From the recording Fare Ye Well
Original words with a traditional melody, from the Jacobite ballads “Derwentwater’s Farewell” and “Otterburn.” This song is dedicated to Lauren Eshbaugh.
Lyrics
Farewell to you whose song has come from east at dawn of day
And graced the breezes blowing soft across the fields of May
And echoed throughout Kresge’s Hall on the fair banks of the Mon
For though the time’s not passed you by, you must be passing on
Full oft atop the blossomed boughs your songs came drifting down
Alighting on attentive ears which reveled in their sound
Your songs would flutter from your breast with clear full-throated ease
The sweetest heard within the storm, the gentlest on the breeze
The prickly chill of winter’s breath will never pierce your side
Nor will you see the barren branch weighed down by frosty white
For you’ll be carried on the wind, undimmed and undismayed
To warmer lands where you can rest, away from baneful shade
And when the colors they return, and spring is all around
The blossoming boughs will drop their buds to fall without a sound
The silent trees will stand their watch above the lonely glen
And we’ll be left to wonder when we’ll hear your songs again