O I AM A MILLER
TAE MY TRADE
Traditional
As
sung by Lucy Stewart of Fetterangus
O I am a miller tae my trade,
And that sae weel ye ken, O.
O I am a miller tae my trade,
And that sae weel ye ken, O.
O I am a miller tae my trade,
And mony a sack o' meal I've made,
And I've courted many a fair young maid,
At the back o' the sacks o' meal, O.
O, as merrily as the wheel goes round
The rate sae weel ye ken O
O, as merrily as the wheel goes round
The rate sae weel ye ken O
O, as merrily as the wheel goes round
Wi' grindin' peas and corn O
And a better job was never found
Since ever I've been born O.
O. it happened ae nicht in June
When I was in masel' O
O, it happened ae nicht in June
When I was in masel' O
O, it happened ae nicht in June
The lassie came skippin' doun the lane
"I hear your mill clatterin' in
I thocht that I would
just look in
To see if you're in yersel' O."
"O, you're welcome here my bonnie lass
You're welcome here for ae O
O, you're welcome here my bonnie lass
You're welcome here for ae O
O, you're welcome here my bonnie lass
And fit's the news that I maun hear -
If you'll consent and bide wi' me
And bide wi' me for ae O.
The laughin' lassie gied a smile
She said she couldnae tell O
The laughin' lassie gied a smile
She said she coudnae tell O
The laughin' lassie gied a smile
She said "Young man ye'll wait a while,
When ye hear yer mill clatterin' in
Ye'll get me tae yersel' O."
O, I kissed her lips as sweet as honey
As sweet as honey dew O
O I kissed her lips as sweet as honey
As sweet as homey dew O
O I kissed her lips as sweet as honey
Until a tear cam' in her ee
"Tae leave ma Mammie all for thee,
And bide wi' ye for aye O."
Footnote : When Kenneth S Goldstein, the
American folklorist, spent a year in Aberdeenshire in 1960, he collected
over a hundred and fifty songs and fragments from one of the great singing
Stewart family, Lucy Stewart of Fetterangus.