Brisk Young Lassie
From ‘The Popular Songs and Melodies of Scotland’ (1891) by George Farquhar Graham
Lyrics written in 1891 by a friend of GF Graham’s publisher
Original air from ‘I will Not Go To My Bed Till I Should Die’ mentioned in William Dauney’s
1843 edition of the Skene manuscript (pub circa 1715) ‘slightly’ rearranged by Graham then slightly re-rearranged(!) by Lainey Dempsey (2020)
Why should I a brisk young
lassie,
be forced tae wed a feckless
auld man?
Hoastin and hirplin his
lamiter bodie,
I’ll die far rather than gie him
ma han’
My ane kin are like to deave
me
Bout hoose and hame, siller
and lan’
Deil tak yer siller an’ lan’ a’
thegither
I’ll die far rather than gie him
ma han’
My ain Jo is young an bonnie
And though he’s poor he’s ay
true tae me
I’ll take nae man but ma ain
darlin’ johnnie
An’ ne’er the auld man, altho
I should die
Kirk or market aye he follows
me,
gapin glowerin till I’d fain
ban,
Then at oor ingleneuk ilka
day havrin,
I’ll die far rather than gie him
ma han’
Why should I a brisk young
lassie
be forced tae wed a feckless
auld man?
Hoastin and hirplin his
lamiter bodie
I’ll die far rather than gie him
ma han’
There is no shortage of traditional compositions about young women resisting or resigning to marrying old men. Many, like ‘Auld Robin Gray’ are tragic but plenty are full of humour and sedition.
First referenced in Mitchell’s ‘The Gude and Godlie Ballatis’(1567) is ‘O, An Ye Were Dead, Guidman’ where the wife wishes her old husband dead so she can run away with their handsome young farmhand from the Highlands.
Burns contributed ‘What Can A Young Lassie’ to Johnson’s Scottish Musical Museum. (1771) A tale of a young woman ‘sold’ by her mother to an old man and culminating in her plotting his demise to claim her widow’s inheritance. Admittedly her plan for her newfound wealth was to buy a new pan. An indicator to my mind that the song was not penned by a woman.
Much printed in the 18th century and popularised by Jeannie Robertson in the mid to late 20th century is ‘A Dottered Auld Carle’. A relation to ‘There Was An Old Man Came Over The Sea’. Both songs describe a young woman being forced to ‘court’ an old man by her mother in pursuit of marriage and prosperity. Robertson’s narrator draws the line at a kiss but fortune is not so kind on the lass from ‘The Old Man From Over The Sea’. She remains defiant throughout however, declaring till the end, ‘I will not have him’.
These are just a few of many and ‘Brisk Young Lassie’ is part of that cannon. Thanks to the air and lyrics combined, it’s a swift little blast of joy and resistance.
The lyrics grabbed me first. Such colourful Scots. All the descriptors for how the old fella moves and behaves highlighting the disdain with which this lively young woman regards her aged suitor. The original lyrics to the brilliantly named, ‘I Will Not go to my Bed Till I Should Die’ were sadly lost but with a title like that you’ve got to wonder what wonderful things the lass was up to that sleep could never be succumbed to in her lifetime.