Black and Gold is a Cornish

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

 folk song written by Will Coleman.

Black and gold are the Cornish

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

 colours, and can be found on the banner and coat of arms

Coat of arms

A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...

 of the Duchy of Cornwall

Duchy of Cornwall

The Duchy of Cornwall is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch inherits the duchy and title of Duke of Cornwall at the time of his birth, or of his parent's succession to the throne. If the monarch has no son, the...

. Traditionally furse (gorse

Gorse

Gorse, furze, furse or whin is a genus of about 20 plant species of thorny evergreen shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the pea family Fabaceae, native to western Europe and northwest Africa, with the majority of species in Iberia.Gorse is closely related to the brooms, and like them, has green...

) used to be the major form of fuel in Cornwall

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

, and was widely employed for domestic use. Places mentioned within the song are all located around the village of Boscastle

Boscastle

Boscastle is a village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, in the civil parish of Forrabury and Minster. It is situated 14 miles south of Bude and 5 miles north-east of Tintagel....

 in Cornwall. These include Trevalga

Trevalga

Trevalga is a coastal civil parish and village in north Cornwall, United Kingdom. The parish is bounded on the north by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south-east by Forrabury and Minster parish and on the west by Tintagel parish....

, a small village situated between Tintagel

Tintagel

Tintagel is a civil parish and village situated on the Atlantic coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. The population of the parish is 1,820 people, and the area of the parish is ....

 and Boscastle.

The Cornish phrase "Kissing's out of fashion when the furse is out of bloom" is a local version of the old country phrase: "When gorse is out of blossom, kissing's out of fashion." This is a reference to the fact that gorse bears flower

Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...

s year round.

Lyrics

Black and Gold

Refrain

Go cut furse, Flames on the fuzzy bush

Go cut furse, Fill up the cloam

Go cut furse, Flames on the fuzzy bush

Kissing's out of fashion when the furse is out of bloom

'Twas one Midsummer's Eve

'As I strolled down from Trevalga

And I met, would you believe

The man with the golden tree

Refrain

We went house to house for furse

Then some grumpy old curmudgeon

Tried to dole us with a curse

So we rolled him into the sea

Refrain

When we'd doused out every spark

From Polrunny to Penally

There upon the highest mark

We set our wildfire flying free

Refrain

Axe me down and burn my bones

Turn my milk and sour my butter

Fill my pockets full of stones

Watch my ills all fly from me

Refrain

I could see the seven brands

Driving off the burning dragons

Scattering ashes over the land

From the smoke the spriggans flee

Refrain

For its black breaks the thorn

And its gold bursts the blossom

And it's not long now 'til dawn

Dances back from under the sea

Refrain

When I leapt the failing flames

Gold my head and black my body

Things can never be the same

Once the wheel goes rolling free

Refrain

Hear the words the chieftain said

Raise the rod and fill the belly

Wipe the tears you never should shed

For the death of the golden tree

Refrain

• Cloam
  Clome oven
  A clome oven is a type of masonry oven. It has a removable door made of clay or alternatively a cast iron door, and was a standard fitting for most kitchen fireplaces in Cornwall and Devon. The oven would be built into the side of the chimney breast, often appearing as a round bulge in the chimney...
  
   = cloam oven (made of clay): often found built into the wall in old cottages
• Spriggan
  Spriggan
  Spriggans are legendary creatures known from Cornish faery lore. They are particular to West Penwith in Cornwall.-Spriggans in folklore:Spriggans were depicted as grotesquely ugly, and were said to be found at old ruins and barrows guarding buried treasure and generally acting as fairy bodyguards....
  
  s = a kind of sprite known only in Penwith, Cornwall

External links

• Gorse on www.the-tree.org.uk
• http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2279/is_n159/ai_21029550/pg_5
• 'A Modern Herbal' (Grieves 1931)

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