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The Broom of Cowdenknowes Child Ballad #217
0, the broom, the bonny, bonny broom
The broom o' the Cowdenknowes
Fain would I be with my ain true love
Wi' his pipy and my ewes
How blithe I was each morn to see
My love come o' er the hill
He left the burn and he blew tae me
I met him wi' good will
Chorus
I neither wanted ewe nor lamb
When his blass lay by me
He gathered in my sheep at night
And he cheered me all the day
Chorus
He tuned his pipe and reed sae sweet
The birds stood list'ning by
Even the dull cattle stood and gaz 'd
Charm 'd with his melody
Chorus
Thanks Alan Scott for this Photo from Scotland
NEXT VERSION
How blithe each morn was I tae see
My lass came o'er the hill
She skipped the burn and ran tae me
I met her with good will.
O the broom, the bonnie, bonnie broom
The broom o the cowdenknowes
Fain would I be in the north country
Herding her father's ewes
We neither herded ewes nor lamb
While the flock near us lay
She gathered in the sheep at night
And cheered me all the day
Hard fate that I should banished be
Gone way o'er hill and moor
Because I loved the fairest lass
That ever yet was born
Adieu, ye cowdenknowes, adieu
Farewell all pleasures there
To wander by her side again
Is all I crave or care
Cowdenknowes is a Scottish estate on the east bank of the river Leader Water, 32 miles southeast of Edinburgh. The original tower house built by the Homes of Cowdenknowes in the 15th century is still occupied. The Broom of Cowdenknowes, Child ballad #217, is traceable at least as far back as the early seventeenth century where it appears in a small collection as "The Lovely Northerne Lass." Allan Ramsay also published a version in his "Tea Table Miscellany", during the 1720s. F.Child has fourteen different sets of lyrics! Cowdenknowes is in Berwickshire, near to the village of Earlston, a place much associated with the 13th century poet and prophet, "Thomas The Rhymer".
The broom, a tall shrub which blooms with spikes of small golden flowers, once grew abundantly on the hillsides of the Scottish Borders.
17th Century Scottish. Child #217
Variants and alternate titles include The Laird of Knotington, Bony May, Laird o Ochiltree,
The Maid o the Cowdenknows, Laird o Lochnie, The Laird of Lochinvar.
This Song was also used in the Beggars Opera!
The Broom o'the Cowdenknowes
( Another Version)
how blithe was I ilk morn to see
my swain come o'er the hill.
he leap'd the burn and flew to me;
I met him with good will.
oh, the broom, the bonnie, bonnie broom,
the broom o'the cowdenknowes;
I wish I were wi my dear swain.
Wi his pipe and my ewes.
I neither wanted ewe nor lamb,
while his flock near me lay;
he gather'd in my sheep at night,
and cheer'd me a'the day.
oh, the broom, the bonnie, bonnie broom,
the broom o'the cowdenknowes;
I wish I were wi my dear swain.
Wi his pipe and my ewes.
while thus we spent our time by turns,
betwist our flocks and play,
I envied not the fairest dame,
tho ne'er so rich and gay.
oh, the broom, the bonnie, bonnie broom,
the broom o'the cowdenknowes;
I wish I were wi my dear swain.
Wi his pipe and my ewes.
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