Old Brown's Daughter


Old Brown's Daughter was an English music hall song, sung by Alfred Vance, and became a [List of Newfoundland Songs|Newfoundland Folk music of England|folk song]. It was written by G. W. Hunt, circa 1878, although it is often wrongly credited to Johnny Burke. It was in the repertoire of English folk singer Walter Pardon on his 1975 album, A Proper Sort. Peter Bellamy also sang a version of Old Brown's Daughter on his 1975 self-titled album. In 1991, Damien Barber recorded the song for Fellside Records and it was released on the compilation Voices in 1992. The melody was rewritten by Newfoundland singer/songwriter Ron Hynes and Hynes' version was covered by Great Big Sea on their 1999 album, Turn.

Early Publication

The Roud Folk Song Index records that this song was issued as a broadside by a number of publishers. A copy published by Pearson of Manchester is in the Bodleian Ballad Collection.

Notable adaptations

Being a well-documented song publicised by English Folk Dance and Song Society, and Mainly Norfolk, the song was recorded by Jon Boden and Oli Steadman for inclusion in their respective lists of daily folk songs "A Folk Song A Day" and "365 Days Of Folk".