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Peggy Gordon

[ Roud 2280 ; Ballad Index Gil127 ; DT PEGGORDN ; Mudcat 21179 , 21282 ; trad.]

Peggy Gordon seems to be of Canadian origin; nearly all versions listed by Roud are from Nova Scotia, most prominently from the Helen Creighton collection.

Grace Clergy from East Petpeswick, Nova Scotia, sang Peggy Gordon to Helen Creighton in July 1951. This recording was included in 1962 on the Folkways album of Maritime Folk Songs from the Creighton collection. She noted:

I have always had a particular fondness for the song Peggy Gordon, and have been surprised that our Canadian folk singer Alan Mills is the only one I know of who has recorded it from my earlier book, Traditional Songs From Nova Scotia. As printed there it is not an easy song to sing which may account for it. Here we have it from the lips of Mr Grace Clergy, the fisherman whose picture appears on the cover of book and record of Maritime Folk Songs, seen in the full enjoyment of his song. Although like Dennis Smith he too uses twirls and flourishes, his variant may be more easily mastered and should prove well worth the effort. The song is not unlikely the English O Waly Waly, and of my six versions, five were discovered in Halifax County, the most prolific part of the Maritimes for songs.

Peggy Seeger sang Peggy Gordon in 1970 on her and Ewan MacColl’s Argo album The World of Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger. They noted:

Learned by Peggy Seeger from Elizabeth Cotton, a North Carolina negro woman, this song became very popular in 1959 and 1960.

Ailsa Craig sang Peggy Gordon on the 1971 album of finalists of the Scottish Folk Group Championship, Folk Philosophy.

Robin and Barry Dransfield sang Peggy Gordon in 1977 on their Free Reed album Popular to Contrary Belief. Like most of the tracks from that album, it was included in 1997 on their anthology Up to Now.

Charlie Allan sang Peggy Gordon on his 1988 cassette of bothy ballads, The Auld Folks on the Wa’.

Incantation with the Sergeant Early Band sang Peggy Gordon in 1994 on their Cooking Vinyl CD Sergeant Early’s Dream.

Deaf Shepherd sang Peggy Gordon in 1996 on their Greentrax album Ae Spark o’ Nature’s Fire. They noted:

A firm favourite of ours sung the country over. In this Interpretation John [Morran] and Angus [McLaughlin] have tried to emphasise the sadness inherent in the male’s unrequited love, which is graphically portrayed in the singing of our friend Stephen Bradley who belts out the best gravel-throated version ever heard.

Susie Allan sang Peggy Gordon on her 1998 album Tipsy Courting. She noted:

A sad song of unrequited love, learned from my dad Charlie, who used to sing to his four children to try to keep us quiet on long car journeys to the Highland Games.

Tommy O’Sullivan sang Peggy Gordon on the 2009 compilation album The Irish Folk Festival: Between Now and Then.

Jon Boden and Lucy Farrell sang Peggy Gordon as the 9 January 2011 entry of Jon’s project A Folk Song a Day and Jonny Kearney and Lucy Farrell recorded it in the same year for their CD Kite. Jon Boden commented in his project’s blog:

I know this from Ian Giles and Dan Plews, but I’ve learnt Lucy’s version here. Lucy and Jonny were brilliant supporting Bellowhead on the November tour—definitely going places. Do check them out.

Bram Taylor sang Peggy Gordon in 2012 on his Fellside CD Joker & Rogues. He noted:

Whilst taking part in a local session recently, I was reminded by my friend John Readett of this lovely traditional song. John is a collector of traditional folk song and a fine singer with the excellent Lancashire based folk band Turnpike. Apart from it being a good song to sing I’ve included it as a nod in the direction of my friends in Canada as it was collected in Nova Scotia in 1962 and most versions seem to emanate from that. It has similarities to The Water Is Wide.

HAV sang Peggy Gordon on their 2017 album Inver.

Allister Thompson sang Peggy Gordon on his 2017 album Larkrise Revisited.

Adam Holmes sang Peggy Gordon on his 2024 album The Voice of Scotland.

Alasdair Roberts and Màiri Morrison sang Peggy Gordon in 2025 on their Drag City album of songs collected by Helen Creighton in Nova Scotia, Remembered in Exile. They noted:

Peggy Gordon features lyrical imagery and melodic phrases that draw on the Scottish song tradition, but the first documented versions of the song are from Nova Scotia, and it has since been recorded by many Canadian, Scottish, and Irish artists. This song appears in multiple variants in the Creighton archives; the one sung by Grace Clergy was included on Maritime Folk Songs and is the source of the present version.

Lyrics

Grace Clergy sings Peggy Gordon

Peggy Gordon you are my darling,
Come set yourself down on my knee,
And tell to me the very reason
Why I am slighted so much by thee.

I’m deep in love and I cannot bear it,
My heart is smothered within my breast,
I fain would let the whole world know it,
For a troubled mind never has no rest.

I leaned my head on a cask of brandy
Which is my fancy I do declare,
And while I’m drinking I’m always thinking
How I’m to gain this young lady fair.

I leaned my back against a white oak
Thinking it was a trusty tree,
But first it bent and then I broke it,
That is the way my love did serve me.

I wish my love was one red rosy
A-growing over yonder wall
And I myself was a falling dewdrop,
It’s in her bosom that I might fall.

I wish I was as far from India,
As far as my two eyes could see,
A-sailing over the deep blue waters
Where love nor care does not trouble me.

The ocean’s deep and I cannot wade it,
Neither have I got wings to fly,
I wish I had some jolly boatman
To ferry over my love and I.

I will go down in some lonesome valley,
There I will spend the rest of my life,
Where the pretty little birds are always singing,
And everyone sings a different tune.

I wish I was in Pennslavania
Where the marble stones are as black as ink,
Where the pretty girls they would adore me,
I’ll sing no more till I get a drink.

Robin and Barry Dransfield sing Peggy Gordon

O Peggy Gordon, you are my darling,
Come sit ye down, love, upon my knee
Come tell to me the very reason
Why I am slighted so by thee.

I wish I was faraway in Ingol,
Far away across the briny sea,
Sailing over the stormy ocean
With love nor care never bothering me.

I put my head to a cask of brandy,
It was my fancy, I do declare.
For when I’m drinking, I’m always thinking,
And wishing that Peggy Gordon was there.

O I’ll go down to some lonesome valley
Where no man on earth shall there me find,
Where the pretty little small birds do range their voices
And every moment blows blusterous wind.

(repeat first verse)

Jon Boden and Lucy Farrell sing Peggy Gordon

O Peggy Gordon, you are my darling,
Come sit you down here on my knee
And tell to me the very reason
Why I am slighted so by thee.

I am so in love, I can’t deny it,
My heart lies broken in my breast.
But it’s not for you to let the world know it,
A troubled mind can know no rest.

I turned my head to a glass of brandy,
It was my fancy, I do declare,
For when I’m drinking, I’m seldom thinking,
And wishing Peggy Gordon was there.

I wish I was in a lonely valley
Where womankind can not be found,
And the pretty birds all change their voices
Every moment to a different sound.