Derek Piotr
Fieldwork Archive

⤝ 367 ⤞

There Was a Lady Lived in Leeds


Performed by Bob Pegg.
Recorded August 29, 2021 in Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland (acquisition date: November 25, 2022).
A children's playground version of the Cruel Mother, from Leeds.
Recorded by Bob Pegg on behalf of Derek Piotr.
Cf. Child, no. 20.

"When Mrs Dawson sang the song she stuck her tongue out, and twisted her neck for 'she was dead' and sang the phrase with a strangulated voice as I do here."

Variants

050 · Lady of York (The Cruel Mother)
1988 · The Cruel Mother

Tags

Aberdeenshire, Child ballad, contributed recording, Scotland, United Kingdom