John Anderson My Jo
John Anderson my jo, John,
When we were first acquent,
Your locks were like the raven,
Your bonny brow was brent;
But now your brow is bled, John,
Your locks are like the straw,
But blessings on your frosty pow,
John Anderson my jo!
John Anderson my jo, John,
We clamb the hill thegither
And monie a cantie day, John,
We've had wi' ane anither;
Now we maun totter down, John,
And hand in hand we'll go,
And sleep thegither at the foot,
John Anderson my jo!
Commentary
continuing the Scottish theme…
Glossary of Scots words:
jo - joy, sweetheart (a favourite of Scrabble players :-)) acquent - acquainted
brent - smooth
beld - bald
pow - head
cantie - cheerful
maun - must
Not many Englishmen remember the Bard’s birthday (the 23rd of April, if you must know), but any Scotsman worth his haggis will tell you that Robert Burns was born on the 25th of January - Burns Day. Indeed, Burns’ reputation as a national poet has just gone up and up, ever since he dazzled Edinburgh society at the age of 26 with the publication of ‘Highland Ballads’ (a collection of his own verse and his adaptations of traditional Scottish lyrics (over 200 of them!) collected painstakingly over the years).
Burns was one of the forerunners of the Romantic movement, a fact that’s very evident in his verse - his use of dialect (some of which, to be frank, would be as untelligible to his original Edinburgh audience as it is to us today), his glorification of sensuality, his love of food and drink and song, of toasting and carousing, his passion for all things Scottish… yet through it all he remains a wonderfully lyrical poet. His phrases reverberate in your head lng after the content of his poems is forgotten.
— Thomas
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From the Wondering Minstrels mailing list, 1999–2008.
Wilhelminayoung · 26 October 2005
My brother and I used to recite this poem while we rode around in his covered wagon-like truck before we had a radio to listen to. It brings back many lovely childhood memories. Does anyone know the relationship between the author and the poem’s subject “John Anderson”? I’d be most interested. Thank you. Wilhelmina Young
McGillicuddy Colin · 29 March 2006
It has always struck me as sad that Robert Burns should be held up as the best poet the Scots could manage.
;-)
Colin McGillicuddy
Principal
St. Thomas Aquinas RCSS
124 Dorval Drive
Oakville, ON
L6K 2W1
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