Oh fair to see

Song Cycle by Gerald Finzi (1901 - 1956)

Word count: 551

1. I say I'll seek her [sung text checked 1 time]

I say "I'll seek her side
Ere hindrance interposes;"
But eve in midnight closes
And here I still abide.

When darkness wears I see
Her sad eyes in a vision:
They ask, "What indecision
Detains you, Love, from me? -

"The creaking hinge is oiled,
I have unbarred the backway,
But you tread not the trackway
And shall the thing be spoiled?

"Far cockcrows echo shrill,
The shadows are abating,
And I am waiting, waiting;
But O, you tarry still."

Authorship

by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928), "I say I'll seek her", appears in Time's Laughingstocks and Other Verses, first published 1909 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

2. Oh, fair to see [sung text not yet checked]

Oh, fair to see
Blossom-laden cherry tree,
  Arrayed in sunny white;
  An April day's delight,
Oh, fair to see!

Oh, fair to see
Fruit-laden cherry tree,
  With balls of shining red
  Decking a leafy head,
Oh, fair to see!

Authorship

by Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830 - 1894), no title, appears in Sing-song: a nursery rhyme book, first published 1872 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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3. As I lay in the early sun [sung text not yet checked]

As I lay in the early sun,
Stretched in the grass, I thought upon
My true love, my dear love,
Who has my heart forever
Who is my happiness when we meet,
My sorrow when we sever.
She is all fire when I do burn,
Gentle when I moody turn,
Brave when I am sad and heavy
And all laughter when I am merry.
And so I lay and dreamed and dreamed,
And so the day wheeled on,
While all the birds with thoughts like mine
Were singing to the sun.

Authorship

by Edward Shanks (1892 - 1953), "Song", appears in The Queen of China and Other Poems, first published 1919 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

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4. Only the wanderer [sung text checked 1 time]

Only the wanderer
  Knows England's graces,
Or can anew see clear
  Familiar faces.

And who loves joy as he
  That dwells in shadows?
Do not forget me quite,
  O Severn meadows.

Authorship

by Ivor (Bertie) Gurney (1890 - 1937), "Severn Meadows" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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Researcher for this text: Ted Perry

5. To joy [sung text checked 1 time]

Is not this enough for moan
 [ ... ]

Authorship

by Edmund Charles Blunden (1896 - 1974), "To joy", appears in To Nature, first published 1923, copyright © [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

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6. Harvest [sung text checked 1 time]

So there's my year, the twelvemonth duly told
 [ ... ]

Authorship

by Edmund Charles Blunden (1896 - 1974), appears in English Poems, first published 1925, copyright © [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

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7. Since we loved [sung text checked 1 time]

Since we loved, - (the earth that shook
As we kissed, fresh beauty took) -
Love hath been as poets paint,
Life as heaven is to a saint;

All my joys my hope excel,
All my work hath prosper'd well,
All my songs have happy been,
O my love, my life, my queen.

Authorship

by Robert Seymour Bridges (1844 - 1930), no title, appears in Poetical Works of Robert Bridges, Volume II, first published 1899 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]