The Cuckoo Song - American Folk Song

Arrangement & vocals by Farya Faraji. This American folk song from the Appalachian is one of the many variants across the English speaking world of the Cuckoo Song, a folk song motif centred on the bird with its origins in 16th century England and perhaps earlier. I based the instrumentation on that present in the Appalachian: a fiddle, an acoustic guitar, a banjo and a Merlin, a recent Québécois instrument which is essentially a lute version of the appalchian dulcimer.  

Lyrics:

Gonna build me a log cabin
On a mountian so high
So I can see Willie
As he goes on by

Um hmm hmm

Oh the coo-coo is a pretty bird
She wobbles when she flies
She never hollers coo-coo
'Til the fourth day of July

I've played cards in England
I've played cards in Spain
I'll bet you ten dollars
I'll beat you next game

Jack of diamonds, Jack of diamonds

I've known you from old
Now you've robbed my poor pockets
Of my silver and my gold

Um hmm hmm

I've played cards in England
I've played cards in Spain
I'll bet you ten dollars
I beat you this game

Oh the coo-coo is a pretty bird
She wobbles when she flies
She never hollers coo-coo
'Til the fourth day of July