North Country Folk Tunes

by Ernest Bristow Farrar (1885 - 1918)

1. Bonny at morn  [sung text not yet checked]

Language: Scottish (Scots) 
The sheep's in the [meadow]1, 
  The [kye's]2 in the corn,
Thou's [ower lang]3 in thy bed, 
  Bonny at morn,
    Canny at night,
Thou's [ower lang]3 in thy bed,
  Bonny at morn.

The bird's in the [bush]4, 
  The trout's in the burn;
Thou [hinderest]5 thy mother 
  In many a turn.
    Canny at night, 
  Bonny at morn,
Thou's ower lang in thy bed,
  Bonny at morn.

We're all laid idle 
  Wi' keeping the bairn,
[The lass wi' net learn,
  The lad wi' net work]6.
    Canny at night, 
  Bonny at morn,
Thou's ower lang in thy bed,
  Bonny at morn.

Text Authorship:

See other settings of this text.

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Beau le matin", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Bertram Kottmann) , "Niedlich am Morgen", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with Littell's Living Age, Volume 198, page 376.

1 Britten: "meadows"
2 Banks: "cow's"
3 Banks: "overlong"
4 Banks, Britten: "nest"
5 Banks, Britten: "hinders"
6 Banks: "The lad will not work/ and the lass will not learn"; Britten: "The lad winnot work/ And the lass winnot lairn"

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Virginia Knight

2. The willow tree

Language: English 
— This text is not currently
in the database but will be added
as soon as we obtain it. —

Text Authorship:

  • by Anonymous / Unidentified Author

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Total word count: 107