Subject: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Edmund Date: 22 May 01 - 09:54 PM It is such a beautiful song .. but I know of only 9 lines. Is this just a fragment or is there more? I tried the digi search before posting this. Thanks for any help ......... Edmund |
Subject: Lyr Add : Mo Mary From: Sorcha Date: 22 May 01 - 10:01 PM Mo Mary Words and Music by : Arranged and adapted by: Publisher: From Scotland Recorded by Harry Belafonte on: 45 : 47-6781, 47-9194, EPB-1022, DJ-80, SPD-24, LP : LSP-1022, MP666001, CD: CD97032, GOLD-072 Also recorded by:
Out on the hillside, by the sheiling, Mo Mary, my beloved.
And like the blue gentian gleaming,
Notes on scottish words: |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Murray MacLeod Date: 22 May 01 - 10:02 PM You really are anxious, Edmund, aren't you? Murray |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 22 May 01 - 10:33 PM That's the extent of what I know, too. I sing the first first again after the second. Dave Oesterreich |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Edmund Date: 22 May 01 - 11:16 PM Sorry Murray ... I kept thinking that my message hadn't gone out ... I'll get the hang of this computer smarts yet! ... meanwhile, how about another 15 verses or so ? .... Edmund |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 22 May 01 - 11:19 PM The old LP, The Tartan, Scottish songs by Kenneth McKellar, has a fine version of this old song. I will dig it out and post more words (some are Gaelic, I can't reproduce those and they are Greek to me). A shieling is either a pasture (meadow) or a hut by the pasture. Sheeling, shealing, etc. etc. are all spellings that have been used. It is a very old word, 16th Century definitely but probably much older. |
Subject: Lyr Add: MO MARY From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 23 May 01 - 12:15 AM On the McKellar album, the song is attributed to MacLeod and Kennedy-Fraser (no other information). Last night by the shieling was Mary, my beloved. Out on the hillside by the shieling, Mo Mary, my beloved. Mo Mary, mo lennan, mo Mary, my beloved, On the hillside by the shieling, mo Mary, my beloved. Like the white lily blooming, in the peat bags dark water. You are white as the lily, in the peat bags dark water. Mo Mary, mo lennan, mo Mary, my beloved, Like the white lily floating on the peat bags dark water. Like the blue gentian blooming, wet with dew in the sunshine, Are the eyes of my Mary, purple blue in the sunshine. Mo Mary, mo lennan, Mo Mary, my beloved, Lily white, blue gentian eyes, is mo Mary, My beloved. I would like to know more about this beautiful song. Sorcha? |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 23 May 01 - 12:17 AM My memory was faulty. There are no Gaelic passages in the McKellar version. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Uncle_DaveO Date: 23 May 01 - 12:44 PM That would be "peat BOGS", not "bags". Dave Oesterreich |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 23 May 01 - 07:51 PM Just reproducing the sound on the McKellar recording- several spellings of the word including boghe, bogach, bogge. The pronounciation "bag" probably from Gaelic bogach, the origin of the word bog. I would still like to know moe about this song and its origin. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Malcolm Douglas Date: 23 May 01 - 08:26 PM Well, Kenneth MacLeod and Marjory Kennedy-Fraser were the editors of Songs of the Hebrides, which first appeared in (I think) 1909. It was a collection of Gaelic song harmonised according to the conventional drawing-room tastes of the day, with piano accompaniments. Many of the songs were given with English language "singing" versions, which were not necessarily translations from Gaelic, and a number were composed by the editors themselves; usually this is made clear. Probably this song is taken from that collection, which, though long out of print, is not difficult to find through public libraries. It seems on the face of it to be unrelated to another song of the same name, Mo Mhaire Malcolm |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Edmund Date: 23 May 01 - 09:54 PM Thanks, Dicho, for the additional lyrics. Pretty soon we will have enough to make a full song of it. There must be more words somewhere ... no one could make a piece as beautiful as that and cut it so short. More lyrics! ... please somebody ... I'm dying to hear a full song instead of this lovely fragment. ... EDMUND |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 24 May 01 - 05:28 PM Thanks, Malcolm. I will look up a copy of Songs of the Hebridies. It also explains the title on the McKellar album, "An Island Shieling Song." |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mhairi From: GUEST,Philippa Date: 25 May 01 - 04:51 PM also recorded by Calum Kennedy and I think I have heard it sung in Gaelic. "Mo leannan" means "my beloved" or "my lover" |
Subject: Lyr Add: MAIGHDEANNAN NA H-ÀIRIGH / SHIELING MAIDS From: GUEST,Philippa Date: 25 May 01 - 07:07 PM Maighdeannan na h-Àirigh (facail: Coinneach MacLeòid) Thug mi 'n oidhche a-raoir 's mi bruadar Mar ri nìonagan na buaile; B'fhìnealt' uasal mìn na gruaigaich Seinn nan duanag anns an àirigh. (seist) Thug mi 'n oidhche a-raoir san àirigh Thug mi 'n oidhche a-raoir san àirigh Chaith mi 'n-oidhche cridheil coibhneil Mar ri maighdeannan na h-àirigh Thug mi 'n oidhche a-raoir san àirigh 'S crodh a' sileadh bainne tàlaidh 'S dealt na h-oidhche sileadh coibhneis Air na maighdeannan san àirigh.
