Mower, The

DESCRIPTION: Singer meets a young woman; she has a small meadow needing mowing, it has never been mowed before. He mows all afternoon, but the grass remains standing; she tells him to sharpen his scythe, for the work's not finished
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: before 1839 (broadside, Bodleian Harding B 11(1187))
KEYWORDS: sex virginity farming harvest work
FOUND IN: Britain(England) US(MW) Canada(Ont)
REFERENCES (4 citations):
Fowke-TraditionalSingersAndSongsFromOntario 14, "The Mower" (1 text, 1 tune)
Vikár/Panagapka-SongsNorthWoodsSungByOJAbbott 22, "The Mower" (1 text, 1 tune)
Palmer-EnglishCountrySongbook, #69, "The Mower" (1 text, 1 tune)
DT, THEMOWER
Roud #833
RECORDINGS:
Warde Ford, "The Mowing of the Hay" (AFS 4200 B2, 1938; tr.; in AMMEM/Cowell)
A.L. Lloyd, "The Mower" (on Lloyd 1) (on BirdBush1, BirdBush2)
BROADSIDES:
Bodleian, Harding B 11(1187), "The Mower" ("It was on one summer's morning on the 14th day of May"), J. Catnach (London), 1813-1838; also Harding B 11(2505), Firth b.25(378), Johnson Ballads 559, 2806 c.16*(236)[some illegible words], Harding B 25(1275), Harding B 11(1929), Harding B 16(153c), Harding B 11(2282), "The Mower"; Harding B 25(391), "The Cocks of Hay" ("I am a roving mower, through this country I do stray")
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Next Market Day" (plot) and references there
cf. "One Man Shall Mow My Meadow" (imagery)
cf. "The Wanton Seed"
cf. "Mowing the Hay" (subject)
NOTES [36 words]: Lloyd remarks that the song "often appeared on 19th century broadsides," but as he gives no further dates I've refrained from citing that as earliest date. - PJS
The more so since this image is quite a common one. - RBW
Last updated in version 5.1
File: DTthemow

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