Row Boat (Ride About)

DESCRIPTION: "Row boat (or: "Ride About"), row, where shall I row?" The young man comes to Miss Mary's door and asks if she is in. She is, and the wedding is set for (the next day)
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1903 (Newell)
KEYWORDS: love courting marriage playparty
FOUND IN: US(SE,So)
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Randolph 678, "Ride About, Ride About" (1 text plus a fragment, 1 tune; the "B" text is mixed with "Uncle John Is Sick Abed")
Brown/Belden/Hudson-FrankCBrownCollectionNCFolklore3 73, "Row the Boat, Row the Boat" (2 texts plus a fragment)
Roud #13080
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Wallflowers" (form, floating lyrics)
NOTES [60 words]: The editors of Brown claim that their texts are remnants of "Wallflowers." This is one of those unprovable things; what similarities they have are all floating elements. The "B" text in Brown, "Tommy Jones," has clearly been conflated with something else to make it a true, if somewhat incoherent, ballad -- but what that something else is I cannot tell. - RBW
File: R678

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