Jimmy Ransome from Mentor by William Ritter

Bobby learned this version of Lord Randall (Child 12) from Lou Brookshire in Caldwell County's King's Creek. "Aunt" Lou and her husband were born and raised in Caldwell, but like many families in the South (including Bobby's own) the Brookshires moved out to the West Coast for work. Lou's family's time out west, cutting hair in labor camps, might account for her sometimes unique repertoire of tunes and songs. This one, though, closely mirrors a version sang by another singer Bobby recorded in King's Creek: Tom Maltba. He would sing "A-courtin and A-sportin" or sometimes "Rambling and A-gambling" rather than "I've been to the wildwood." Lou Brookshire did not always remember very many lines to the old songs, but her tunes for the old ballads were often my favorite. There are still several from her repertoire that I hope to commit to memory. One last note, I did slow down this song and let it "breathe" a little more than the way Bobby sang it to me over the telephone.

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