ELIZABETHAN SONGS AND LYRICS John Lyly 1553-1606 APELLES' SONG (From Alexander and Campaspe, 1584; acted 1581) Cupid and my Campaspe played At cards for kisses,-Cupid paid; He stakes his quiver, bow and arrows, Growing on 's cheek (but none knows how); Robert Greene 1560-1592 CONTENT (From Farewell to Folly, 1591) Sweet are the thoughts that savour of content, The quiet mind is richer than a crown, Sweet are the nights in careless slumber spent, The homely house that harbours quiet rest, Christopher Marlowe 1564-1593 THE PASSIONATE SHEPHERD TO HIS LOVE (In The Passionate Pugrim, 1599, enlarged form in England's Helicon, 1600) Come live with me, and be my love, And we will sit upon the rocks, And I will make thee beds of roses, A gown made of the finest wool Fair-lined slippers for the cold, A belt of straw and ivy-buds, The shepherd swains shall dance and sing If these delights thy mind may move, Thomas Dekker Cir. 1570-cir. 1637 O SWEET CONTENT (From The Patient Grissell, acted 1599) Art thou poor, yet hast thou golden slumbers? Art thou rich, yet is thy mind perplexed? Dost thou laugh to see how fools are vexèd Honest labor bears a lovely face; Then hey nonny nonny, hey nonny nonny! Canst drink the waters of the crispèd spring? Swim'st thou in wealth, yet sink'st in thine own tears? Then he that patiently want's burden bears No burden bears, but is a king, a king! Then hey nonny nonny, hey nonny nonny! Thomas Heywood 1581 (?)-1640 (?) GOOD MORROW (From The Rape of Lucrece, 1608 (printed), acted cir. 1605) Pack, clouds, away, and welcome day, With night we banish sorrow; To give my love good-morrow, Wake from thy rest, robin-redbreast, Thomas Campion D. 1619 (?) TO LESBIA (In Rosseter's Book of Airs, 1601) My sweetest Lesbia, let us live and love, Into their west, and straight again revive; If all would lead their lives in love like me, Then bloody swords and armour should not be; No drum nor trumpet peaceful sleeps should move, Unless alarm came from the Camp of Love: When timely death my life and fortunes ends, Let not my hearse be vext with mourning friends; But let all lovers, rich in triumph, come And with sweet pastimes grace my happy tomb; THE ARMOUR OF INNOCENCE (From the same) The man of life upright, Whose guiltless heart is free |