Traditional Scottish Songs
- The Braes o' Gleniffer
Robert Tannahill was born in Paisley (there is a memorial plaque at his birthplace in Castle Street) and the Glennifer Braes are only a few miles south of there and his poetry was often inspired by the countryside around Paisley. Despite having a deformity in his right leg, he would go for long walks in the Gleniffer Braes above the town. The Braes o' Gleniffer is one of his best-known songs.
The Braes o' Gleniffer
Keen blaws the wind o'er the Braes o' Gleniffer.
The auld castle's turrets are cover'd wi' snaw;
How chang'd frae the time when I met wi' my lover
Amang the broom bushes by Stanley green shaw:
The wild flow'rs o' simmer were spread a' sae bonnie,
The mavis sang sweet frae the green birken tree:
But far to the camp they hae march'd my dear Johnnie,
And now it is winter wi' nature and me.Then ilk thing around us was blithesome and cheery,
Then ilk thing around us was bonny and braw;
Now naething is heard but the wind whistling dreary,
And naething is seen but the wide-spreading snaw.
The trees are a' bare, and the birds mute and dowie,
They shake the cauld drift frae their wings as they flee,
And chirp out their plaints, seeming wae for my Johnnie,--
'Tis winter wi' them, and 'tis winter wi' me.Yon cauld sleety cloud skiffs alang the bleak mountain,
And shakes the dark firs on the stey rocky brae,
While down the deep glen bawls the snaw-flooded fountain,
That murmur'd sae sweet to my laddie and me.
'Tis no its loud roar on the wintry wind swellin',
'Tis no the cauld blast brings the tears i' my e'e,
For, O gin I saw but my bonny Scotch callan,
The dark days o' winter were simmer to me!Meaning of unusual words:
brae=hillside
mavis=song thrush
birken=birch
ilk=every
dowie=sad, mournful
skiffs=blow over
gin=if
callan=lad
Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
