“Oh, My Darling", Clementine: A Lesson Learned

Anyone who hears the first bars or the chorus of "Oh, My Darling," Clementine" gets a nostalgic feel about this song.

This American song is very popular, and it has been covered by many artists with their respective versions. The song is credited to two people. The first is Percy Montrose (?), and it is believed that he created the song in 1887. The other fellow was Barker Bradford (?) in 1885. Apart from these two men, the song is also considered as based on another song. The song was "Down by the River Liv'd a Maiden" by Henry S. Thompson (1863). When the song is performed, the melody is usually set in F Major.

Not much is known about Percy Montrose. He is credited as a musical artist with this song as his only composition. The same goes for Barker Bradford. The single known record of this man is as a possible author for the song. Based on the documents, the credit shows that he published the song under his name in 1885 for voice and instrument. His version is also said to be a romantic genre of a song and was published by Willis Woodward & Co. in New York.

"Oh, My Darling," Clementine" is a long song. It has nine stanzas and a memorable chorus that starts with the title. The song is about a girl named Clementine, a daughter of a miner. It is a narration of the events in Clementine and her father's life. The 'story' starts at the third stanza. By the fourth stanza, it is implied that Clementine drowned "into the foaming brine," and she was not saved because the narrator cannot swim. By the fifth stanza, it is also implied that the father also died, with the last line saying," Now he's with his Clementine."

The rest of the song deals with the aftermath of the death of 'Clementine.' The last line of the song is a deviant from the narration and addressing the song's audience, which turned out to be the Boy Scouts. In all, this song is a cautionary tale and pressing the importance of artificial respiration for the mentioned audience.