Volume II, song 112, page 115, 'He who presumed to guide...
Volume II, song 112, page 115, 'He who presumed to guide the Sun' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)
Verse 1 (to the tune of 'The Maids complaint'): 'He who presum'd to guide the sun, Was crown'd with bad success; Tho' for his rash attempt undone, He'd glory'd ne'er the less. Him you resemble, and aspire To lead our brightest fair; Like him too, tho' consum'd by fire, You boast because you dare:'
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.
This tune was composed by James Oswald and appeared in his 'Curious Collection of Scots Tunes', published in 1740. Oswald did not, however, put his name to the tune in this particular publication. It was later included in Oswald's 'The Caledonian Pocket Companion' (1759), with an asterisk in the Index denoting that he was the composer. According to Glen (1900), the melody provided in the 'Museum' differs from the original.
Volume II, song 112, page 115, 'He who presumed to guide the Sun' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)