Down by the Salley Gardens lyrics
Orla FallonDown by the Salley Gardens my love and I did meet;
She passed the Salley Gardens with little snow-white feet.
She bid me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the tree;
But I, being young and foolish, with her did not agree.
In a field by the river my love and I did stand,
And on my leaning shoulder she laid her snow-white hand.
She bid me take life easy, as the grass grows on the weirs;
But I was young and foolish, and now I am full of tears.
Down by the Salley Gardens my love and I did meet;
She passed the Salley Gardens with little snow-white feet.
She bid me take love easy, as the leaves grow on the tree;
But I, being young and foolish, with her would not agree.
Song Details
Lyrics: William Butler Yeats wrote the poem 'Down By The Salley Gardens' which was published in 1889 in the collection "The Wanderings of Oisin and Other Poems.".
Yeats wrote notes about the origins of the poem, and stated that he tried to rebuild an old song from three lines that an old woman sang to herself - lines that were vaguely remembered.
Music: Traditional - Adapted to the music of 'The Maids of the Mourne Shore' by Herbert Hughes in 1909... read more
Brief: The singer meets his sweetheart by the Sally Gardens where she tells him to "take love easy," but he is foolish and would not agree, and now his life is filled with remorse.
Category: Irish Folk Song / Love Song
Orla Fallon: Born Órlagh Fallon on the 24th August, 1974 in Knockananna, County Wicklow, Ireland. She is a singer, harpist whose genres include Celtic, adult contemporary and New Age music, and her previous associations include Anúna and Celtic Woman.
Covers: John McCormack, Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy, Clannad, James Galway, Maura O'Connell, Tamalin, Dolores Keane, Méav Ní Mhaolchatha, Kathy Kelly, The Waterboys...
Album: The Water Is Wide - Orla Fallon
