Volume V, song 459, page 472 - 'Will ye go and marry Katie' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Verse 1: 'Will ye go and marry Katie, can ye think to tak a man! It's a pity ane sae pretty Should na do the thing they can You, a charming lovely creature, Wharefore wad ye lie y'er lane! Beauty's of a fading nature, Has a season, and is gane.' 'Lie y'er lane' in Scots would roughly translate as 'remain alone'. The 'Scots Musical Museum' is the most important of the numerous eighteenth- and nineteenth-century collections of Scottish song. When the engraver James Johnson started work on the second volume of his collection in 1787, he enlisted Robert Burns as contributor and editor. Burns enthusiastically collected songs from various sources, often expanding or revising them, whilst including much of his own work. The resulting combination of innovation and antiquarianism gives the work a feel of living tradition. The melody to this piece was first published by Neil Stewart in his 'Collection of the Newest and Best Reels or Country Dances' (1775), under the title of 'Will ye go and marry Kettie'. It is also thought to be the tune which accompanies the song 'Wha wadna fecht for Charlie'. The topic of the song, marriage and the loss of one's youthful charms, is quite common among songs in the 'Museum'. How much of a true reflection of society and attitudes towards marriage and spinsterhood is a little more difficult to determine.

Collection

Scots Musical Museum

Inventory Number

4503653

Title

Volume V, song 459, page 472 - 'Will ye go and marry Katie' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Object Type

PhysicalObject

Measurements

- 129 x 211 mm