The Songs of Scotland Prior to Burns. with the Tunes
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iJLirana^unroxjYTrTTYiTiJm^^ ,-v c& /£/fa^ ^ i/ * fiH*^ bet J66/&.& THE SONGS OF SCOTLAND PRIOR TO BURNS. * THE SONGS OF SCOTLAND PRIOR TO BURNS. With the Tunes. EDITED BY ROBERT CHAMBERS. W. & R. CHAMBERS, EDINBURGH AND LONDON. 1862. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from National Library of Scotland http://www.archive.org/details/songsofscotlanpbOOcham CONTENTS. PAGE INTRODUCTORY HISTORICAL SKETCH, . xi yhtaxlal gimp. THE FLOWERS OF THE FOREST, . 21 LAMENT OF THE BOEDER "WIDOW, . 26 GILDEEOY, .... 27 GENERAL LESLIE'S MARCH TO LONGMARSTON MOOR, . 32 i'll never love thee more, . 34 YOU 'RE WELCOME, WHIGS, . 37 THE BATTLE OF KILLIECRANKIE, . 40 THE BRAES OF KILLIECRANKIE, 43 SUCH A PARCEL OF ROGUES IN A NATION! . 45 THE WEE, WEE GERMAN LAIRDIE, • 46 THE PIPER O' DUNDEE, . 49 CARLE, AN THE KING COME! . 51 THE AULD STUARTS BACK AGAIN, . 53 THE HIGHLAND MUSTER-ROLL, 1715, . 55 KENMURE 'S ON AND AWA', WILLIE, . 58 THE BATTLE OF SHERIFF-MUIR, . 60 UP AND WAUR THEM A', WILLIE, . • . 67 THE CAMPBELLS ARE COMING, . 70 AWA', WHIGS, AWA' ! . 72 TO DAUNTON ME, . 74 THIS IS NO MY AIN HOUSE, . 75 HERE'S TO THE KING, SIR, 79 THE BLACK BIRD, . 81 THE WHITE COCKADE, . 84 CONTENTS. PAGE johnie cope, 86 tranent muir, S8 charlie is my darling, 94 lewie gordon, 95 you're welcome, charlie stuart, 98 lady keith's lament, .' 100 over the water to charlie, . 102 the souters o' selkirk, 104 fjJttMlOTS SflttgS THE WOOING OF JENNY AND JOCK, 109 TAK YOUR AULD CLOAK ABOUT YE, 112 DAME, DO THE THING WHILK I DESIRE 115 EVER ALAKE MY AULD GULDMAN, US I HA'E LAID THREE HERRING IN SAUT. 120 DONALD COUPER, 124 HAUD AWA', BIDE AWA' ! 126 HAUD AWA' FRAE ME, DONALD ! 129 TIBBIE FOWLER, 130 BONNIE DUNDEE, . 132 RATTLIN' ROARIN' WILLIE, . 136 AS I CAME IN BY FISHERRAW, 139 THE AULD MAN'S MARE 's DEAD 141 CAULD KAIL IN ABERDEEN, 144 THE BLYTHSOME BRIDAL, 146 SCORNFUL NANCY, 153 THE COCK-LAIRD, 156 MY JO JANET, 158 ANDRO AND HIS CUTTY GUN, 162 WILLIE WAS A WANTON WAG, 165 MUIRLAND WILLIE, . 168 MAGGIE LAUDER, 172 THE GABERLUNYIE MAN, 175 THE HUMBLE BEGGAR, . 179 CONTENTS. vu PAGE O, AN YE WERE DEAD, GUIDMAN, . 181 THE BRISK YOUNG LAD, . 182 OUR GUIDMAN CAM HAME AT E'EN, . 184 GET UP AND BAR THE DOOR, 190 TODLIN HAME, 192 THE MILLER, 194 HOOLY AND FAIRLY, 196 THE LASS OF LIVINGSTONE, 199 MY WIFE'S A WANTON WEE THING, 201 THE WEARY PUND o' TOW, 203 woo'd, AND MARRIED, AND a', 206 AULD ROB MORRIS, 210 GALA WATER, 213 THE HIGHLANDMAN'S COMPLAINT, 216 THE ROCK AND THE WEE PICKLE TOW, 219 TULLOCHGORUM, . 221 EWIE Wl' THE CROOKIT HORN, 225 I 'LL GAR OUR GUIDMAN TROW, 229 GREEN GROW THE RASHES, . 230 GIN YE MEET A BONNIE LASSIE, 232 THE MUCKING O' GEORDIE'S BYRE, . 234 MY WIFE SHALL HA'E HER WILL, 236 WHEN SHE CAM BEN SHE BOBBIT, . 238 MY AULD MAN, . 239 ROBIN REDBREAST'S TESTAMENT, 240 THE WREN, 242 BABITY BOWSTER, . 244 jenny's BABEE, . 245 'MihtUtttBl %mp. FIENT A CRUM OF THEE SHE FAWS, 249 HEY, NOW THE DAY DAWS ! 