[Instruments: banjo (plucked sparse), bowed fiddle (droning), acoustic guitar (minor chords), upright bass (low pulse), foot-stomp percussion] [Vocals: Primary male voice, spectral female voice (ghost, echo, reverb-heavy, distant), both alternating] [Structure: Verse / Verse / Chorus / Verse / Verse / Chorus / Verse / Verse / Chorus / Verse / Final Chorus] Verse 1 [Instruments: banjo + bass, low and sparse] By the chapel door, the coal dust fell, He took her hand, a new bride under his spell. Verse 2 [Instruments: bowed cello drone enters] Maude Clare come, her boots was worn, Carried the signs of a love long torn. (Ooh — Maude Clare Screamed) [Ghost voice echo + reverb] Chorus (Ghost) [Instruments: full band swells + female ghost vocal lead, male harmony underneath] My love, my love, is what he promised me, He gave, my love, to another she, He swore, my love, by the river black, He took, my love, he can't give back. Verse 3 [Instruments: stripped back, bowed cello + sparse guitar] Her face was pale, her voice was cold, Not of the flesh, but the graveyard old. Verse 4 [Instruments: bass pulse stronger, banjo staccato] She threw his rings on the floor, Said, “What was mine is yours no more.” Chorus (Ghost) [Instruments: stomp + cello swell, ghost vocal dominant] My love, my love, is what he promised me, He gave, my love, to another she, He swore, my love, by the river black, He took, my love, he can't give back. Verse 5 [Instruments: quieter, tense guitar strums] She bowed her head, but held her ground, “You’ll drink this cup though it burns you down.” Verse 6 [Instruments: bowed cello drone thick, ghost vocal doubling lines faintly] She watched him wilt in the cinder rain, Her shadow stayed and bore the pain. Chorus (Ghost) [Instruments: full stomp + fiddle crescendo, female ghost lead commanding] My love, my love, is what he promised me, He gave, my love, to another she, He swore, my love, by the river black, He took, my love, he can't give back. Verse 7 [Instruments: slow banjo + bass drop, ghost voice grows stronger than male] By the chapel door, the coal dust fell, She took his hand, and took him to hell. Final Chorus (Ghost’s Claim) [Instruments: heavy stomp + bowed fiddle shriek, ghost vocal dominant, male harmony under] My love, my love, is what he promised me, He gave, I take him to misery, He lost, my love, with his heart of black, He lost, his soul, he can't get back.
