Nick Cave & P.J Harvey - Henry Lee

Nick Cave & P.J Harvey (Polly Jean Harvey)




Henry Lee

Get down, get down, little Henry Lee
And stay all night with me
You won't find a girl in this damn world
That will compare with me
And the wind did howl and the wind did blow
La la la la la
La la la la lee
A little bird lit down on Henry Lee

I can't get down and I won't get down
And stay all night with thee
For the girl I have in that merry green land
I love far better than thee
And the wind did howl and the wind did blow
La la la la la
La la la la lee
A little bird lit down on Henry Lee

She leaned herself against a fence
Just for a kiss or two
And with a little pen-knife held in her hand
She plugged him through and through
And the wind did roar and the wind did moan
La la la la la
La la la la lee
A little bird lit down on Henry Lee

Come take him by his lilly-white hands
Come take him by his feet
And throw him in this deep deep well
Which is more than one hundred feet
And the wind did howl and the wind did blow
La la la la la
La la la la lee
A little bird lit down on Henry Lee

Lie there, lie there, little Henry Lee
Till the flesh drops from your bones
For the girl you have in that merry green land
Can wait forever for you to come home
And the wind did howl and the wind did moan
La la la la la
La la la la lee
A little bird lit down on Henry Lee


Henry Lee est basée sur une chanson traditionnelle (voire deux), généralement connue sous le titre de Young Hunting. Elle raconte l'histoire d'une femme qui tue un homme parce qu'il refuse de l'aimer. Nick Cave la chante en duo avec PJ Harvey, la chanteuse de rock britannique avec laquelle il vivait une histoire d'amour à l'époque.

Young Hunting (Traditional version of Henry Lee.)

It happened on one evening late,
As the maid was going to bed,
She heard a sound, a beautiful sound,
That made her heart feel glad.

She thought it was her brother John,
Returning from the cane;
But who should it be but Lord Henry,
Just from his wild hunting.

"Get down, get down, Lord Henry,
And stay all night with me;
For the very best lodging in Mulveren Town,
The best I'll give to thee."

"I won't get down, I shan't get down,
To stay all night with you;
For there's a prettier girl in the merry green lands,
That I love much better than you."

As he leaned o'er his milk-white steed
And kisses gave her three,
She held up a knife in her right hand
And pierced him heartily.

"O live, O live, Lord Henry,
Half an hour or more;
For the very best doctors in Mulveren Town,
You'll soon be in their care."

"O live, O live, how can I live,
How can I live you see,
When l can feel my own heart's blood,
Come trinkling o'er my knee?"

She called her waiting maids unto her
To view his body so fair,
Saying, "Of all this finery you see around here,
The finest you shall wear."

Some took him by his curly locks,
Some by his hands and feet,
And threw him in the cold, dark well,
Which was both cold and deep

"Lie there, lie there, Lord Henry,
Till the flesh rots off your bones!
That prettier girl in the merry green lands,
Shall mourn for your return."

There was a pretty parrot bird,
Sitting high upon a limb,
Saying, "You murdered Lord Henry,
And in the well threw him."

"Come down, come down, my pretty parrot bird,
And sit on my right knee;
Your cage shall be the finest gold,
And the door of ivory."

"I won't come down, I shan't come down,
To sit on your right knee;
For you have murdered Lord Henry,
And soon you'd murder me"

"I wish I had my bended bow,
My arrow and my string;
I'd pierce a dart so close your heart,
Those notes no more you'd sing."

"O if you had your bended bow,
Your arrow and your string,
I'd take my flight to the merry green lands
And tell what I'd seen."



Printed in Folk-songs of the South