251 THE BANKS OF HELICON, 253 FAIR HELEN OF KIRKCONNELL, 256 viii CONTENTS. PAGE ckomlet's lilt, .... 260 anne bothwell's lament, . 265 i x>0 confess thou'rt smooth and fair 270 guid night, and joy be wl' you a', 272 old long syne, 274 auld lang syne, 278 o waly, waly, .... 2S0 blink over the burn, sweet betty, 283 saw ye my father, 285 leader haughs and yarrow, 287 omnia vincit amor, 294 the birks of abergeldy, . 297 john hay's bonnie lassie, 301 within a mile of edinburgh, 304 catherine ogie, 306 annie laurie, 309 were na my heart licht i wad dee, 310 the ewe-buchtin 's bonnie, 313, 455 the yellow-haired laddie, . 314 the waukin' o' the fauld, 316 bessy bell and mary gray, . 319 the last time i cam o'er the muir, 321 the young laird and edinburgh katie 323 katie's answer, ... 326 the lass o' patie's mill, 327 woe's my heart that we should sunder, 329 the highland laddie, 331 lochaber no more, 333 ettrick banks, 335 tweedside, older song, 337 TWEEDSiDE, newer song, . 340 THE BUSH ABOON TRAQUAIR, 342 ' MY DEARIE, IF THOU DEE, . 345 ONE DAY I HEARD MARY SJ&.Y, 347 ' DOWN THE BURN, DAVIE, . 349 TO MRS A. H., ON SEEING HER AT A CONCERT, 351 BUSK YE, BUSK YE, 352 AH, THE POOR SHEPHERD'S MOURNFUL FATE, 358 CONTENTS. ix TAGK THE 0' BRUME THE COWDENKNOWES, older S01IQ, . 360 COWDENknowes, newer song, 362 SAW YE johnie coming? .... 367 Dumbarton's drums, .... 369 THOU AN WERT MY AIN THING, . 372 THE EWE-BUCHTS, ..... 374 THE BIRRS OF INVERMAY, . 376 ROSLIN CASTLE, ..... 378 PINKIE HOUSE, ...... 380 TARRY WOO, ...... 382 MY SHEEP I NEGLECTED, .... 385 SAE MERRY AS WE TWA HA'E BEEN ! 388 johnie's GRAY BREEKS, .... 391 SHAME FA' THE GEAR, .... 393 LOGIE O' BUCHAN, ..... 395 JENNY NETTLES, ..... 397 LOW DOUN IN THE BRUME, .... 400 THE SHEPHERD'S WIFE, .... 402 THE PLOUGHMAN, ..... 404 AYE WAUKIN' ! . 406 THE LEE-RIG, ...... 407 KIND ROBIN LO'ES ME, .... 409 THE LOWLANDS OF HOLLAND, .... 412 WANDERING WILLIE, .... 413 I LO'E NE'ER A LADDIE BUT ANE, . 414 Webster's lines, ..... 417 BIDE YE YET, ...... 419 FOR LACK OF GOLD, ..... 420 THERE'S NAE LUCK ABOUT THE HOUSE, . 422 THE BOATIE ROWS, ..... 425 AULD ROBIN GRAY, .... 428 boy's WIFE OF aldivalloch, 433 LOCH ERROCH SIDE, ..... 437 OWER THE MUIR AMANG THE HEATHER, 440 GIN MY LOVE WERE YON RED ROSE, . 442 FALSE LOVE, AND HA'e YOU PLAYED ME THIS? 444 CAN YE SEW CUSHIONS? .... 445 THE SILLER CROUN, ..... 447 CONTENTS. PAGE mary's dream, . 448 logan water, 450 gae to the eye wf me, johnie, 452 will ye go to flanders? 454 the ewe-buchtin's BONNIE {the air), . 455 INDEX TO THE FIRST LINES OF THE SONGS, 457 Several Vignettes in the present volume, it will be perceived, are copied from the tasteful and characteristic sketches in Kitson, and which are believed to have been executed by David Allan. —; INTRODUCTORY HISTORICAL SKETCH. FOR the heart to "break forth in song, whether to express love, merriment, or national and political sentiment, is so natural, that we may safely contemplate song as one of the earliest forms of literary composition in all countries. As far as Scotland is concerned—we find that the death of Alexander III. (1286 