Fatal Wedding, The

DESCRIPTION: A woman comes to the church doors as a wedding begins. She is refused admittance, but at last she is granted entrance to save her freezing child. She objects to the wedding; her baby's father is the bridegroom. The baby dies; the father kills himself
AUTHOR: Words: William Windom / Music: Gussie L. Davis (1863-1899)
EARLIEST DATE: 1893 (copyright notice)
KEYWORDS: wedding infidelity baby abandonment suicide death
FOUND IN: US(Ap,MW,Ro,SE,So) Canada(Newf)
REFERENCES (17 citations):
Randolph 766, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text, 1 tune)
Belden-BalladsSongsCollectedByMissourFolkloreSociety, pp. 141-143, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text plus 1 excerpt and a reference to 1 more, 1 tune)
McNeil-SouthernFolkBalladsVol1, pp. 110-112, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text, 1 tune)
Brown/Belden/Hudson-FrankCBrownCollectionNCFolklore2 272, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text)
Brown/Schinhan-FrankCBrownCollectionNCFolklore4 272, "The Fatal Wedding" (3 excerpts, 3 tunes)
Hudson-FolksongsOfMississippi 69, pp. 195-197, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text)
Neely/Spargo-TalesAndSongsOfSouthernIllinois, pp. 163-164, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text)
Brewster-BalladsAndSongsOfIndiana 81, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text plus mention of 3 more)
List-SingingAboutIt-FolkSongsInSouthernIndiana, pp. 249-254, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text, 1 tune, plus a copy of part of the original sheet music)
Pound-AmericanBalladsAndSongs, 63, pp. 140-142, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text)
Hubbard-BalladsAndSongsFromUtah, #110, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text)
Bush-FSofCentralWestVirginiaVol5, pp. 22-24, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roberts/Agey-InThePine #83, "Fatal Wedding" (1 text, 1 tune)
Spaeth-ReadEmAndWeep, pp. 153-155, "The Fatal Wedding" (1 text, 1 tune)
cf. Gardner/Chickering-BalladsAndSongsOfSouthernMichigan, p. 479, "The Fatal Wedding" (source notes only)
DT, FATALWED
ADDITIONAL: Julie Henigan, "Ozark Ballads as Song and Story," article in _Missouri Folklore Society Journal_, Volume 27-28 (cover date 2005-2006, but published 2015), pp. 159-185; pp. 164-165, "The Fatal Wedding Night" (1 text, as sung by Lillian Short, plus a tiny copy of the sheet music cover)
Roud #3273
RECORDINGS:
Vernon Dalhart, "The Fatal Wedding" (Columbia 15051-D, 1926; rec. 1925)
Arthur Fields, "The Fatal Wedding" (Grey Gull 4208/Radiex 4208, 1928)
Bradley Kincaid, "The Fatal Wedding" (Gennett 6363/Supertone 9211, 1928) (Regal Zonophone [Australia] G22215, n.d.) (Vocalion 02684, 1934)
Charlie Oaks, "The Fatal Wedding" (Vocalion 15144, 1925; Vocalion 5076, c. 1927)
Steely+Graham Redhead Fiddlers, "The Fatal Wedding" (Brunswick 460, 1930; rec. 1929)
Ernest V. Stoneman, "The Fatal Wedding" (Edison 52026, 1927) (CYL: Edison [BA] 5355, 1927) (Cameo 8220/Romeo 600/Lincoln 2825, 1927) (Pathe 32278/Perfect 12357/Challenge 666/Banner2158/Domino 3984/Oriole 946 [as Sim Harris]/Regal 8347, 1927; Homestead 16498 [as Sim Harris], c. 1929) (Okeh 45084, 1927)
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Those Wedding Bells Shall Not Ring Out" (theme)
cf. "The Whorehouse Bells Were Ringing" (tune)
cf. "The Harry Hayward Song" (tune)
NOTES [16 words]: For brief background on composer Gussie L. Davis, see the notes to "The Baggage Coach Ahead." - RBW
Last updated in version 6.7
File: R766

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