The ToneWay® Project: helping people play music


Handsome Molly [core]

I wish I was in London
or some other seaport 5 town
Set my foot on a steamboat
and (4) sail the ocean 1 'round

Chorus
Sailing 'round the ocean
sailing 'round the sea
Think of Handsome Molly
wherever she may be

I saw you in church last Sunday
you passed me on by
I knew your mind was changing
by the roving of your eye

Her hair was black as a raven
her eyes were dark as coal
Her cheeks shone like the lilies
out in the morning glow

Do you remember Molly
when you gave me your right hand
And said if you ever married
that I would be your man

But now you've broken your promise
go marry whom you please
While my poor heart is breaking
you're going at your ease

I'll go down to the river
when everyone's asleep
I'll think of handsome Molly
and then sit down and weep

It’s on Strum Machine!

Play & sing along with Handsome Molly (or any song you type in) in any key, at any speed, with real instrument recordings. You have to see it to believe it.

Play this song on Strum Machine

Available in these books:

Get Started Plus: Core Songs Edition
100 songs and our acclaimed play-by-ear learning method.
Big Print Songs
Over 200 songs.
Family Tradition
The reference manual, with lyrics to 330 songs.
The first two books feature large-print lyrics (20-point type) and include chords, historical info, jamming hints, and more.

...and on these CDs:

Five CDs, 100 songs. Recordings from the Abbott family and their friends.
Listen to sample tracks.

The MP3 collection has all 100 songs on one CD for a discount. See details.


A song from the The ToneWay Mountain Music Collection, which offers lyrics and free Song Clips (recordings for learning the song by ear) for nearly 400 traditional songs, many of which are often heard in bluegrass and old-time jam circles. The ToneWay Project also offers songbooks, CDs, and a free online video series for learning to play music by ear. http://ToneWay.com