Lyr Req: He Mandu (Scottish waulking song)

Subject: Lyrics of He Mandu
From: Michael McGlynn
Date: 10 Dec 96 - 05:52 AM

Could anyone provide me with Lyrics and a translation of this Scottish Waulking song?

Subject: Lyr Add: HE MANDU (from Mouth Music)
From:
Date: 12 Feb 97 - 04:30 PM

Mouth Music gives the following lyrics on their recording, Mo-di:

He mandu 's truagh nach digeadh
He mandu siod 'gham iarraidh
He mandu gille 's litir
Hi ri oro each is diollaid
He mandu hi ri oro
ho ro hu o

Nam biodh agam sgiath a ghlaisein
iteag nan eoin spog na lachain
Shnamhainn na caoil air an tarsuinn
an Caol Ileach 's an Caol Arcach
'S rachainn a steach chon a' chaisteal
's bheirinn a mach as mo leannan.

Their translation:

Alas, that this does not come to fetch me;
a messenger and a letter, a horse and a saddle.
If I had the sparrow's wing,
the birds' power of flight, the wild duck's foot,
I would swim across the narrows,
the Sound of Islay, the Sound of Orkney:
I would go into the castle
and I would bring my sweetheart out.

-->>There is a great version on Scottish Tradition #2, Music From the Western Isles, compiled by the School of Scottish Studies at Edinburgh Univ. and released by Greentrax Records (3 Morven Street, Edinburgh EH4 7LG; tel. [phone], fax [phone])

(This may be more information than you wanted, but...) If you haven't yet started collecting these Scottish Traditions recordings (16 planned releases when last I heard), you're in for a real treat. They are taken from an archive of approx. 2,300 hours of recordings collected by the School of Scottish Studies. A lot of the performers are older people who may very well no longer be with us, and without this effort a lot of the material probably would have been lost.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: He Mandu (Scottish waulking song)
From: GUEST,Julien
Date: 01 Apr 06 - 03:09 AM

Just search for "he mandu" in Google, you'll find plenty of texts for it, some of them with translation. The best recording I know is the one in "Scottish Tradition 2 - Music from the Western Isles".
The following lyrics are from http://www.ancliathclis.ca/cliath_57.htm

Héman Dubh 57

1
Héman dubh
'S truagh nach tigeadh
Héman dubh
Sud 'gam iarraidh
Héman dubh
Gille 's litir
Hì ri o ro
Each is diallaid
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro   
Héman dubh ù ó

2
Héman dubh
'S mise dh'fhalbhadh
Héman dubh
Null air sàile
Héman dubh
Le mo leannan
Hì ri o ro
'S cha bhiodh dàil ann
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó         

3
Héman dubh
Na 'm bitheadh agam
Héman dubh
Sgiath a' ghlaisein
Héman dubh
Iteag an eòin
Hì ri o ro
Spòg na lachainn
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó   

4
Héman dubh
Iteag an eòin
Héman dubh
Spòg na lachainn
Héman dubh
Shnàmhain na caoil
Hì ri o ro
Air an tarsuinn
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó 5
Héman dubh
Shnàmhainn na caoil
Héman dubh
Air an tarsuinn
Héman dubh
An cuan Ileach
Hì ri o ro
'S an Caol Arcach
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó

6
Héman dubh
An cuan Ileach
Héman dubh
'S an Caol Arcach
Héman dubh
Rachainn a steach
Hì ri o ro
Thun a' chaisteil
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó   

7
Héman dubh
Rachainn a steach
Héman dubh
Thun a' chaisteil
Héman dubh
'S bheirinn a mach
Hì ri o ro
As mo leannan
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó

8
Héman dubh
'S bheirinn a mach
Héman dubh
As mo leannan
Héman dubh
'S chan fhoighnichinn
Hì ri o ro
Có bu leis i
Héman dubh, hi-ri-ho-ro
Héman dubh ù ó

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57B Hé Mandu 57B



1
Hé Mandu, 'S truagh nach tigeadh
Hé Mandu, Siud 'gam iarraidh
Hé Mandu, Gille 's litir
Hì ri oró, Each is diallaid
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

2
Hé Mandu, 'S mise dh'fhalbhadh
Hé Mandu, Null air sàile
Hé Mandu, Le mo leannan
Hì ri o ro, 'S cha bhiodh dàil ann
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

3
Hé Mandu, Na 'm bitheadh agam
Hé Mandu, Sgiath a' ghlaisein
Hé Mandu, Iteag an eòin
Hì ri o ro, Spòg na lachainn
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

4
Hé Mandu, Iteag an eòin
Hé Mandu, Spòg na lachainn
Hé Mandu, Shnàmhain na caoil
Hì ri o ro, Air an tarsuinn
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

5
Hé Mandu, Shnàmhainn na caoil
Hé Mandu, Air an tarsuinn
Hé Mandu, An cuan Ileach
Hì ri o ro, 'S an Caol Arach
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o   

6
Hé Mandu, An cuan Ileach
Hé Mandu, 'S an Caol Arach
Hé Mandu, Rachainn a steach
Hì ri o ro, Chun a' chaisteil
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

7
Hé Mandu, Rachainn a steach
Hé Mandu, Thun a' chaisteil
Hé Mandu, 'S bheirinn a mach
Hì ri o ro, As mo leannan
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

8
Hé Mandu, 'S e mo Dhòmhnall
Hé Mandu, Fhuair an togail
Hé Mandu, 'Cha b'ann air burn
Hì ri o ro, Gorm an lodain
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

9
Hé Mandu, 'Cha b'ann air burn
Hé Mandu, Gorm an lodain
Hé Mandu, Ach air bainne
Hì ri o ro, nam ban donna
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

10
Hé Mandu, 'S e mo Dhòmhnall
Hé Mandu, leig an urchair
Hé Mandu, leag an caisteal
Hì ri o ro, le aon tulgadh
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o
Hé Mandu, hì ri oro Hó ro hù o

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I wish that a messenger on a horse with a saddle would bring a letter asking for me. I would go across the sea with my love without delay. If I had the wing of the finch, flight of bird, webbed feet of the duck, I would swim in the narrows, the Sound of Islay, and the Orkney Sound. I would enter the castle and bring out my love. My Donald was given a remarkable nurturing, not on pool water but on the milk of the brown haired women. My Donald fired a powerful shot; it topped the castle with one jolt.