Volume III, song 266, pages 274 and 275 - 'The Jolly Beggar' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Verse 1: 'There was a Jolly beggar, and a begging he was bound, And he took up his quarters into a land'art town, And we'll gang nae mair a roving Sae late into the night, And we'll gang nae mair a roving, Let the moon shine ne'er sae bright, And we'll gang nae mair a roving.' 'Landart' is Scots for rustic. 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. Captain Robert Riddell of Glenriddell, friend of Burns and fellow commentator on the 'Museum', noted that 'According to tradition the words of this song were made to Commemorate an intrigue that King James the Fifth had with a young lady. .. It has been said that both this and the 'Garberlunzie man' (song 226) were his own compositions, as well as the first canto of 'Christ's kirk on the green'.' John Glen, in his 'Early Scottish Melodies' (1900), believed the claim to be absurd, stating that 'the tune has modern stamped upon it, and we suppose the words to date about 1750.' Glen is generally considered to be a reliable and accurate source.

Collection

Scots Musical Museum

Inventory Number

4503462

Title

Volume III, song 266, pages 274 and 275 - 'The Jolly Beggar' - 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

- 263 x 211 mm