The Swans Swim So Bonnie

Original Track ID

SA1960.143.B10

Original Tape ID

SA1960.143

Summary

In these opening fragments of the ballad 'Binnorie' (or 'The Twa Sisters'), a woman invites her sister to walk with her by the river:

There were twa sisters lived in this place,
Hey, ho, ma nannie o,
One was fair and the ither was deen [sic: din, dun],
And the swan swims sae bonnie o.

Dear sister, dear sister, would ye take a walk?
Hey, ho, ma nannie o,
Would ye take a walk doon by the miller's dam?
And the swan swims sae bonnie o.

Item Notes

2 verses consisting of couplets with an interlinear refrain.

See:
Greig-Duncan vol. 2, pp. 76-92, no. 213
'Scottish Ballads' (E. Lyle, 1994) pp. 113-115
'Bothy Songs & Ballads' (J. Ord, 1930) pp. 430-432
'Singing Island' (E. MacColl & P. Seeger, 1960) p. 85
'Scottish Tragic Ballads' (J. Pinkerton, 1781) pp. 72-74
'Book of Scottish Ballads' (A. Whitelaw, 1845) pp. 260-261
'Vagabond Songs & Ballads' vol. 2 (R. Ford, 1901) pp. 189-194
'Ballads of Scotland' vol. 1 (W.E. Aytoun, 1858) pp. 194-199
'Ancient Ballads and Songs' vol. 2 (P. Buchan, 1828) pp. 122-125
'Everyman's Book of British Ballads' (R. Palmer, 1980) pp. 91-92
'The Scottish Folksinger' (N. Buchan & P. Hall, 1973) pp. 84-85
'A Collection of Scots Songs' (A. Munro & H. Henderson, 1972) p. 36
'Last Leaves of Traditional Ballads' (A. Keith & G. Greig, 1925) pp. 9-13
'Ancient & Modern Scottish Songs' vol. 2 (D. Herd, 1869, 1973) pp. 306-307
'Travellers' Songs from England and Scotland' (E. MacColl & P. Seeger, 1977) pp. 51-53
'Traditional Tunes of the Child Ballads' vol. 1 (B.H. Bronson & F.J. Child, 1959) pp. 143-184
'Andrew Crawfurd's Collection of Ballads & Songs' vol. 2 (E. Lyle, 1996) pp. 48-49, 103-105

Recording Location

Language

Scots

Genre

Song

Collection

SoSS

Classification

R8 GD213 C10

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Fair