Volume II, song 139, page 146 - 'Hap me wi' my Petticoat' -...
Volume II, song 139, page 146 - 'Hap me wi' my Petticoat' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)
Verse 1: 'O Bell, thy looks have kill'd my heart, I pass the day in pain, When night returns, I feel the smart And wish for thee in vain. I'm starving cold whilst thou art warm, Have pity and incline, And grant me for a hap that Charming petticoat of thine.' The Scots word 'hap' has many definitions. In this instance, however, used as both verb and noun, it means to envelop or surround and refers to a covering or wrap.
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.
According to Glen (1900), this tune appeared in both Thomson's 'Orpheus Caledonius' (1725) and Ramsay's 'Tea-Table Miscellany' (1724-7) prior to its inclusion in the 'Museum'. It is possible that Ramsay himself was responsible for the words. Glen further notes that 'in some collections of music the tune is greatly spoiled by so called embellishments. .. The melody is much used as a Strathspey tune for which we think it was originally intended'.
Volume II, song 139, page 146 - 'Hap me wi' my Petticoat' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)