Beneath The Willow: Orignial is 30” by 40” Acrylic on canvas. C 2008.
Bury Me Beneath the Willow (Painting Lyrics)
Bury me beneath the willow,
Under the weeping willow tree.
When she hears that I am sleeping,
Maybe then she’ll weep for me.
My heart is sad and I'm in sorrow,
For the only one I love.
When will I see her, no, no, never,
Till we meet in heav’n above.
Tomorrow was to be our wedding,
But, Lord, where can she be?
She’s gone, she’s gone to court another,
She no longer cares for me.
She told me that she dearly loved me,
How could she be untrue.
Until an angel softly whispered,
She no longer cares for you.
Place on my grave a snow-white lily,
And on my tomb a turtle dove,
So if she sometimes comes to see me,
She will know I died for love.
The setting is a lake in the Appalachian Mountains. A single weeping willow tree shrouds a grave. In my song it is the man that is forsaken and “died for love.” His untrue former love returns to his graveside to pay her respects. On the grave a turtledove watches as she kneels holding several white lilies.
The lyrics appear on a gravestone in the left foreground. Above in the clouds an angel whispers to him that his love has been untrue. In the right upper corner the lovers meet again in Heaven.
This ballad was popularized mainly by the Carter Family who recorded it on Victor 21074 in 1927; and later on Bluebird B-6053 in 1935. They also recorded a remake of the song, "Answer to Weeping Willow," on Decca 5234 in 1936. Here's a recording done by The Carter Family:
<a href="http://honkingduck.com/78s/listen.php?s=20404A">honkingduck.com/78s/listen.php?s=20404A</a>
The song was recorded by many of the early country artists including Burnett & Rutherford; Riley Puckett; Delmore Brothers; Lily Brothers and the Monroe Brothers in 1937. Since then it's remained popular in bluegrass circles being covered by Kingston Trio and later Skaggs and Rice.
You can hear it played by Tony Rice, Alison Krauss, David Grisman, JD Crowe, and Mark Schatz on UTube:
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzA68Ohwke4">www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzA68Ohwke4</a>