The Roving Kind (song)

The Roving Kind was a popular song adapted in 1950 from a British folksong "The Pirate Ship" by "Jessie Cavanaugh" and "Arnold Stanton" (both names are pseudonyms used by music publisher The Richmond Organisation). The song is about a girl who is nice but a wanderer.

The best-known version was recorded by Guy Mitchell in 1950, in which it reached #4 on Billboard in December 1950. The song also reached #6 on the Cashbox charts in December 1950.[1]

The song had first been recorded by the American folk group, The Weavers. Mitchell's jocular version followed the original sea-shanty style. Mitch Miller followed this "folk-origin" formula for most of Mitchell's subsequent hits.[2]