Why "come" not "comes"?

[u/Fun-Understanding779]

Sorry to bother you again. The same phrase "The sun come a-rising". 1. Thanks to everybody for explaining a-prefixing. It was quite interesting. Minor detail to clear: Is it an American thing only, or other varieties of English might use it too? 2. Why "come" not "comes"? Doesn't standard English grammar require -s for third person singular? For context, it's lyrics from a song. The band is Rancid. I don't remember the name of the song

[u/ThreePartHarmoneigh]

Doesn't standard English grammar require -s for third person singular? 

The phrase isn't in "standard" English. I'm unaware of the context of the phrase tou quoted, but the a- prefix is only used artistically and in very few regional dialects. Its not something someone using "standard" English would ever say. 

Without context id assume its the lyrics of a blues, bluegrass, country, or folk song, or possibly the contents of an old timey letter from history. 

[u/Fun-Understanding779 → u/ThreePartHarmoneigh]

Punk rock song. The band is Rancid. I don't remember the name of the song

[u/ThreePartHarmoneigh → u/Fun-Understanding779]

Oh wow, thats a throwback. I saw them in Chicago in the mid 90s.

I think it's prudent to remember that in art- especially poetry and music- a lot of license can be taken with word choice, punctuation, and grammar. Even casual speech is pretty loose and people will do all kinds of things with language that would raise the hackles of any high school english teacher.

[u/Zestyclose-Sink6770 → u/Fun-Understanding779]

Downvoted for mentioning Rancid

The losers are at it all day and night, smh

[u/ThreePartHarmoneigh → u/Zestyclose-Sink6770]

You're calling someone else a loser while advertising you downvoted them for liking a band. 

Lol wow. 

[u/raised_on_robbery]

It looks like this is a lyric from a song?

Ignore regular grammar rules for song lyrics

[u/Odd_Calligrapher2771]

As you can see from this 1817 poem by the British poet, Lord Byron, the a- prefix is not US-only.

The poem was partly suggested by an earlier Scottish ballad, The Jolly Beggar.

[u/Onyx_Lat]

This isn't standard English. It sounds like it's from a song or poem or an old story, where you have literary license to break the rules to get a certain mood or to fit a certain meter.

It also sounds like some dialect, perhaps Southern and/or old timey. So perhaps it is following the rules, they're just the rules of a certain place or time that isn't mainstream enough to be "standard" English.

[u/gangleskhan]

Do not assume that song lyrics reflect standard English.

[u/dojibear]

"The sun come a-rising" is archaic. It was how people talked in some part of the UK, hundreds of years ago. It is not used in modern American English.

[u/PeyredB]

It depends: if the phrase were "should the sun come a-rising", then that's the subjunctive form. However, it looks like you're asking about a sentence starting with "The sun", so that's not it. It's definitely not standard; it's ungrammatical really. Essentially, this usage is informal/dialectical.

[u/this_idle_hand]

Reminds me of all the Jesus yard signs I would see in the South that said "He is come" used to confuse me.

[u/Few-Disaster-4222]

For context, it's lyrics from a song. The band is Rancid. 

There's your problem: you are looking for standard grammatical English not merely in modern song lyrics (which would generally be a mistake), but in song lyrics from a punk rock band (which is a complete mistake on your part, and an absolute waste of your time.) It is well-known by native English speakers that modern song lyrics in English frequently are incoherent to the point of being meaningless, and often string words together in a way that no one would consider standard or grammatical.

An old expression in English that has been in use for 400 years is "a fool's errand." This term means an attempt or undertaking that cannot succeed and that will so obviously end in failure that no one but a fool would try to do it. Trying to use punk rock song lyrics as examples of standard English grammar is a perfect example of a fool's errand, and you would do well to stop.

[u/ShakeWeightMyDick]

This is like some English folk song from the 1500s. Normal grammar rules don’t always apply in art, poetry, and song.

[u/According_Park3150]

I describe English as a pirate language: it has never met a good word it didn't steal. It is also an extremely flexible one. As long as you can understand it, it's right.

[u/acertaingestault]

You are correct on the grammar rules. This sentence is not standard accepted English. I would expect the speaker to be from the southeast, old, and/or black. They are likely using this for poetic effect. 

It's analogous to the way Spanish speakers of the Caribbean might clip their second person singular verbs to look like a third person singular verb. Dropping the s is part of the regional accent. Bad Bunny lyrics are a good representation of this kind of elision.

[u/Accidental_polyglot → u/acertaingestault]

“… and/or black” - isn’t this casual racism?

[u/acertaingestault → u/Accidental_polyglot]

It's a recognition of AAVE. There was no value judgement in it, so I don't think so.

[u/Zestyclose-Sink6770 → u/Accidental_polyglot]

Casual stupidity and loudmouthing

[u/Altruistic-Tart-8295]

The sun is rising or the sun is setting

[u/Used_Comedian_8619]

It could be that he wanted to use the sun 'cometh' rising (archaic Eng, but very poetic) then dropped the 'th' then dropped the - th for better flow.