Life Let Us Cherish

DESCRIPTION: Let's cherish life while we can. Life is over too soon so, "ere we quit this shore, Contentment seek." "Away with every toil and care" Meet conflicts "with manful hearts ... Till death sounds the retreat"
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1802 (Oldschool)
KEYWORDS: death nonballad
FOUND IN: Britain(England(South))
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Williams-FolkSongsOfTheUpperThames, pp. 292-293, "Life Let Us Cherish" (1 text) (also Williams-Wiltshire-WSRO Wt 418)
ADDITIONAL: Oliver Oldschool, The Port Folio (Philadelphia, 1802 ("Digitized by Google")), Vol. II, p. 136, "Life Let Us Cherish" (1 text)
Roud #1320
BROADSIDES:
Bodleian, Harding B 25(1101), "Life Let Us Cherish" ("Life let us cherish while yet the taper glows"), J. Pitts (London), 1802-1819; also Johnson Ballads 217, Harding B 11(4230), Harding B 28(125), "Life Let Us Cherish"
LOCSinging, as202150, " Life Let Us Cherish" ("Life let us cherish, while yet the taper glow"), H. De Marsan (New York), 1864-1878
NLScotland, L.C.Fol.178.A.2(083), "Life Let Us Cherish" ("Life let us cherish while yet the taper glow"), unknown, c.1870
SAME TUNE:
Philologian Song (By S. W. Gladden, (class of 18]59])) ("Now, boys, for Logia, Sing, sing the rallying song!") (Henry Randall Waite, _Carmina Collegensia: A Complete Collection of the Songs of the American Colleges_ first edition 1868, expanded edition, Oliver Ditson, 1876, p. 116)
For Life Let Us Charish The Fame of Honored Harrison (Harrison campaign song) (A. B. Norton, _Songs of the People in the Log Cabin Days of Old Tippecanoe_, A. B. Norton & Co., 1888 (available on Google Books), p. 84)
NOTES [70 words]: NLScotland commentary: "It is thought that the author of 'Life Let us Cherish' was the Swiss-born poet, Johann Martin Usteri (1763-1827). Whether he was responsible for the first verse or the entire composition is unclear."
Broadside LOCSinging as202150: H. De Marsan dating per Studying Nineteenth-Century Popular Song by Paul Charosh in American Music, Winter 1997, Vol 15.4, Table 1, available at FindArticles site. - BS
Last updated in version 4.4
File: WT292

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