AKA | Queen among the heather |
First Published | 1909 |
Writer/composer | Harry Lauder & James Malarkey | Roud | RN30975 (V25538) |
Music Hall Performers | Harry Lauder |
Folk performances | Collected from the singing of: Stewart, Lucy; Scotland : Aberdeenshire; 1959 |
From original sheet music: I ken a Lass; how happy are my feelin's She's in Argyll and Argyll is in the Hielan's My hand and my heart to her I've presented And in return to me she's gave her vow and am contented Oh! my ... Heart's in the Hielan's wae my bonnie Bessie Lee I've gave my heart to Bessie and she gave hers to me Aye, and when I think of her my bosom fairly thrills She's ma Queen amang the heather, on the bonnie heather hills She disna sigh for dresses that are silken She's quite content at the churnin' and the milkin' She has eyes like the stars, they fairly set me reelin' And in here where my heart is, I've a very funny feelin' I've been sae very happy since I met her Now she's wrote to tell me that nae other chap will get her I've to meet her every night, and three times on a Sunday So I'm going back to make mine, I get the boat on Monday
This Harry Lauder song was collected from the singing of Lucy Stewart by Kenneth Goldstein in 1959. You can hear the recording on the excellent Tobar an Dualchais / Kist o Riches website.
Not to be confused with the more famous folksong also called Queen amang the Heather (RN375), also sung by members of the famous Stewart family from Blairgowrie. You can find more about that song on the MainlyNorfolk website
Sources:
- Entries in the Roud Indexes at the Vaughn Williams Memorial Library: https://archives.vwml.org/search/all:single[folksong-broadside-books]/0_50/all/score_desc/extended-roudNo_tr%3A30975 (V25538)
- Kilgarrif Sing Us
- Lyrics and Sheet Music: Frances G Spencer Collection
Last Updated on June 13, 2023 by John Baxter | Published: June 13, 2023