Chickens They Are Crowing

DESCRIPTION: Playparty, apparently about a girl who has spent all night with her lover: "Chickens they are crowing, For it's almost daylight." "My father he will scold me...." "My mama will uphold me...." (Others may add other sentiments or warn about boys)
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1917 (Cecil Sharp collection); +1911 (JAFL28)
KEYWORDS: playparty courting family nightvisit chickens father mother
FOUND IN: US(Ap,SE,So)
REFERENCES (6 citations):
Randolph 541, "My Pappy He Will Scold Me" (2 texts, 1 tune)
Sharp-EnglishFolkSongsFromSouthernAppalachians 269, "The Chickens they are Crowing" (2 texts, 2 tunes)
Sharp/Karpeles-EightyEnglishFolkSongs 66, "The Chickens They Are Crowing" (1 text, 1 tune)
Gentry/Smith-ASingerAmongSingers, #51, "There's Nothing to be Gained by Roving" (1 short text, 1 tune)
Lomax-FolkSongsOfNorthAmerica 105, "Chickens They Are Crowing" (1 text, 1 tune)
Owens-TexasFolkSongs-2ed, pp. 150-151, "I'm on My Way to Georgy" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #3650 and 14005
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "We Won't Go Home Until Morning" (floating lyrics in a few texts)
cf. "Crow, Black Chicken" (words)
NOTES [45 words]: Roud files the Jane Hicks Gentry version of this, which begins, "There's nothing to be gained by roving," as #14005. Sharp-EnglishFolkSongsFromSouthernAppalachians does not include it with #269.But the plot appears to be the same, and many of the lyrics are identical. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.4
File: R541

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