Of all the birds (Gascoigne, set by J. Bartlet) (The Lied and Art Song Texts Page: Texts and Translations to Lieder, mélodies, canzoni, and other classical vocal music)


Of all the birds that I doe know
Philip my sparrow has no peer,
For sit she high or sit she lowe,
Be she far off or bee she neere
There is no bird so fayre so fine
Nor yet so fresh as this of mine,
For when she once hath felt a fitte,
Philip will crie still yet yet yet.

Come in a morning merily,
When Philip hath been latelie fed,
Or in an Evening soberlie,
When Philip list to go to bes,
It is a heaven to heare my Philipe,
How she can chirpe with merry lippe,
For when, etc.

She never wanders far abroad;
But is at home when I do call,
If I command she laies on loade¹,
With lips, with teeth, with tong and all,
She chaunts, she chirps, she makes such cheare,
That I beleeve she hath no peere,
For when, etc.

And yet besides all this good sport,
My Philip can both sing and daunce,
With new found toyes of sundrie sort,
My Philip can both pricke and praunce.
And if you say bur fend cut² Phippe,
Lord how the peate³ will turne and skippe,
For when, etc.

View text without footnotes
¹ laies on loade: Lays it on
² fend cut: parry a thrust
³ peate: pet

Input by Linda Godry

Authorship

George Gascoigne (1525?-1577)

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

John Bartlet (fl. 1606-1610)

Date added to the website: 2006-05-04.

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