Lyr Req: Time Wears Awa'

Subject: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 08 Jun 03 - 07:58 PM

Anyone got the words of this lovely song (recorded by Sangsters, Alison Mc Morland, and, I believe, Tony Cuffe)? No results in the DT.
Tattie Bogle

Subject: Lyr Add: TIME WEARS AWA'
From: Drumshanty
Date: 08 Jun 03 - 08:48 PM

O but the oors run fast awa' like the Kelvin tae the Clyde
Sin on its bonny gowan banks, I woo'd thee for my bride
My ain dear lass, sae sweet and fair, sae artless and sae young
When love wis a' the grief we kent, and ye my only care

Time wears awa' time wears awa'
And winna let us be
It stole the wild rose frae yer cheek
And the blythe blink frae yer ee

When wids were green and flooers fair and ye were a' my ain
I little reckoned whit years wid bring o porteth toil and pain
Some waefu' oors hae clapped their wings, dark shadows o'er oor lot
Sin like twa cushats o the glen we strayed in this dear spot

The voices o' oor happy days steal on oor dreams by nicht
And cherish'd mem'ries rise and glow wi' their depairted licht
But still the birds and burnies sing their wilder'd melody
As in the gowden dawn o' youth when we were young and free

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 08 Jun 03 - 09:21 PM

Alison McMorland learned the song from Willie Scott of Hawick ("the Border Shepherd"). He learned it from his mother.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Drumshanty
Date: 09 Jun 03 - 06:29 AM

I took the words from Alison McMorland's book about Willie Scott and his songs, which I think is called "Herd Laddie o' the Glen".

Incidentally, I don't believe that Sangsters have recorded it yet, although I know it's a favourite of theirs. It's also on Emily Smith's A Day Like Today album - I heard that version on the radio recently and it is very beautiful.

Subject: Lyr Add: Time wears awa'
From: Sorcha
Date: 09 Jun 03 - 08:26 AM

Just an Add for Drumshanty's post of 08 Jun 03 - 08:48 PM this thread.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 13 Jun 03 - 11:25 AM

Thanks so much for that Drumshanty! We heard Sangsters sing it at Balerno just recently.
Tattie B

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: JedMarum
Date: 07 Jul 04 - 04:44 PM

So I can better attempt the dialect, what might an English translation look like? Something like this:

O but the hours run fast away like the Kelvin to the Clyde
Since on its bonny gowan banks, I woed thee for my bride
My own dear lass, so sweet and fair, so artless and so young
When love was all the grief we kent, and ye my only care

Time wears away time wears away
And will not let us be
It stole the wild rose from your cheek
And the blythe blink from your eye

When woods were green and flowers fair and you were all my own
I little reckoned what years would bring of ,porteth toil and pain
Some woeful hours have clapped their wings, dark shadows over our lot
Since like two cushats of the glen we strayed in this dear spot

The voices over our happy days steal on our dreams by night
And cherished memories rise and glow with their depairted light
But still the birds and burnies sing their wilder'd melody
As in the golden dawn of youth when we were young and free
______________________________

What are the words in italics all about?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 07 Jul 04 - 07:26 PM

A gowan is a daisy. Kent (or kenned) is the past tense of ken, to know; now mostly used only in Scotland and the North of England. Blythe is the once common, though nowadays a little old-fashioned, word blithe (happy, cheerful).

A cushat is a (wood) pigeon. Burnie, I'd guess, is in this context a diminutive form of burn, a small stream or brook.

Don't know about porteth, mind.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Drumshanty
Date: 07 Jul 04 - 07:46 PM

"Porteth" is poverty, also written as "puirtith", "poortith" and so on.

(Probably typed it wrong)

Dictionary of the Scots Language

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: Malcolm Douglas
Date: 07 Jul 04 - 08:04 PM

Ah, thank you. That was a spelling that I hadn't thought of! The link looks very useful indeed; I've relied on Chambers (Warrack) until now, mostly.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Time wears awa'
From: JedMarum
Date: 08 Jul 04 - 09:14 AM

Thank you both. This helps a lot.

Now the first line of Adam McNaughtan's Yellow on the Broom makes more sense to me. I understood from the context what he was saying "Well, I ken ye dinna like it, lass, tae winter here in toun" but now I know what ken means ...