Ward Allen (Old Time Fiddler) Redwing (Kerry Mills) From the 1958 LP "Maple Leaf Hoedown Volume II" (Sparton SP 210). To read about Ward Allen click here: www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca...
I grew up with this jingling from ice-cream trucks, and didn't know its name. When I learned the name and lyrics, it inspired me to learn the fiddle...
There once lived an Indian maid, A shy little prairie maid, Who sang all day a love song gay, As on the plains she'd while away the day. She loved a warrior bold, This shy little maid of old, But brave and gay he rode one day To battle far away. Now the moon shines tonight on pretty Red Wing, The breeze is sighing, the night bird's crying, For afar 'neath his star her brave is sleeping,[N 1] While Red Wing's weeping her heart away. She watched for him day and night; She lit all the campfires bright; And under the sky each night, she would lie And dream about his coming by and by, But when all the braves returned, The heart of Red Wing yearned, For far, far away, her warrior gay Fell bravely in the fray. Now the moon shines tonight on pretty Red Wing, The breeze is sighing, the night bird's crying, For afar 'neath his star her brave is sleeping, While Red Wing's weeping her heart away.[1]
