Subject: LYR REQ: The Yew Tree From: ewessel@apk.net Date: 08 Jun 99 - 02:25 PM I am looking for the lyrics to "The Yew Tree", a Scottish folk song. I have the music for it, but I still need the lyrics. Please e-mail them, as I do not get on the forem very often. |
Subject: RE: LYR REQ: The Yew Tree From: Susanne (skw) Date: 08 Jun 99 - 05:25 PM Tomorrow night, ok? I can't reach them now. BTW, the only song of that title I have is the one by Brian McNeill - but it does sound very folky. - Susanne |
Subject: RE: LYR REQ: The Yew Tree From: Penny S. Date: 09 Jun 99 - 11:44 AM Would it be possible to post them as well? I'm, sort of, doing a study of yew tree distribution, and it would be interesting to have some folky quotes to enliven a dry discourse. Thanks, Penny |
Subject: Lyr Add: THE YEW TREE From: harpgirl Date: 09 Jun 99 - 11:59 AM ...here is my fragment since I have yet to collect the whole song...perhaps someone will provide the rest... The Yew Tree a mile to...Catlin on the road to the sea Stands a yew tree a thousand years old And they all..... That it knows what the future will hold For the shadows of Scotland stand round it Mid the reel (?) and the corn and the... All the hopes and the fears of a thousand long years Under deluvian skys My bonny yew tree, tell what did you see? Did you look through the haze of a long summer's day To the south and the far English border All the bullets of steal and ....for field Did they march.... Did you ask them the price of the Glory? When you heard the great slaughter begin All the dusty.... To bring tears to the eyes of the wind My bonny yew tree, tell me what did you see?.... sorry it is so incomplete...harp
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Subject: RE: LYR REQ: The Yew Tree From: HåvardR Date: 09 Jun 99 - 02:41 PM I'll have a look if "Bonnie Yew Tree" is in Brian's songbook when I get home. Håvard |
Subject: Lyr Add: THE YEW TREE From: Peter Date: 09 Jun 99 - 03:05 PM The Battlefield Band sings it and (I think) wrote it - here is my correction of the lyrics above:
a mile [frae Pencaitland] on the road to the sea
Did you look through the haze of a long summer's day It continues:
Did ye no' think tae tell, when John Knox himsel'
When the moss-troopers layin your shade
And I thought as I stood and laid hands on your wood |
Subject: Lyr Add: THE YEW TREE (Brian McNeill) From: Susanne (skw) Date: 09 Jun 99 - 07:12 PM I see I've been beaten, but since Peter's version has got slightly mixed up I'll post mine regardless, plus a few bits of historical info. Hope you don't mind. - Susanne
Chorus:
A mile frae Pentcaitland, on the road to the sea
Did you look through the haze o' the lang summer days
Not once did you speak for the poor and the weak
Did you no' think tae tell when John Knox himsel'
And I thought as I stood and laid hands on your wood
Last chorus:
This is how the Battlefield Band sing it on 'Home Ground' (great live album!)
[1879:] Nothing could be better evidence of how profoundly the mind of Scotland was moved by the evangel of Knox and his brother labourers than the sudden disappearance from oral tradition of many of the songs and ballads which had been popular for many years. There can be no doubt that many of these songs were what would now be considered highly licentious, although among our rude and plain-speaking forefathers and foremothers they may have passed current without evoking a blush on the face of village maidens. The Reformation called for an alteration in morals as well as in doctrines, and these songs were not only discouraged, but a poetic reformer issued a volume of "Gude and Godly Ballats", in which new and pious words were adapted to the old airs. In poetic merit this collection is wretched [...]. Still, they helped to supplant the old songs and ballads [...]. We hear no more of the "Ring sangs" [ballads] after the Reformation, though it is not impossible that they may have been continued in obscure places for some time, especially in quarters where the fervour of the Reformation hardly reached. [...] The struggle for the supremacy of Presbyterianism in Scotland [...] lasted long, and it was [...] no wonder that the old joyousness which broke out into dance and song was to a large extent extinguished, and that the gloom of a religion which had been darkened by the fire and smoke of battle should have fallen upon the people. (John Ord, Glasgow Weekly Herald, December 13)
[1972:] [Henry VIII joining the Pope, Spain, and Venice in a Holy League against France in 1511] placed James [IV of Scotland] in a dilemma from which there was no escape; his obligations under the Auld Alliance of 1491-2 and the Anglo-Scottish peace of 1502, renewed in 1509, were mutually incompatible except when England and France were at peace. [James tried to keep out of the conflict but] Henry, who meant to shine on the battlefields of Europe, had been definitely preparing for war against his brother-in-law. [...] It was only on 24 July [1513] that James summoned the shire levies. [Earl marshal] Surrey had begun to mobilize in London as early as 21 July; [...] his arrangements for organizing the north had been so good that he 'took his field' north of Newcastle on 5 September.
[1988:] The Yew was a sacred tree to most of Europe's pre-Christian religions. It was a symbol of everlasting life. Indeed many Christian churches were built on the site of a pagan yew-grove. The Yew in this song stands near the village of Ormiston, in East Lothian, by the 13th century ruins of the Church of St. Giles. Brian was told about this magnificent tree by an old man in the neighbouring village of Pentcaitland. He went to see it and felt the whole place 'humming with ghosts'. It is not surprising that such an old and majestic tree has a place in the people's memory. The Covenanters preached under its boughs and it seems likely that the young John Knox (born and bred in nearby Haddington) honed his stern fiery message beneath ist leaves. One commentator in the late 19th century said "The Yew at Ormiston could tell strange tales, if only we could hear". (Battlefield Band Songbook 123)
[1994:] This song practically wrote itself. I was there, I saw the bird that flew out from its branches and so on, and the song wrote itself. (Brian McNeill, pr. comm.)
[1997:] A campaign has begun to restore the historical standing of John Knox, the father of the Scottish Reformation reviled by late twentieth-century man as a ranting killjoy. [...] John Knox was born in 1513 and became a priest, notary and soldier. He spent 18 months as a French galley-slave and fell under the influence of John Calvin in Geneva [...]. He returned to Scotland in 1560 and became the driving force behind the Scottish Reformation, the most radical in Europe. Apart from his rejection of papacy and its hierarchy, he led a drive for universal literacy. He wanted a school in every parish, a college in every town and a university in every city. He also wanted regular, organised provision for the poor. Post-war Scotland, secular and hedonistic, where the pubs are open all day on Sunday, has largely forgotten him. [Some historians think] Knox's historical standing had been traduced by the extremism of the militant Protestantism that followed. (Arnold Kemp / Dean Nelson, Observer 5 Apr)
---------- Queen Amang the Heather
[1965:] This splendid version of a song equally well-known amongst the Scots farming community and the travelling folk was learnt by Belle when she was still a wee bairn - among the singers to have contributed to her version are old Henry MacGregor of Perth, her cousin Jimmy Whyte and her brother Donald MacGregor. Versions of it used to be as thick as blaeberries in Strathmore and the Braes of Angus. It seems to be related to Ower the Muir Amang the Heather, of which Burns wrote: 'This song is the composition of Jean Glover. ... I took the song down from her singing as she was strolling through the country with a sleight-of-hand blackguard.'. Subsequent collecting makes it almost certain that Jean Glover 's version was itself a re-shaping of an older Ettrick song. James Hogg, the Ettrick shepherd produced a version which was in turn modified. Musical and textual evidence however, suggests that [...] a classic ballad lies behind the lyric lovesong. In this case, the progenitor is Glasgow Peggie (Child 228), the tunes for which are clearly related to Queen Amang the Heather, and whose story presents a parallel situation - the Highlander who takes the heiress he has carried off and beds her down 'amang the heather' before revealing that he is himself a Chieftain. (Hamish Henderson, notes 'The Stewarts of Blair')
[1995:] Sheila [Stewart] calls the song, which she got from her mother, Queen Amang the Heather, but we have used the title in the 'Greig-Duncan Collection', Volume 5. There are a bewildering variety of pieces in Scottish folk song on the courtship of the lowly by the high born suitor, notably the ballad version, The Laird o' Drum. The message is clearly egalitarian, and this has a distinct attraction for traveller singers often themselves suffering social discrimination. The motif is well expressed in the last verse of the ballad. (Peter Hall, notes 'Folk Songs of North-East Scotland') ^^ |
Subject: RE: LYR REQ: The Yew Tree From: Susanne (skw) Date: 09 Jun 99 - 07:46 PM Sorry, another bloomer! 'Queen Amang the Heather' was meant to go to the thread of that title. It got caught up in the cutting. Please ignore it. - Susanne |
Subject: RE: LYR REQ: The Yew Tree From: Penny S. Date: 10 Jun 99 - 02:27 PM Thanks for all that information, as well as the song. The only old tree (1000+) I have mapped in Scotland is at Fortingall. Penny |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: GUEST,Can someone provide chords/music Date: 15 Mar 05 - 12:49 PM for this to me please? I appreciate it muchly. bard@freecelts.com |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: GUEST Date: 15 Mar 05 - 12:58 PM sheet music e-mailed |
