Volume II, song 148, page 155 - 'A Cock Laird, fu' cadgie' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Verse 1: 'A Cock laird, fu' cadgie, With Jenny did meet, he haws'd her, he kiss'd her, And ca'd her his sweet, Gin thou'lt gae alang Wi' me, Jenny, quo' he; Thou'se be my ain lemman, Jo Jenny, Jenny.' 'Cock' in Scots has a variety of meanings, including smart fellow, fuddled, to swagger or show off, undeserving, over ambitious or to indulge needlessly. The Scots word 'cadgie' can mean wanton, kind and hospitable or happily and cheerfully. 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 first appearance of this tune in print is generally believed to have been in William Thomson's 'Orpheus Caledonius', in 1725. According to Glen (1900), there is no known record of it 'under this or any other title' prior to this date. Glen further comments that 'the song, especially in its original form, is much too gross for modern use, though it was not considered unfit for singing in public or in the drawing room during the reign of George II'. Allan Ramsay is known to have revised the words before including it in his 'Tea-Table Miscellany' (1724-7).

Collection

Scots Musical Museum

Inventory Number

4503344

Title

Volume II, song 148, page 155 - 'A Cock Laird, fu' cadgie' - 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

- 130 x 211 mm