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Twa Recruitin' Sergeants

Anonymous
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La versione dei Great Big Sea, band canadese dedita ‎al folkrock,...
TWA RECRUITIN' SERGEANTS

Twa recruiting sergeants came frae the Black Watch
Tae markets and fairs, some recruits for tae catch.
But a' that they 'listed was forty and twa:
Enlist my bonnie laddie an' come awa.

And it's over the mountain and over the Main,
Through Gibralter, to France and Spain.
Pit a feather tae your bonnet, and a kilt aboon your knee,
Enlist my bonnie laddie and come awa' with me.

O laddie dae ye dinna ken the danger that yer in.
If yer horses was to fleg, and yer owsen was to rin,
This greedy ole farmer, he wouldna pay yer fee.
Sae list my bonnie laddie and come awa wi' me

It's over the mountain and over the main
Through Gibraltar, tae France and tae Spain
Get a feather tae your bonnet, a kilt abin your knee
Enlist, bonnie laddie, and come awa' wi' me

With your tattie porin's and yer meal and kale,
Yer soor sowan' soorin's and yer ill-brewed ale,
Yer buttermilk, yer whey, and yer breid fired raw.
Sae list my bonnie laddie and come awa.

It's over the mountain and over the main
Through Gibraltar, tae France and tae Spain
Get a feather tae your bonnet, a kilt abin your knee
Enlist, bonnie laddie, and come awa' with me

And its into the barn and out o' the byre,
This ole farmer, he thinks ye never tire.
It's slavery a' yer life, a life o' low degree.
Sae list my bonnie laddie and come awa with me

It's over the mountain and over the main
Through Gibraltar, tae France and tae Spain
Get a feather tae your bonnet, a kilt abin your knee
Enlist, bonnie laddie, and come awa' wi' me

O laddie if ye've got a sweetheart an' a bairn,
Ye'll easily get rid o' that ill-spun yarn.
Twa rattles o' the drum, aye and that'll pay it a'.
Sae list my bonnie laddie and come awa.

It's over the mountain and over the main
Through Gibraltar, tae France and tae Spain
Get a feather tae your bonnet, a kilt abin your knee
Enlist, bonnie laddie, and come awa' with me


RECRUITING SERGEANT

Two recruiting sergeants came to the CLB,
For the sons of the merchants, to join the Blue Puttees
So all the hands enlisted, five hundred young men...
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

They crossed the broad Atlantic in the brave Florizel,
And on the sands of Suvla, they entered into hell
And on those bloody beaches, the first of them fell...
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

So it's over the mountains, and over the sea
Come brave Newfoundlanders and join the Blue Puttees
You'll fight the Hun in Flanders, and at Galipoli
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

The call came from London, for the last July drive
‎"To the trenches with the regiment, prepare yourselves to die"
The roll call next morning, just a handful survived.
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

So it's over the mountains, and over the sea
Come brave Newfoundlanders and join the Blue Puttees
You'll fight the Hun in Flanders, and at Galipoli
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

The stone men on Water Street still cry for the day
When the pride of the city went marching away
A thousand men slaughtered, to hear the King say
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

So it's over the mountains, and over the sea
Come brave Newfoundlanders and join the Blue Puttees
You'll fight the Hun in Flanders, and at Galipoli
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me

So it's over the mountains, and over the sea
Come brave Newfoundlanders and join the Blue Puttees
You'll fight the Hun in Flanders, and at Galipoli
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me
Enlist ye Newfoundlanders and come follow me
Notes

Meaning of Scottish words:

Aboon = above
Awa = away
Aye = yes
Bonnie = handsome
Fleg = take fright
Kale = a kind of crinkly cabbage
Owsen = oxen
Rin = run
Soor sooin' sourin's sowans = a dish made by steeping and fermenting the husks or siftings of oats in water, then boiling.
Tae = to
Twa = two
Tattie pourin's = water in which potatoes have been boiled.
Yer = your
Whey = liquid left when milk forms into lumps.


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