The New Moon

Melody -

Left: Mary Howitt, 1799-1888
Right: Arkansas or Louisiana version, circa 1925

Dear mother, how pretty
The moon looks to-night!
She was never so cunning before;
Her two little horns
Are so sharp and so bright,
I hope she'll not grow any more.

2. If I were up there,
With you and my friends,
I'd rock in it nicely, you'd see;
I'd sit in the middle
And hold by both ends;
Oh, what a bright cradle 'twould be.

3. I would call to the stars
To keep out of the way,
Lest we should rock over their toes;
And then I would rock
Till the dawn of the day,
And see where the pretty moon goes.

Oh, Mother, how pretty
The moon looks tonight
She was never so cunning before
Her two little horns
Are too sharp and so bright
I hope they'll not grow any more.

2. If I was up there
With you and the moon
We'd rock in it nightly, you see.
We'd sit in the middle
And hold to both ends
Oh, what a fine cradle 'twould be!

3. We'd call to the stars
To get out of our way
'Lest we should rock over their toes
And there we would stay
'Til the dawn of the day
And see where the pretty moon goes.

As is the case with many English songs, they were "imported" to America and changed over time. Much of the Appalachian music has direct ties to England.

| English Songs Index | Home Page Robokopp |Home Page Musica|