Black is the Color (of my true love's hair) scottish Folk Ballad

[@gavinreid8351]

Davy Graham on his 1965 album describes this as originally being from Norway. A version was used in the 1948 film Corridor of Mirrors.

[@francoisecolombo1915]

Such a beautiful song with a very sensitive interpretation 💜

[@kerstinseeger2353]

Such a soulful interpretation, I got goose bumps.

[@ryanweiskopf888]

Check out Nina Simone's version if you haven't heard it

[@PadreigEire]

Thank you for this song!

[@Iselindea13]

So beautiful!!!

[@docalex0]

Really lovely version. Thank you

[@Arkybark]

I don' t know that there is a known traditional version of the original tune. It left Scotland for America a couple of centuries ago, and didn't return until Hamish Imlach revived it. Hamish's daughter said he first heard it from Nina Simone, not in Scotland. But apart from the more upbeat arrangement he created, I think it's the same tune. Although the Scots (rightfully) say, it must be Scottish if it mentions the Clyde, In Appalachia that was changed to Troublesome, for the North Carolina creek of that name that often overflowed its banks.

[@claudiomenesesc]

Nice version. Joan Baez recorded this song in 1960, which is the version I first heard.

[@daydays12]

This is a beautiful traditional SCOTTISH song - Roud 3103 ( not written by!!) but sung by Hamish Imlach in modern times. Why does everything have to be Irish??? This version is quite nice. ALL the others I've listened to on you tube are over the top, syrupy, over produced and extremely sentimental. This one not too bad apart from the wailing Irish style whistle ! Who can upload a really good version ?

[@ohiofisherofmen2194]

@IGOR OZKARSKI same

[@patois12]

I agree. I want a truly original version-as it would have been originally sung

[@marytolhurst5165]

@Patios12 in that case you need to listen to John Jacob Niles' version. All subsequent versions are based on his. But it's not exactly 'manly'.

[@hawthorne1504]

Wailing “Irish style whistle” , “why does everything have to be Irish”what is this animosity?

[@kristinas.9609]

❤❤❤❤❤

[@fraukekassel6290]

Back to the roots. Weiter so.

[@irishballads]

Danke :-)

[@KawauMusic]

Tolles Video! Sogar die Klamotten passen ...

[@daisyjane1070]

Thank you, Marcus - very nice version. Is this the traditional melody, or your own?

[@irishballads]

I thank you Daisy, it's almost the traditional Version, inspired by Cristy Moore and Hamish Imlach.

[@diegonatan6301]

But this song is scotish, doesn't is?

[@arlorg-dt2pw]

It's a Scottish song, according to all sources. Imported to the Appalachians, but Scottish. Not "Irish trad." After all, it refers to "Clyde". Meanwhile, it's written about a man. "He", "him". Not "her", "she". Is it so totally terrifying for a man to sing a "trad." love song addressed to a man? Well, the answer to that is of course Yes, Yes, Yes, totally terrifying. God forbid that a "normal" red-blooded heterosexual man should ever sing a syllable that might plant in anyone's mind the very suspicion that he might be .... other than a 100% straight he-man. It's funny how many great folksongs about male lover-objects have been re-gendered in this way by male singers (e.g. Christy Moore, cited above), creating some rather incongruous lyrics.

[@troybonner91]

News flash: women often times re-gender songs (traditional and modern), so that they can sing about the sex that they personally have attraction for. I'm a singer as well, and personally I've done this because I feel like I can get into the lyrics better if it's the sex I have attraction for. Not everything is about bigotry, ya know.

[@hawthorne1504]

@@troybonner91 I wish singers would just keep the original lyrics and not overthink it. But this song really seems aman for a woman. A woman would not use that terminology for a man, I wouldn’t think???

[@wharfrat7900]

@@hawthorne1504 It was a song sung by a woman about a man with some different terminology, originally. There is nothing wrong with that nor is there anything wrong with it being sung by a man about a woman. I haven't found a good performance of it on this website yet, though. I'll keep looking. I have Jo Stafford's recording on CD and her singing is good but it doesn't include all of the lyrics.

[@hawthorne1504]

@@wharfrat7900 oh, ok I didn’t even know it was originally sung by a woman for a man. I actually first heard this song just a couple months ago on the radio and I tried to find the version I heard, but couldn’t. It was really good. I don’t like it when the singers of songs switch the original pronouns, like Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone, for example…I wish women singers would just sing it using original pronouns. If I recite a love poem written for a woman, for exampleI wouldn’t switch the pronouns. Just leave it the way it was first written, as one who is expressing the emotions of the writer, not as the one who has the emotions.