Tuesday, July 12, 2005

Charlie Is My Darling
Lyric by: Robert Burns

I put lyrics to this song in a previous post, but this is the version that i have on a homemade CD. It was wrongly listed as by the Corries, but this is clearly not the Corries. This version was recorded by Eddi Reader, a Scot rock singer, on an album called "Eddi Reader Sings the Songs of Robert Burns". She has a beautiful clear singing voice, and the instrumentation is unique. If you can procure a copy of it, I recommend it heartily. This is the way Robert Burns wrote it.



'Twas on a Monday morning,
Right early in the year,
That Charlie came to our town,
The young Chevalier.

Chorus
Charlie is my darling,
My darling, my darling,
Charlie is my darling,
The young Chevalier.

As he was walking doon the street, [doon = down]
The city for to view,
O there he spied a bonie lass [bonie lass = beautiful girl]
The windae peckin' through. [windae peekin' = window lookin']
Oh Charlie is my darling...

So light he jumped up the stair,
And tirl'd at the pin; [tirl'd at the pin = rang the doorbell]
And wha's sae ready but herself [wha's sae = who's so]
To let the laddie in? [laddie = boy]
Oh Charlie is my darling...

He set his Jenny on his knee, [set = sat]
All in his highland dress;
For brawly weel he kent the way [brawly weel = very well; kent = knew]
To please a highland lass.
Oh Charlie is my darling...

It's up yon heathery mountain, [yon = that]
And down yon scroggie glen, [scroggie glen = scrubland]
We daurnae gang a-milking, [daurnae gang = dare not go]
For Charlie and all his men,
Oh Charlie is my darling...

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