by Thomas d'Urfey (1653 - 1723)
'Twas within a furlong of Edinborough...
Language: English
Our translations: FRE
'Twas within a furlong of Edinborough Town, In the rosy time of year when the grass was down; Bonny Jocky blithe and gay, Said to Jenny making hay, Let's sit a little (dear) and prattle, 'tis a sultry day. He long had courted the black-brown maid, But Jocky was a wag and would ne'er consent to wed, Which made her Pish and Pooh, And cry out it will not do, I canot, cannot, wonnot, wonnot buckle to. He told her marriage was grown a mere joke, And that no one wedded now but the scoundrel folk, Yet my dear thou should'st prevail, But I know not what I ail, I shall dream of clogs and silly dogs With bottles at their tail; But I'll give thee gloves and a bongrace to wear, And a pretty filly-foal to ride out and take the air, If thou ne'er wil't Pish and Pooh, And cry it ne'er will do, I cannot, cannot, wonnot, wonnot buckle to. That you'll give me trinkets, cried she, I believe, But ah! what in return must your poor Jenny give; When my maiden treasure's gone, I must gang to London-Town, And roar and rant, and patch and paint, And kiss for half-a-crown; Each drunken bully oblige for pay, And earn a hated living in an odious fulsome way, No, no, no, it ne'er shall do, For a wife I'll be to you, Or I cannot, cannot, wonnot, wonnot buckle to.
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Text Authorship:
- by Thomas d'Urfey (1653 - 1723) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Henry Purcell (1658/9 - 1695), "A Scotch tune", alternate title: "'Twas within a furlong of Edinborough Town", Z. 605 no. 2, published 1696, in Deliciae Musicae, Vol. III [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , title 1: "Un air écossais", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 32
Word count: 242