Volume IV, song 394, page 407 - 'O can ye labor lea, young...
Volume IV, song 394, page 407 - 'O can ye labor lea, young man' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)
Chorus and Verse 1: 'O can ye labor lea, young man, O can ye labor lea; Gae back the gate ye came again, ye'se never scorn me. I fee'd a man at martinmas, Wi' airle-pennies three; But a' the faute I had to him, He could na labour lea.' Chorus: 'O can ye labor lea, young man, O can ye labor lea; Gae back the gate ye came again ye'se never scorn me.' 'Lea' is 'land' and 'fee'd' is 'to hire'.
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 is one of many instances in the 'Museum' where a song, although not attributed to Burns, is now generally considered to be written by him. Burns collected and revised numerous traditional Scottish songs for inclusion in the 'Museum'. The distinction between those he wrote and those he revised or collected has become rather blurred. As a result, it has often proved difficult to distinguish between the two. As to the tune, Glen (1900) noted that with its existing title this melody is not to be found in any collection published prior to the 'Museum'.
Volume IV, song 394, page 407 - 'O can ye labor lea, young man' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)