Many of the more laterally thinking practitioners of Scottish Traditional music would contend that the way in which this song is normally sung is totally at odds with the lyrics.

The song is after all a lament, and to sing it as an up-tempo march, complete with threshing guitar strums, is grotesque, to say the least.

I suggest a listen to the debut CD by Chantan, (Elspeth Cowie, Corinna Hewitt and Christine Kydd) where they give the poem a suitably haunting rendition, to the tune which is better known as the melody of the Burns song "The Lea Rig"