Black Is The Color of My True Love's Hair

Black is the color of my true love's hair
Her lips are like some roses fair
She has the sweetest smile and the gentlest hands
And I love the ground whereon she stands



I go to the Clyde where I mourn and weep
But satisfied I never can be
And I'll write her a letter just a few short lines
And I suffer death a thousand times

For black is the color of my true love's hair
Her lips are like some roses fair
She has the sweetest smile and the gentlest hands
And I love the ground whereon she stands

I love my love, and well she knows
I love the ground whereon she goes
And I wish the day soon would come
When she and I could be as one

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There are many versions of the tune. It is best known as a tune from the Southern Appalachian Mountains in the U.S. It is probably based on an 18th century English tune. This Scottish folk song is about a girl, whose lover has failed to return, found its way to the Southern Appalachians. There is a version with a similar tune but different lyrics, Black is the Color of My True Love's Eyes, and an English tune with similar lyrics but a different tune, Dark is the Color of my True Love's Eyes.