I wish I could read a novelization based on each of these three songs from the British Isles Folk Tradition. Strange how a 4 minute song can weave such a strong sense of character.

Each one has a romantic tale at the heart about someone who left a lover behind with a touch of mystery somewhere in the lyrics. Beautiful.

Seth Lakeman's King and Country
"`Tis I my love who fell for you,
After twenty five months no more.
Now mark that spot from whence I came
It's for king and country I`ll come back
again."

Paul Mckenna Band's Lambs on the Green Hills
"So dig now my grave, both long wide and deep
And sprinkle it over with flowers so sweet
And lay me down in it for to take my last sleep
For that’s the sure way to forget her"

Kate Rusby's Version of I Roved Out
"As she turned around, the tears fell from her
Saying, False young man, you've deluded me.
And the diamond ring I behold I gave to you,
A diamond ring to wear on your right hand.
But the vows you made, love, you went and broke them
And you wed the lassie who has the land"