Black Jack Davy

I enjoy researching because I learn things of interest to me that I would not have normally discovered. Sometimes my research takes me to places that I never would have imagined and leads me into new subjects of interest. In effect, my research never ends.

Not too long ago I heard a song for the first time, or at least the first time that I remember. The song is called Black Jack Davey by the White Stripes. It has a catchy tune and tells a story of a gypsy who swoons a girl to run off with him, leaving her home, her husband and baby. The husband comes home to find his wife gone and goes after her only to be rejected because she's in love with the gypsy.

The more I listened to the song, the more curious I became about the story. I decided to do some research. I found out that the song has been covered by many different groups and singers including Bob Dylan and a version I like by Steeleye Span.

I dug a little deeper and found out that it was originally a ballad dating back to 1720 and can be found in Francis James Child's collection of ballads which was published in the late 1800's. In the Child collection, it is number 200 and titled The Gypsy Laddie. There are twelve variations listed in the collection and the following is one of them:

THE gypsies came to our good lord’s gate,
And wow but they sang sweetly!
They sang sae sweet and sae very compleat
That down came the fair lady.

And she came tripping down the stair,
And a’ her maids before her;
As soon as they saw her well-far’d face,
They coost the glamer oer her.

‘Gae tak frae me this gay mantile,
And bring to me a plaidie;
For if kith and kin and a’ had sworn,
I’ll follow the gypsie laddie.

‘Yestreen I lay in a well-made bed,
And my good lord beside me;
This night I’ll ly in a tenant’s barn,
Whatever shall betide me.’

‘Come to your bed,’ says Johny Faa,
‘Oh come to your bed, my deary;
For I vow and I swear, by the hilt of my sword,
That your lord shall nae mair come near ye.’

‘I’ll go to bed to my Johny Faa,
I’ll go to bed to my deary;
For I vow and I swear, by what past yestreen,
That my lord shall nae mair come near me.

‘I’ll mak a hap to my Johnny Faa,
And I’ll mak a hap to my deary;
And he’s get a’ the coat gaes round,
And my lord shall nae mair come near me.’

And when our lord came hame at een,
And speir’d for his fair lady,
The tane she cry’d, and the other reply’d,
‘She’s away with the gypsie laddie.’

‘Gae saddle to me the black, black steed,
Gae saddle and make him ready;
Before that I either eat or sleep,
I’ll gae seek my fair lady.’

And we were fifteen well-made men,
Altho we were nae bonny;
And we were a’ put down for ane,
A fair young wanton lady.