In aid of Burns Night 2010, today, the 25th January, we celebrate our wonderful national hero Robert Burns, a brilliant poet, farmer and musician, I have recorded a very rough version of Ae Fond Kiss, my favourite of the Burns songs:
Ae Fond Kiss:
If you’d like a download copy, you can have it from here for 2 weeks: https://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=batch_download&batch_id=S1VEc0x6RndiV3hMWEE9PQ
Written in a letter to Agnes M’Lehose, or ‘Clarinda’, (also known as ‘Nancy’ to her friends) in December 1791, when she left Burns, and Scotland, to follow her husband to Jamaica to try to save her marriage.
As written in three verses of eight lines in Burns’ Original setting to the tune Rory Dalls’ Port Scots Musical Museum…
Ae fond kiss, and then we sever;
Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I’ll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I’ll wage thee!
Who shall say that Fortune grieves him
While the star of hope she leaves him?
Me, nae cheerfu’ twinkle lights me,
Dark despair around benights me.
I’ll ne’er blame my partial fancy;
Naething could resist my Nancy;
But to see her was to love her,
Love but her, and love for ever.
Had we never loved sae kindly,
Had we never loved sae blindly,
Never met???or never parted,
We had ne’er been broken-hearted.
Fare thee weel, thou first and fairest!
Fare thee weel, thou best and dearest!
Thine be ilka joy and treasure,
Peace, enjoyment, love, and pleasure!
Ae fond kiss, and then we sever!
Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I’ll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I’ll wage thee!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burns_supper
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Burns
