Now the green blade riseth from the buried grain

Now the green blade riseth from the buried grain. John Macleod Campbell Crum* (1872-1958). Written for the Oxford Book of Carols (1928), Part III, ‘Modern carols, written for or adapted to traditional tunes’. These words were written for the French tune associated with the words ‘Noël nouvelet, Noël chantons ici’. Surprisingly perhaps, it was not taken into SofPE, and was neglected until BBCHB (1951), after which it appeared in most major books, such as HP, A&MNS, NEH, RS, A&MCP and A&MRW.  It crossed the Atlantic into many books, such as H82, UMH and VU. It has become very widely known, often with the first line changed to ‘Now the green blade rises’, and with other emendations...