a. b.) was bewailed in a popular song ; that the Scots had satirical songs on Edward I. and admiring ditties regarding Sir William Wallace and that the triumph over the English at Bannockburn was hailed in an outburst of rude, but joyful verse. We find various allusions to popular songs in the histories of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and in such poems of those ages as have survived, a whole catalogue of such ditties being given in the comic piece called Coclcilbi/s Sow, which appears to have been composed in the middle of the fifteenth century. Only names, however, or at the utmost odd lines and verses of these early canticles, have been preserved ; and, on the whole, they give us little insight into the general condition of song literature in those days. The utmost that we can be said to learn from them is, that there were songs in Scotland during the Bruce and early Stuart reigns—a fact of which a general knowledge of human nature would have assured us, even had not a trace of such compositions survived. Another fact—a negative one, but of considerable importance is revealed to us by the time we arrive at the middle of the sixteenth century. Scotland could then boast of a brilliant series of regular poets, all existing within the preceding eighty years — xii INTRODUCTION. Henryson, Douglas, Dunbar, and others ; but amongst all their compositions, there are none strictly of the nature of songs. Such men never thought of composing songs ; that is, lyrical compo- sitions to be sung to music by the people. The People appear to have been in all but comparatively recent times the makers of their own songs. The occasion was the inspiration. A peasant felt the charrns of his mistress, and a song ripon that subject came as naturally from him as the sighs he expired. A droll, or a romantic, or a tragic occurrence, drew general attention, and was irresistibly crystallised into verse, through the medium of some mind that was poetical without knowing what poetry was. A crisis took place in the national affairs, and it somehow found expression through the same channel. It was beneath the poets of culture, the bishop Gavin Douglas, the priests Kennedy, Henryson, and Dunbar, to contemplate anything so natural and familiar as a subject for their muses. And such continued to be in a great measure the case for a long time after the middle of the sixteenth century ; for when we examine the writings of Montgomery and Drummond, of Hume and Wedderburn, the poets of the reigns of James VI. and Charles L, we discover nothing strictly describable as a popular Scottish song.1 The composing of such lyrics still mainly rested with the unpretending multitude, as it had always hitherto done. It is only to be admitted, exceptionally, that probably the song of Tak your Auld Cloak about ye, and perhaps one or two others, had been written about the reign of Mary, and, as we may infer from their good literary style, by bards of education and refine- ment, albeit too proud to acknowledge a contribution to the anthology of the vulgar.