Greensleeves
Words & Music:
Traditional English
Found in A Handful of Pleasant Delites, by Clement Robinson & Divers Others, 1584
Wow. There are more verses to this than you can imagine. It is the quintessential Òyou done me wrongÓ song, except that it originated in the 1580s and has made its way down the ages. (one would think he'd get the idea...but I digress.) The tune, of course, has done double duty for the Christmas Tune ÒWhat Child Is This?Ó – most likely during Puritan times when all things secular were rather frowned upon. I'll spare you the ancient spelling of the words. Pick which verses you like and put a chorus between. The John Gay version used in The Beggar's Opera (1712) uses only the first verse & chorus. Loreena McKennit's 2001 version uses verses 1, 2 and the alternate version of 4.
Am
G
Am
E
Alas, my love, you do me
wrong, to cast me off discourteously.
Am
G
Am
E
Am
For I have loved you well and
long, delighting in your company.
CHORUS:
G
Am
E
Greensleeves was all my
joy. Greensleeves was my delight.
G
Am E Am
Greensleeves was my heart of
gold, and who but my Lady Greensleeves.
I have been ready at your
hand, to grant whatever thou wouldst crave,
I have both wagered life and
land, your love and good-will for to have.
CHORUS:
I bought three kerchers to thy
head, that were wrought fine and gallantly;
I kept them both at board and
bed, which cost my purse well-favour'dly.
CHORUS:
I bought thee petticoats of
the best, the cloth so fine as fine might be:
I gave thee jewels for thy
chest; and all this cost I spent on thee.
CHORUS:
Thy smock of silk both fair
and white, with gold embroidered gorgeously;
Thy petticoat of Sendall
right; and this I bought thee gladly.
[alt: A petticoat of sendell right, with gold
embroidered gorgeously.
A petticoat of silken
white, and these I bought thee gladly.]
CHORUS:
Thy girdle of gold so red,
with pearls bedecked sumptuously,
The like no other lasses had;
and yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
Thy purse, and eke thy gay
gilt knives, thy pin-case, gallant to the eye;
No better wore the Burgesses'
wives; and yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
Thy crimson stockings all of
silk, with gold all wrought above the knee,
Thy pumps as white as was the
milk, and yet thou wouldst not love me.
CHORUS:
Thy gown was of the grassy
green, thy sleeves of satin hanging by;
Which made thee be our harvest
queen; and yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
Thy garters fringed with the
gold, and silver aglets hanging by;
Which made thee blithe for to
behold; and yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
My gayest gelding thee I gave,
to ride wherever liked thee;
No lady ever was so brave; and
yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
My men were clothed all in
green, and they did ever wait on thee;
All this was gallant to be
seen, and yet thou wouldst not love me.
CHORUS:
They set thee up, they took
thee down, they served thee with humility;
Thy foot might not once touch
the ground; and yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
For every morning, when thou
rose, I sent thee dainties, orderly,
To cheer thy stomach from all
woes; and yet thou wouldst not love me!
CHORUS:
Thou couldst desire no earthly
thing, but still thou hadst it readily.
Thy music still to play and
sing; and yet thou wouldst not love me.
CHORUS:
And who did pay for all this
gear, that thou didst spend when pleased thee?
Even I that am rejected here,
and thou disdainst to love me!
Well, I will pray to God on
high, that thou my constancy mayst see,
And that yet once before I
die, thou wilt vouchsafe to love me.
CHORUS:
If you intend thus to disdain,
it does the more enrapture me,
And even so, I still remain a
lover in captivity.
CHORUS:
Ah, Greensleeves, now
farewell, adieu, to God I pray to prosper thee,
For I am still thy lover true,
come once again and love me.
CHORUS:
Your vows you've broken, like
my heart, oh, why did you so enrapture me?
Now, I remain in a world apart
but my heart remains in captivity.
CHORUS: