The Stolen Child

Music © 1990 Stephen Savitzky. CC-by-nc-sa. Words: William Butler Yeats

For Amethyst Rose

Lyrics [pdf]

Am Asus2 Am
  Where dips the rocky  high land
Dm Am
Of  Sleuth Wood in the  lake,
Am
There  lies a leafy island
Em Am
Where  flapping herons  wake
Am Asus2 Em
The  drow sy water- rats;
Dm Dsus2 Dm
There we've  hid our fae ry  vats,
Am
Full of  berries
Em Am Asus2 Em
And of  reddest  stol en cher ries
D5 G D
Come a way, O hu man  child!
G D A
To the  waters and  the  wild
D Dsus2 D
With a  faery, hand  in  hand,
Am Asus2
For the  world's more full of  weeping
Em Am
  than  you can under stand.
Where the wave of moonlight glosses
The dim grey sands with light,
Far off by furthest Rosses
We foot it all the night,
Dm
  Weaving olden dances,
Am Em
Mingling hands and ming ling glan ces
Am
Till the moon has taken  flight;
Dm
  To and fro we leap
Am Em
And chase the fro thy bub bles,
Am
While the world is full of trou bles
Em Am
And is  anxious in its  sleep.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping
  than you can understand.
Where the wandering water gushes
From the hills above Glen-Car,
In pools among the rushes
That scarce could bathe a star,
Dm
We  seek for slumbering trout
Am Em
And  whispering in their  ears
Am
Give them unquiet  dreams;
Dm
  Leaning softly out
Am Em
From  ferns that drop their  tears
Am
Over the  young streams.
Come away, O human child!
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world's more full of weeping
  than you can understand.
Am
  Away with us he's going,
Dsus2 Dm
The sol emn- eyed:
Am
He'll  hear no more the lowing
Em Am
Of the  calves on the warm hill side
Dm
Or the  kettle on the hob
Am Em
Sing  peace into  his breast,
Am
Or see the brown mice  bob
Em Am
Round and  round the oatmeal- chest.
For he comes, the human child,
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
From a world more full of weeping
  than he can understand.
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