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about

An Englishman lands in jail during an ill-advised trip to Turkey, but finds an unlikely accomplice. There is a happy ending, but we think it's a good song anyway.

For our version of Child ballad No. 53, we consulted Bronson and combined the tunes of two versions: Variant #53, "The Turkish Lady" from John Harrington Cox's Traditional Ballads Mainly from West Virginia, and Variant #62, "Lord Bateman" from West Chinwick, England, collected by Cecil Sharp. Belasicko Oro is a dance from former-Yugoslav Macedonia.

lyrics

O there was a lord, who lived in London
And he was a man of high degree
But he could never be contented
He longed strange countries for to see

He sailed east, and he sailed westward,
Until he came to the Turkish shore
There he was taken and put in prison
With hope of freedom nevermore

His jailer had an only daughter
And she was a lady most fair to see
She stole the keys to her father's prison
And this Lord Bateman she did set free

She led him down to her father's cellar
And there they drank of the strongest wine
It was a brave health that she drank to him
It's "O Lord Bateman, if you were mine!"

They made a vow, they made a promise
For seven years they would make it stand
He swore he'd wed no other woman
She swore she'd wed no other man

Now seven years were gone and past
And still she longed her true love to see
For e'er a voice within her breast
Said "Bateman's broken his vow to thee"

So she sailed east and she sailed westward
Until she landed on England's shore
And she could never be contented
But for Lord Bateman she did inquire

And when she came to Lord Bateman's castle
The porter answered her from inside
Saying "Yes, this is Lord Bateman's castle,
This very day brought home his bride."

She gave her message to this porter
And to Lord Bateman's side straight went he
Saying, "There's a lady at your door, sir,
And she is of some high degree.

"She bids you mind of the wine so strong,
She bids you mind of the rolling sea,
She bids you mind of that Turkish lady
Who out of prison did set you free."

Lord Bateman rose all in a passion
And broke his sword in pieces three,
"It can be none but my dear Sophia,
Who's crossed the deep for the love of me.

"Go take my bride to her father's hall,
She shall be none the worse by me,
O she came here with a horse and saddle,
But she'll return with coaches three.

"O there has lately been one wedding,
Another wedding there now shall be.
I'll range no more in foreign countries
Since my Sophia has crossed the sea."

credits

from More Bad News .​.​., released June 18, 1996
with Belasicko Oro (trad.)

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Broadside Electric Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Broadside Electric is a five-piece electric folk band from Philadelphia, PA (US). They have earned a reputation for thoroughly original arrangements and painstaking research into traditional English, Celtic and Eastern European music. Broadside Electric has been at turns called “Pennsylvania’s answer to Steeleye Span” and “folk music’s answer to death metal.” ... more

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