Scarborough Fair is a legendary poem and song whose authorship is often debated. Although the song is generally credited to Paul Simon. This poem has a strange meditative feeling associated with it. This certainly is one of my favorite poems. Here is the poem-
Are you coming to Scarborough fair?
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
Remember me to one who lives there,
She once was a true love of mine.Go tell her to make me a cambric shirt,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
Without a stitch of a seamster’s work,
And then she will be a true love of mine.Go tell her to wash it in yonder well,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
Where never was water, and rain never fell.
And then she will be a true love of mine.Go tell her to hang it on yonder thorn,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
Where leaf never budded since Adam was born.
And then she will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to clear me an acre of land,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
Between the salt water and the sea sand.
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to plow it all with a thorn,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And plant it all over with one grain of corn.
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to reap it with an old stirrup-leather,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And bind it all up with a pea-fowl’s feather.
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to thrash it against the wall,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And not one grain on the floor shall fall.
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to shock it in yonder sea,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And return it back all dry to me.
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to take it to the mill,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And every grain it’s bushel shall fill
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell him to wrap it all up in a sack,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
And send it to market all on a rat’s back.
And then he will be a true love of mine.Go tell this young man when he gets his work done,
Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme,
To come to my house and his shirt will be done.
And then he will be a true love of mine.If he tells me he cannot, why, then reply
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme,
Let me know that at least he will try
And then he’ll be a true love of mine.For love imposes impossible tasks,
Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme,
Though not more than any heart asks
And I must know he’s a true love of mine.
There are many stories surrounding the authorship of Scarborough Fair. Legends say that in the early 60′s Paul Simon, then in London, heard this song from an English singer, Martin Carthy. He remembered it when collaborating with Art Gafunkel on the score of The Graduate and contacted Carthy and asked permission to use the song. However Carthy replied that as the song was traditional and Simon could use it anyway. Thus, the song we love so much was born! Here is the video of Simon and Garfunkel version-
It is also said that the lyrics to Scarborough Fair are related to Bob Dylan’s 1963 song “Girl of the North Country”. Here are it’s lyrics-
Well, if you’re travelin’ in the north country fair,
Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline,
Remember me to one who lives there.
She once was a true love of mine.
Well, if you ask me, every beautiful lyrical piece in music can be traced back to Bob Dylan 
Legends also say that the poem is actually a string of riddles, each stanza being a description of an object or concept. Does anyone know the solutions to the riddles?
