William Taylor is a British folk song, often collected from traditional singers in England, less so in Scotland, Ireland, Canada and the USA. It tells the story of a young woman who adopts male dress and becomes a sailor in order to search for her lover. Other names include Billy Taylor, Brisk Young Seamen, Bold William Taylor, Down By the Seashore, The False Lover, The Female Lieutenant; Or, Faithless Lover Rewarded, If You'll Get Up Early in the Morning, The Life and Death of Billy Taylor, My Love, Poor William Taylor, Sally Brown and William Taylor, and Young Billy Taylor.
Music
One tune is as follows: \relative c'' \addlyrics
Story
Synopsis
Several versions exist, but the story of the song concerns a young couple due to be wed. On the morning of the wedding, the groom William Taylor is pressed into service. The bride searches for him, disguising herself as a man to become a soldier or sailor. When her true gender is revealed, the captain points her in the direction of her beloved, but mentions that he now has a new suitor. When she finds him, she shoots him and sometimes also his new bride. In some versions, she is then rewarded by the captain with command of her own ship.
Details
Many versions follow a line similar to this. William Taylor, a "brisk young sailor" is at church about to be married when he is taken by the press gang:
William Taylor was a brisk young sailor
He who courted a lady fair
Bells were ringing, sailors singing
As to church they did repair.
Now forty couple were at the wedding,
All were dressed in rich array.
Instead of William getting married
He was pressed and sent away.
. His bride-to-be, sometimes called Sarah Dunn or Sally Grey, but often nameless, dresses in sailor's clothing and goes to look for him. In some versions her true gender is revealed in battle or in some other way:
One day as she were exercising,
Exercising one, two, three,
A silver chain hung down her waistcoat
And exposed her lily-white breast.
in others her ship arrives at a foreign port where she resumes her true gender. Her captain asks why she has come, she tells him she is looking for William Taylor:
She gets up before the dawn, sees William and his wife as predicted, calls for a pistol or pistols and sometimes a sword, and shoots him "with his fair lady by his side".
She's called for a brace of pistols,
That were brought at her command;,
Fired and shot her false Willie,
And the bride at his right hand.
The captain is so impressed he marries her, or makes her the commander of a ship or two.
And then the captain stepped up to her,
Was well pleased at what she'd done.
He took her and made her a bold commander
Over a ship and all his men.
History
William Taylor was often performed as a comic song, Billy Taylor, in the 19th century, but seems to have originated as a serious ballad. Traditional singers seem to sing it straight.
Early Printed Examples
The earliest known version, as Billy Taylor, is in a chapbook, Four New Songs, printed in 1792. The song was printed frequently by publishers of broadsides throughout England and in Scotland.
Collecting History
The RoudFolk song Index lists about 103 versions from traditional singers, 56 - more than half - from England, 11 from Scotland, 3 from Ireland, 9 from Canada and 24 from the USA.
