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As I Came O’er the Cairney Mount / The Hielan Laddie

[ Roud 5524 ; Robert Burns]

Gordeanna McCulloch sang The Hielan Laddie on her 1978 Topic album with The Clutha, Sheath and Knife. She commented in her album’s sleeve notes:

One of the many bawdy folksongs collected by Burns and illicitly published shortly after his death in Merry Muses of Caledonia [under the title As I Came O’er the Cairney Mount].

Kirsten Wasdale sang a more romantic than ribald As I Came O’er the Cairney Mount in 2002 on the anthology The Complete Songs of Robert Burns Volume 11.

Lyrics

Robert Burns’ As I Came O’er the Cairney Mount

As I came o’er the Cairney mount,
And down amang the blooming heather,
The Highland laddie drew his dirk
And sheath’d it in my wanton leather.

Chorus (after each verse):
O my bonnie, bonnie Highland lad,
My handsome, charming Highland laddie;
When I am sick and like to die,
He’ll row me in his Highland plaidie.

With me he play’d his warlike pranks,
And on me boldly did adventure,
He did attack me on both flanks,
And pushed me fiercely in the centre.

A furious battle then began,
Wi’ equal courage and desire,
Altho’ he struck me three to one,
I stood my ground and receiv’d his fire.

But our ammunition being spent
And we quite out o’ breath an’ sweating,
We did agree with ae consent
To fight it out at the next meeting.

Gordeanna McCulloch sings The Hielan Laddie

As I cam o’er the Cairney mount
An doon amang the blooming heather,
The hielan laddie drew his dirk
An sheathed it in my wanton leather.

Chorus (after each verse):
O ma bonnie Hielan laddie,
Ma handsome, charmin Hielan laddie,
When I’m sick an like tae dee,
He’ll row me in his tartan plaidie.

Wi me he played his warlike pranks
An on me boldly did adventure,
He did attack me on baith flanks
An pushed me fiercely in the centre.

A furious fecht we did maintain,
Wi equal courage an desire,
Although he charged me three tae ane
I stood ma grund an took his fire.

Kirsten Wasdale sings As I Came O’er the Cairney Mount

As I cam o’er the Cairney Mount
An doon amang the blooming heather,
Kindly stood the milking-shiel
To shelter frae the stormy weather.

Chorus (after each verse):
O ma bonie Highland lad,
My winsome, weelfar’d Highland laddie,
Wha wad mind the wind and rain
Sae weel ro’d in his tartan plaidie!

Now Phebus blinkit on the bent
And o’er the knowes the lambs were bleating;
But he wa my heart’s consent
To be his ain at the next meeting.