Swan Sweems Sae Bonnie- Johnny Whyte (Aber) 1975
[From: "Narative singing Among the Scots travelers" by Linda Williamson. This is by Johnny Whyte and is taken from his mother Jean McLauren but is similar to Jock Whyte's 1953 version. Although Johnny's father is named Jock Whyte, Williamson does not mention the 1953 version collected by Hamlish Henderson as being by Johnny's father. Johnny was born in 1910 traveled in Perth and by 1975 when this was recorded was living in Montrose area near his brother Bryce Whyte (b. 1914). Recorded three times by Linda Williamson from 1975-78. The word "swim" in the refrain appears as sweem or sweems-- I've changed them all to "sweems." There is some melodic resemblance to the Kelby version collected by MacColl. Strangely the identical text is attributed to Christina MacAllister in MacColl's 1977 book, Travellers' Songs from England and Scotland.
R. Matteson 2018]
Swan Sweems Sae Bonnie
1. Dear sisterie, dear sisterie, are you going for a walk,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
And I'll show you wonderies before you come home,
And the swan but sweems sae bonnie-o.
2. Dear sister, dear sisterie, we'll go for a walk,
Hy-ie-o, eae bonnie-o;
If you show me wonderies before we come home,
And the swan it sweems sae bonnie-o.
3. Dear sister, dear sisterie, we'll go for a walk,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
If you show me wonderies before we come home,
And the swan 'at sweems sae bonnie-o.
4. Dear sisterie, dear sisterie, put your footen on marble stonie,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
And I'll show you that wonderie before we turn home,
And the swan 'at sweems sae bonnie-o.
5. Dear sisterie, dear sisterie, I put my foot on the marble stonie,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
But sly she throwed her against a' the stream,
And the swan 'at sweems sae bonnie-o.
6. Dear sister, dear sisterie, will you take-a my handie?
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
And I'll make you mistress of all my father's landie,
And the swan that sweem sae bonnie-o.
7. Sometime she sunk noo, other time she swum,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
At last 'he came to the millerie's dam,
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
8. The millerie's maiden was out forie some waterie,
He-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
I see a maiden or a whitemilk swan,
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
9. Oh miller, oh millerie, oh dry up your dam,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
I see a maiden or a white-milk swanie,
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
10 The miller drew noo up his dam
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
And then they took her and hand her oot,
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
11. There were three fiddleries on their-ie way
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
One o' them took three links of her hair-ie,
For to make the fiddle stringies
Her middle finger-ie for-ie tae make some fiddle pins
The other took now her-ie breast bone
For to mak a fiddle that would play a tune its lone
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
12. The three fiddlers went on their way,
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
Till they come to her father's castle wall
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
13. There now sits my father the king
Hy-ie-o, sae bonnie-o;
And likewise now my mother the queen,
And the swan that sweems sae bonnie-o.
14. Aye and there sits my false sister Jean,
[1st refrain omited]
Who's slyly throwed me against the stream,
And the swan 'at sweems sae bonnie-o.
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Notes from "Narative singing Among the Scots travelers- Linda Williamson," Johnny's father was Jock Whyte of Aberdeenshire and his mother Jean McLauren. Johnny Whyte of Aberdeenshire b. 1910 traveled in Perth by 1975 lived in Montrose area, brother Bryce whyte (b. 1914)
narrative, a traveller singer may omit one internal line altogether. Johnnie expressed dislike of the interlaced refrain in his version of Child 10, recorded four times from 1975- 1977. The very first recording was delivered with a comment after
verse one, "I tell ye, it's nearly the same thing repeated a' the time." ( 7 5/106/134) While that wasn't overtly negative, the third recorded performance in 1976 was followed by the criticism, "It's a long long song. It's the same thing, it's the same thing and that's what I hate about it." (76/213/A1) Every one of the thirteen verses of the narrative song was sung with the interlaced refrain, even the expanded verse ten, discussed below. However, the final verse was reduced to a triphrasal strophe minus the second phrase and line of the quatrain, the first half of the interlaced refrain. See ex. 11, section three below. There was no reason for the omission other than for the sake of the story, the denouement. The irregular reduced strophe was a fixed feature of the ballad as Johnnie sang it, occurring in each of three recorded performances.
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Johnny Whyte and his brother, Bryce after Johnnie's performance of the narrative for the author in 1975:
J It's a long song that, though Ye see, that was the breistbone that they made the fiddle to play the tune alone. That was supposed to be at the fiddle that gied her, the sister, away. She said, 'There sits-my-father-- the king.' Ye see, it's the fiddle supposed to be sayin that her sister's breistbone. That's the way it goes.
Br And I like the part where it speeds up.
J A hat But that's the way it goes, but I oannae come aroond it sae good as what I used tae dae.
Br Many travellers sings it that way, but that's the proper-
J But that's the proper way But I cannae say it the same as what I used tae dae, at one time-- Well, that's the proper way it should be sung, that's the proper way it's sung.
Br-- That is the tickly bit.
J That is the tickly bit, that's the way she [my mother] sung it.
Br - None, hardly any of the travellers can dae that bit.
J Aye, well you see the tune, that was to let her father ken, lettin her father and mother ken referring to the tickly bit. That was supposed to be her comin' back in the fiddle, That's hoo the story goes, ye ken, ye've got tae tak it up.