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about this song
"Once Had a True Love" (sometimes "I Once Had a True Love") is an English folk ballad of unknown original. First heard in 1960 as "I Once Had a True Love" by Irish traditional folk singer Paddy Tunney. In his memoir, The Stone Fiddle, Tunney claims that the song is "the original traditional song" behind the well-known ballad "She Moved Through the Fair", collected by Padraic Colum, with which the song shares some lyrics. Smith granddaughter recalls "Phoebe Smith was my granny; my dad's mum.