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by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936)

Clungunford and Clun
Language: English 
  Clunton and Clunbury,
   Clungunford and Clun,
  Are the quietest places
   Under the sun.

In valleys of springs of rivers,
By Ony and Teme and Clun,
The country for easy livers,
The quietest under the sun,

We still had sorrows to lighten,
One could not be always glad,
And lads knew trouble at Knighton,
When I was a Knighton lad.

By bridges that Thames runs under,
In London, the town built ill,
'Tis sure small matter for wonder
If sorrow is with one still.

And if as a lad grows older
The troubles he bears are more,
He carries his griefs on a shoulder
That handselled them long before.

Where shall one halt to deliver
This luggage I'd lief set down?
Not Thames, not Teme is the river,
Nor London nor Knighton the town:

'Tis a long way further than Knighton,
A quieter place than Clun,
Where doomsday may thunder and lighten
And little 'twill matter to one.

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

  • by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936), no title, appears in A Shropshire Lad, no. 50, first published 1896 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

  • by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872 - 1958), "Clun", 1908-9, published 1911 [ tenor, piano, and string quartet ad libitum ], from On Wenlock Edge, no. 6 [sung text checked 1 time]
  • by John Ramsden Williamson (1929 - 2015), "In valleys of springs of rivers" [ baritone and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Researcher for this page: Ted Perry

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 28
Word count: 158

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