possibly by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796)
My wife's a wanton wee thing
Language: Scottish (Scots)
My wife's a wanton, wee thing, My wife's a wanton, wee thing, My wife's a wanton, wee thing, She winna be guided by me. She play'd the loon or she was married, She play'd the loon or she was married, She glar'd the loon or she was married, She'll do it again or she die. She sell'd her coat and she drank it, She sell'd her coat and she drank it, She row'd hersell in a blanket, She winna be guided for me. She mind't na when I forbade her, She mind't na when I forbade her, I took a rung and I claw'd her, And a braw gude bairn was she.
Confirmed with Scots Musical Museum, Johnson & Co., Edinburgh, 1790, page 226
Note: the first two stanzas are based on a folk song. Verses 3 and 4 are attributed to Burns.
Authorship:
- possibly by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "My wife's a wanton wee thing", Johnson & Co., Edinburgh, first published 1790 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Francis George Scott (1880 - 1958), "My wife's a wanton wee thing", published 1936 [ baritone and piano ], from Scottish Lyrics, Book 4, no. 3, Bayley & Ferguson [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Iain Sneddon [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2018-11-27
Line count: 16
Word count: 112