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The Dowie Dens o Yarrow

Date
Track ID 34228
Part 1

Track Information

Original Track ID

SA1953.240.A2

Original Tape ID

SA1953.240

Summary

In this ballad, a young woman has nine suitors, but loves only a ploughboy, who rides out to fight the nine gentlemen. Despite holding his own on the battlefield, the ploughboy is killed by the young woman's brother, who stabs him from behind. The young woman has a foreboding dream, which is interpreted by her father, who confirms that her lover has been slain. She goes to find his body at Yarrow, and laments, praising him as the finest flower of Yarrow.

Item Notes

10 verses of 4 lines. Recorded at the 3rd People's Festival Ceilidh in Edinburgh in 1953.

See:
Greig-Duncan vol. 2, pp. 99-113
'Tocher' 26 (1977) p. 83
'Scottish Ballads' (E. Lyle, 1994) pp. 211-213
'Traditional Tunes' (F. Kidson, 1891) pp. 21-24
'Bothy Songs & Ballads' (J. Ord, 1930) pp. 426-427
'101 Scottish Songs' (N. Buchan, 1962) pp. 132-133
'The Scottish Ballads' (R. Chambers, 1829) pp. 164-167
'Ballads of Scotland' vol. 1 (W. E. Aytoun, 1858) pp. 187-190
'Minstrelsy Ancient & Modern' (W. Motherwell, 1827) pp. 252-255
'Ancient Ballads and Songs' vol. 2 (P. Buchan, 1828) pp. 193-196
'A Collection of Scots Songs' (A. Munro & H. Henderson, 1972) p. 38
'Till Doomsday in the Afternoon' (E. MacColl & P. Seeger, 1986) pp. 179-181
'Last Leaves of Traditional Ballads' (A. Keith, G. Greig, 1925) pp. 141-144
'Travellers' Songs from England and Scotland' (E. MacColl & P. Seeger, 1977) pp. 95-102
'Folk-Song of the North-East' (G. Greig, K. Goldstein, A. Argo, 1963 reprint) art. LVII

Recording Location

County - Midlothian

Parish - Edinburgh

Village/Place - Edinburgh

Item Location

County - Selkirkshire

Parish - Yarrow

Village/Place - Yarrow Valley

Language

Scots

Genre

Song

Collection

SoSS

Classification

R13 GD215 C214

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Fair