
With the roses so red and the
lilies so fair
And the myrtles so bright with
the emerald dew
The pale and the leader and
eyes look like blue
I would appreciate any guess as to the meaning of any of this.
~ What are mingles?
~ What is one doing when twining with them?
~ What do roses and lilies have to do with anything?
~ Dew is seldom emerald, so what's this about?
~ What is/are "the pale and the leader"?
It's a riddle...;-D...
He called her his flower. This whole verse is how she wants to make herself look like a flower. Twining is making twine, which she was doing with all of these different media and incorporating it into her hair. Dew sitting on anything green looks green. The pale and leader may be the beginning and end of something you have twined. After she has all of these flowers mingled and twined into her hair her blue eyes are accentuated. This is how I resolved this verse. I don't think it totally in sync with the author from the 1800s.
This is some old old Appalachian blue grass folk. These people, the way they live(d), and their music are a part of our rich history.
Here are the original lyrics from 1860. I found them on Wiki so they are suspect. However they more clearly give the image of putting flowers in her hair.
I'll twine 'mid the ringlets
Of my raven black hair,
The lilies so pale
And the roses so fair,
The myrtle so bright
With an emerald hue,
And the pale aronatus
With eyes of bright blue.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wildwood_Flower
Nice post, Jewels
So you are saying it's a bunch of mondegreens.
Do you not read poetry? It's not that complicated. An aronatus is most likely a wildflower that has a blue eye or center; the name could have been what the locals called them.
No, I didn't mention mondegreens.
Try to forget you ever the heard the song/ No need to let it stress you.
Sure I read poetry:
Roses are red
Violets are purple
Buttercups are yellow
Hiccups are burple.
Top that!
I never really read that song either.
I know that the more I listen to really good songs, the more I get out of them.
Thanks. I now know more about Maud Irving and her/his writing than I would have ever imagined. :)
