| Music File Barry Taylor |
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There are several lyrics for this tune.
I have made separate pages for each version. The music is, of course, the same. |
O come a' ye tramps and hawker-lads an' gaitherers o' bla' That tramp the country roun' and roun', come listen one and a' I'll tell tae ye a rovin' tale, an' places I hae been Far up into the snowy north, or sooth by Gretna Green. I've seen the high Ben Nevis that gangs towerin' tae the moon I've been roun' by Crieff an' Callander an' by Bonny Doon I've been by Nethy's silvery tide an' places ill tae ken Far up into the stormy north lies Urquart's fairy glen Sometimes noo I laugh tae mysel' when dodgin' alang the road Wi' a bag o' meal slung upon my back, my face as broun's a toad Wi' lumps o'cheese and tattie-scones or breid an' braxie ham Nae thinking whar' I'm comin' frae nor thinkin' whar I'm gang. I'm happy in the summer-time beneath the dark blue sky Nae thinkin' in the mornin' at nicht where i'm gang to lie Bothies or byres or barns, or oot amangst the hay And if the weather does permit, I'm happy a' the day. Loch Katrine and Loch Lomond, they've oft been seen by me The Dee, the Don, the Devron, that a' flows tae the sea Dunrobin Castle, by the way, I nearly had forgot And the reckless stanes o'cairn that mairks the hoose o' John o' Groat. I've been by bonny Gallowa', an' often roun' Stranraer My business leads me anywhere, I travel near an' far I've got that rovin' notion I wouldna like tae loss For It's my daily fare an' as much'll pay my doss. I think I'll gang tae Paddy's Lan', I'm makin' up my mind For Scotland's greatly altered noo, I canna raise the wind But if I can trust in Providence, if Providence should prove true I'll sing ye's a' of Erin's Isle when I come back to you. |
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Lyrics from Digital Tradition Folksong Database A great version of Tramps and Hawkers is found on Alastair MacDonald's Songs From Gretna to Glen Coe |
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