Hey Mac did ye see him as ye cam' doon by Gorgie,
Awa ower the Lammerlaw or North o' the Tay?
Yon man is comin' and the haill toon is turnin' oot:
We're a' sure he'll win back to Glesga the day.
The jiners and hauders-oan are marchin' frae Clydebank;
Come on noo an hear him - he'll be ower thrang tae bide.
Turn oot, Jock and Jimmie: leave your cranes and your muckle gantries.
Great John MacLean's comin' back tae the Clyde.
Aye, Great John MacLean's comin' back tae the Clyde
Argyle Street and London Road's the route that we're marchin' -
The lads frae the Broomilaw are here - tae a man!
Hi Neil, whaur's yer hadarums, ye big Heilan' teuchter?
Get your pipes, mate and march at the heid o' the clan.
Hullo Pat Malone: sure I knew you'd be here so:
The Blue and the Green me lad we'll wear side by side.
Gorbals is his the day, and Glasgow belongs tae him.
Great John MacLean's comin' hame tae the Clyde
Forward tae Glesga Green we'll march in guid order:
Wull grips the banners well (that boy isna blate).
Ay there, man that's Johnnie noo - that' him there, the bonnie fechter.
Lenin's his fere, lad an'Leibnecht his mate.
Tak tent when he's speakin', for they'll mind whit he's said here.
In Glesga, oor city - an' the haill world beside.
Och hey, lad the scarlet' bonnie: here's tae ye, Heilan Shony!
John MacLean's comin' back tae the Clyde.
Oor ain John MacLean's has come hame tae the Clyde.
Aweel when it's feenished, I'm awa hame tae Springburn
(Come hame tae your tea John, we'll soon hae ye fed)
It's hard work this speakin': Och, I'm shair he'll be tired the nicht
I'll sleep oan the flair and gie Mac the bed.
The hill city's quiet noo: it kens that he's restin'
At hame wi' his Glesga freens, their fame and their pride!
The red will be worn, my lads an Scotland will rise again.
Noo great John MacLean's has come hame tae the Clyde.
Awa ower the Lammerlaw or North o' the Tay?
Yon man is comin' and the haill toon is turnin' oot:
We're a' sure he'll win back to Glesga the day.
The jiners and hauders-oan are marchin' frae Clydebank;
Come on noo an hear him - he'll be ower thrang tae bide.
Turn oot, Jock and Jimmie: leave your cranes and your muckle gantries.
Great John MacLean's comin' back tae the Clyde.
Aye, Great John MacLean's comin' back tae the Clyde
Argyle Street and London Road's the route that we're marchin' -
The lads frae the Broomilaw are here - tae a man!
Hi Neil, whaur's yer hadarums, ye big Heilan' teuchter?
Get your pipes, mate and march at the heid o' the clan.
Hullo Pat Malone: sure I knew you'd be here so:
The Blue and the Green me lad we'll wear side by side.
Gorbals is his the day, and Glasgow belongs tae him.
Great John MacLean's comin' hame tae the Clyde
Forward tae Glesga Green we'll march in guid order:
Wull grips the banners well (that boy isna blate).
Ay there, man that's Johnnie noo - that' him there, the bonnie fechter.
Lenin's his fere, lad an'Leibnecht his mate.
Tak tent when he's speakin', for they'll mind whit he's said here.
In Glesga, oor city - an' the haill world beside.
Och hey, lad the scarlet' bonnie: here's tae ye, Heilan Shony!
John MacLean's comin' back tae the Clyde.
Oor ain John MacLean's has come hame tae the Clyde.
Aweel when it's feenished, I'm awa hame tae Springburn
(Come hame tae your tea John, we'll soon hae ye fed)
It's hard work this speakin': Och, I'm shair he'll be tired the nicht
I'll sleep oan the flair and gie Mac the bed.
The hill city's quiet noo: it kens that he's restin'
At hame wi' his Glesga freens, their fame and their pride!
The red will be worn, my lads an Scotland will rise again.
Noo great John MacLean's has come hame tae the Clyde.
Contributed by Alessandro - 2009/9/30 - 10:52
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Versi di Hamish Henderson
Su di una melodia tradizionale scozzese
“The John MacLean March had its first performance in the St. Andrews Hall, Glasgow, at the memorial [concert?] to the great Scottish republican socialist on 28 Nov. 1948, where it was sung by William Noble. It is set to a traditional version of a pipe melody that is today played and sung all over Scotland to the more commercially patriotic verses of Scotland the Brave.” (da Henry's Songbook)
Il brano è stato interpretato da moltissimi artisti e gruppi scozzesi, a cominciare da Dick Gaughan (in “No More Forever” del 1972) e Iain MacKintosh (in “By Request” del 1974).
Come Ballad Of John MacLean di Matt McGinn, un'altra canzone dedicata alla figura di John Maclean, socialista scozzese, noto per la sua fiera opposizione alla prima guerra mondiale. Per questo nel 1918 fu processato per sedizione. Durante l'udienza pronunciò uno storico discorso che si concludeva con queste parole: "I am not here, then, as the accused; I am here as the accuser of capitalism dripping with blood from head to foot".
Fu imprigionato ma presto liberato grazie alla mobilitazione popolare in suo favore. Il 3 dicembre 1918 una folla oceanica in tripudio lo accolse al suo rientro a Glasgow, da uomo libero.