As I went a -walkin'
and a -ramblin' one day,
I met a fair couple a -makin' their way.
And one was a lady,
and a fair one was she,
And the other was a cowboy,
and a brave one was he.
An d the other was a cowboy
and a brave one was he
Where are you going, my pretty fair maid?
Just down by the river,
just down by the shade
Just down by the river,
just down by the spring
See the wild rippling water,
hear the nightingale sing
See the wild rippling water,
hear the nightingale sing
They hadn't been there but an hour or so
Hill out of his satchel grew fiddle and bow
He played a tune that
made the woods ring
She said, hark, hark,
hear the nightingale sing
She said, hark, hark,
hear the nightingale sing
She said, Dear cowboy, will you marry me?
Oh, no, my little maiden,
that never can be
I've a wife in Arizona,
and a lady is she
One wife on a cow ranch
is plenty for me
One white lawn, a cow ranch
is plenty for me
I'm going out to Mexico,
I'll stay about a year
I'll drink red wine, I'll drink lots of beer
If I ever return, it will be in the spring
The seawater's gliding here,
nightingale sing
The seawater's gliding here,
nightingale sing
Come all you young ladies,
take a warnin' by me
Don't place your affection
in a cowboy so free
He'll go and leave you like mine did me
Leave you to rock, sing, bye, old baby
Leave you to rock, sing,