Fred, I learned it from Heather several years ago (1983 or thereabouts)in Scotland. Notes I made at the time burned with the house. The notes for Heather's album "By Yon Castle Wa'" were by Mudcat member Sheena Wellington, so she may remember, but it seems simple enough to ask Heather and I shall do so.

We do have a previous thread on the song though, with none other than Anne Neilson commenting- and supporting the thought that Heather learned it from Mary Stewart. Lyr ADD "The Sands O' the Shore"

The following is from that previous thread:
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Subject: RE: The Sands of the Shore
From: Anne Neilson - PM
Date: 04 Nov 10 - 01:47 PM

"Norman Buchan established a Ballads Club at my secondary school (Rutherglen Academy, near Glasgow/Scotland) in 1957 and gave us all a great grounding in good traditional music. When he then went into Parliament in 1964 a new young English teacher Ian Davison (now a prolific songwriter) took over the club and one of his pupils brought in "The Sands of the Shore"; Kathleen Mitchell told Ian that she had learned it from her granny, but although Ian did some research on it at that time he failed to identify it.

I was a member of the Ian Davison Group (typical name for the times!) and we sang it around quite a lot; another former pupil Mary Stewart sang it regularly about then in the Kilmarnock Folk Club -- which is where I believe that Heather Heywood probably first heard it. And Heather eventually recorded it....
Seems like a possible time line to me, but I'd be delighted to learn any more from anyone who knows better.

And we had it as " He's a stranger to me and so let it be" (although the vowels were more Scottish!). "
***end excerpt)
That thread also includes a more anglicized version of the words with the fourth verse beginning. "Oh he is the son of some high-rankin' kin".
The first verse is a bit different in that thread also, with:
"He took awa' my hairt, but I got it back again.
Aye, I got it back again, and as frail though it be,"

Your version is the one I had learned also.

Maeve