"Sourwood Mountain" is a traditional

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be c ...

. Like many folk songs, there are numerous lyrical versions extant; however, there are certain commonalities. The song's theme is a

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over the narrator's true love, from whom he is separated. The title comes from the opening line, which is invariably "Chicken's (a) crowing on Sourwood Mountain". Each verse of the song consists of a rhyming couplet interspersed with a nonsense refrain, for example:

:Chicken's a-crowing on Sourwood Mountain :Hey-ho diddle-um day :So many pretty girls I can't count them :Hey-ho diddle-um day

"Sourwood Mountain" is most closely associated with the music of Appalachia; however, there are versions native to New England as well.

References

External links

several versions of "Sourwood Mountain"
from Appalachian culture American folk songs {{Folk-song-stub