Subject: The Yew Tree, would love to have the chords From: GUEST,quest Date: 23 Aug 08 - 08:24 AM i have looked everywhere for chords for this song. i used to play in a band and we would sing it, but since i was a singer, i never learned the chords, nor did i play guitar. and now the rest of my band is in a different country than me since i moved away. would appreciate the chords. if possible. thanks mapledaleo@gmail.com |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: GUEST Date: 10 Jan 09 - 07:00 PM did anyone found the chords? i'd really like to learn this song, email it to korn114@hotmail.com if possible |
Subject: Chords Add: THE YEW TREE (Brian McNeill) From: Susanne (skw) Date: 10 Jan 09 - 07:58 PM Does this help? It's from the Battlefield Band song book. A mile(Em) from Pencaitland(D) on the road(C) tae the sea(Em) Stands a yew(C) tree a thou(D)sand years old(Em) And the old(Em) women swear(D) by the grey(C) o' their hair(Em) That it knows(C) what the fu(D)ture will hold(Em) For the sha(A)dows of Scot(D)land stand round(Em) it 'Mid the kale(D) and the corn and the kye(A) All the hopes(G) and the fears of a thou(D)sand long years(Bm) Un(Em)der the Lo(D)thian sky(Em) My bonny yew tree(D) Tell me what did you see(Em) |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: Jack Campin Date: 10 Jan 09 - 08:09 PM That song seems to get longer every time I hear it. Brian McNeill is not known for ever leaving a historical footnote unsung in the cause of brevity. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: Susanne (skw) Date: 10 Jan 09 - 08:27 PM Maybe, Jack, but he does it brilliantly! BTW, I've heard that song for twenty years, and it's always been the same length and the same number of verses. Maybe it's your brain? :-) |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: Suegorgeous Date: 10 Jan 09 - 08:33 PM Dick Gaughan has a version of this. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: Ross Campbell Date: 10 Jan 09 - 09:31 PM Insane Beard recently reminded me of the Fortingall Yew in Perthshire, Scotland, which I recall visiting about forty-five years ago when friends of my parents lived nearby. Estimates of its age range from a minimum two thousand years up to nine thousand years. Even two thousand years makes it the oldest tree in Europe. Ross |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree From: Bearheart Date: 11 Jan 09 - 09:40 PM Very interesting topic. I have a special place in my heart for trees, especially the Yews. There are several dated Yew trees around Britain (mostly in church yards) that are older than 2000 years old. One is at a church yard in Ulcombe in Kent. (Locals say the older of the two really old ones there is closer to 4000 years old...) There are 20 to 30 yews at Kingly Vale (at a guess-- I've never counted them because I'm always too awestruck to remember to). It's a national heritage site near Chichester in West Sussex (?). I don't know their age but some must be over a thousand easily. I've always thought they were Tolkien's inspiration- they are very sentient trees!!! and the three (Neolithic?) burial mounds on the hill overlooking them are also worth a visit. I'm always surprised that so few English seem to know about the place, it is incredibly awe-inspiring to be in that grove of ancient beings... Certainly one of the most magical places in the Isles. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree (Battlefield Band) From: Jack Campin Date: 27 Jul 18 - 01:10 PM I am presently on a bus leaving Ormiston after trying and failing to find the tree from the directions in the village square. Anybody got a Google map reference for it? |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree (Battlefield Band) From: GUEST,Jack Campin Date: 28 Jul 18 - 07:36 AM More info about the tree: https://www.ancient-yew.org/userfiles/file/Ormiston.pdf James Miller's poem is truly appalling. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree (Battlefield Band) From: Jeri Date: 28 Jul 18 - 10:19 AM Late, but Google Maps - Fortingall Yew |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree (Battlefield Band) From: Jeri Date: 28 Jul 18 - 10:23 AM Or maybe that was an obvious yew, but not the right one. |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree (Battlefield Band) From: FreddyHeadey Date: 28 Jul 18 - 07:56 PM The Ormiston Yew Google maps https://goo.gl/maps/awsBuks9kD32 from google, walking - village to The Ormiston Yew 25 min (1.2 mi) https://goo.gl/maps/jBrfKZULR1v end of route, Street view https://goo.gl/maps/CYWMa4MGvmo road swings left at a bungalow, ~50 metres later take a grassy track on the right. \southwest In about 100 metres find the Tree\enormous clump of trees OS ref NT 41206 67610 https://gridreferencefinder.com/osfs/?gr=NT4120667610|NT_s_41206_s_67610|1&v=h |
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: The Yew Tree (Battlefield Band) From: Jack Campin Date: 29 Jul 18 - 04:15 AM Thanks. The Google Maps link looks ok and should get me there - the others do odd things on my (old) phone. "A mile from Pencaitland, on the road to the sea" - you can see why Brian MacNeill didn't go for a career in tour guiding. |
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