'S cianail dùsgadh an fhir-fhuadain
|
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Dicho (Frank Staplin) Date: 25 May 01 - 09:49 PM Philippa, you are right,leannan (and McKellar pronounced it this way) should be substituted for lennan in the song. Mo Mhairi probably was changed in the McKellar album to Mary for the sake of a wider audience; also in one line he seems to use My rather than Mo. The melody to The Shieling Maids would be interesting to hear. Is in in Midi anywhere? I have bookmarked the CLI site for going through later. Thanks for the information. |
Subject: Lyr Add: THE SOLITARY REAPER From: GUEST,mumhnach Date: 26 May 01 - 10:35 AM THE SOLITARY REAPER I'm irresistibly reminded of a poem I learned in school:
Behold her single in the field
Will no one tell me what she sings?
Whate'er it was the maiden sang
Can't remember the poet at the moment but I think I know how he felt. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Malcolm Douglas Date: 26 May 01 - 01:44 PM William Wordsworth. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: GUEST,Philippa Date: 03 Sep 01 - 01:32 PM Why didn't I find this thread when I did a search for "Mo Mary"? The song "Maighdeanan na h-Airigh" was recently quoted by a participant in an on-line Gaelic discussion group. I wrote in to mention that this song has the same tune as "The Island Sheiling Song" and to ask whether there were Gaelic words to the latter. The response I received was that although thewords are not a translation, "Maighdeanan na h-Airigh" IS the Gaelic-language version of "The Island Sheiling Song".
According to the respondent, both sets of lyrics are found together in Marjory Kennedy-Fraser, "Songs of the Hebrides", Volume 1, published by Boosey and Hawkes about 1908. The song was collected in the isle of Barra by Marjory Kennedy-Fraser and Kenneth MacKellar. It is not clear which languagelyrics they collected, although Gaelic is still the main language of Barra and was even a century ago. The book attributes the Gaelic lyrics to Kenneth MacKellar and the English lyrics to Marjory Kennedy-Fraser. Ms Kennedy-Fraser was an arranger of songs. She adapted them for performance in genteel circles. She wasn't worried about keeping her "translations" true tothe original!
In the case of this song, it seems likely that the collectors had only a fragment of the original song and made up both Gaelic and English lyrics on that fragile basis. |
Subject: Mo Mary (The Gardners: Peter and Isabel) From: Genie Date: 19 Aug 08 - 03:17 PM Very glad to see another verse or two to "Mo Mary." I heard this song performed by Peter and Isabel Gardner back in 1963 at Gerde's Folk City (Greenwich Village) and I bought their album "Folk Songs Far And Near" (Prestige ©1962). In their version the shortage of verses wasn't a problem, as Isabel did wonderful flute interludes and they repeated the first verse. But when I think of singing it, say, in a song circle, it comes out awfully short. Beautiful song. |
Subject: Lyr Add: AN ISLAND SHEILING SONG (Kennedy-Fraser) From: Q (Frank Staplin) Date: 19 Aug 08 - 05:39 PM Philippa posted the Gaelic words to Maighdeanan na h-àiridh (An Island Sheiling Song); They are given with the music and English version by Marjory Kennedy-Fraser in "Songs of the Hebridies," vol. 1, pp. 32-36. "Old refrain with Gaelic verses by Kenneth Macleod. The melody is taken down from the singing of Ann Macneill, Barra." "Mairi is pronounced like the French Marie. The word leannan is pronounced "lennan." Copyright 1908 by M. Kennedy-Fraser. B. & H. 18129. English words: Lyr. Add: AN ISLAND SHEILING SONG English words by Marjory Kennedy-Fraser Last night by the sheiling was Marie my beloved, Out on the hillside by the sheiling, My Mairi, my beloved Mo Mhari, mo leannan, mo Mhari, my beloved On the hillside by the sheiling, My Mairi my beloved. 2 Like the white lily floating in the peat hag's dark waters, Pure and white as the lily in the peat hag's dark waters, Mo mhairi, mo leannan, Mo Mhairi, my beloved, Like the lily white, floating in the peat hag's dark waters. 3 Like the blue gentian blooming Wet wi' dew in the sunshine Are the eyes of my Mairi, purple blue in the sunshine Mo Mhairi, mo leannan, Mo Mhairi, my beloved, Lily white, pure, gentian eyed is my Mairi, my beloved. Songs of the Hebridies, vol. 1, 1908, Boosey & Hawkes; new ed. copyright 1922 by Boosey & Co.; coll. and arranged by Marjory Kennedy-Fraser and Kenneth Macleod. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: GUEST,Philippa Date: 20 Aug 08 - 10:38 AM if you look at the translation I provide, you will see how far Kennedy-Fraser and MacLeod strayed from the original! But at least they did publish Gaelic lyrics as well as their English language inventions (hardly translations) |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: GUEST,Source seeker Date: 15 Apr 09 - 05:32 PM So the song was published in 1908. Does anyone have any idea how old it is? 19th century, 18th century, etc? |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Mo Mary From: Q (Frank Staplin) Date: 15 Apr 09 - 06:14 PM Guest, the song is a collected one; the English lyrics by Kennedy-Fraser 1908. Age not known, unless there is documentation somewhere. Philippa might know more. |
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