My heart is a breaking, dear Tittie, Some counsel unto me come len'; To anger them a' is a pity, But what will I do wi' Tam Glen? - I'm thinking, wi' sic a braw fellow, In poortith I might mak a fen': What care I in riches to wallow, If I mauna marry Tam Glen. - There 's Lowrie the laird o' Dumeller, "Gude day to you brute" he comes ben: He brags and he blaws o' his siller, But when will he dance like Tam Glen? - My Minnie does constantly deave me, And bids me beware o' young men; They flatter, she says, to deceive me, But wha can think sae o' Tam Glen? - My Daddie says, gin I'll forsake him, He'll gie me gude hunder marks ten: But if it 's ordain'd I maun take him, O wha will I get but Tam Glen? Yestreen at the Valentines' dealing, My heart to my mou gied a sten; For thrice I drew ane without failing, And thrice it was written, Tam Glen. - The last Halloween I was waukin My droukit sark-sleeve, as ye ken; His likeness cam up the house staukin, And the very grey breeks o' Tam Glen! Come counsel, dear Tittie, don't tarry; I'll gie you my bonie black hen, Gif ye will advise me to marry The lad I lo'e dearly, Tam Glen. -
Glossary
Mucking = cleaning dung out of a byre or stable
Titty = sister
Poortith = poverty
Mak' a fen'= to be above want, to make shift to live
Mauna = must not
Coof = blockhead, ninny
Ben = through to the inner room or parlour
Siller = silver, money
Minny = mother
Deave = annoy with talk
Gin = if
Gied a sten = moved with sudden motion
Waukin = making cloth thick and felted by a process, performed by hand, of soaking, beating and shrinking
Drookit = drenched
Sark-sleeve = shirt-sleeve
Breeks = breeches
Authorship:
- by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796) [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 (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "The mucking o' Geordie's byre", Hob. XXXIa:51bis, JHW. XXXII/3 no. 215 [voice and piano] [ sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by L. G. Silbergleit , "Franz" [an adaptation] FRE ; composed by Carl Goldmark.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Tam Glen", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2009-07-15
Line count: 32
Word count: 232