Bog of Gight (The)

BOG OF GIGHT, THE. Scottish; Strathspey. A Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Gow, Honeyman, Kerr, McGlashan, Skye): AA'BB' (Athole). One of the first tunes composed by Scottish fiddler William Marshall (1748-1833), Steward for the Duke of Gordon, who became an enthusiastic patron of Marshall's musical work. The Bog of Gight is a morass in the parish of Bellie in Banffshire, in the middle of which stood for strategic reasons the former stronghold of the Gordons and where Gordon Castle now stands. The castle was built on the Bog in 1479 by George Gordon, the 2nd Earl of Huntly, who was sometimes referred to as "The Gudeman of the Bog." Later the Duke of Gordon was known as the "Cock of the North." "Cairney Burn," a famous song by the poet Lady Nairne, was written to the melody.

Printed sources: Carlin (The Gow Collection), 1986; No. 484. Gow (Complete Repository), Part 2, 1802; p. 24. Honeyman (Strathspey, Reel and Hornpipe Tutor), 1898; p. 19. Kerr (Merry Melodies), vol. 2; No. 11, p. 4. MacDonald (The Skye Collection), 1887; p. 31. McGlashan (A Collection of Reels), c. 1786; p. 28. Stewart-Robertson (The Athole Collection), 1884; p. 16.

Recorded sources: Rounder 7059, Alex Francis MacKay with Gordon MacLean – "Gaelic in the Bow" (2005).

X:1
T:Bog o' Gight, The
M:C
L:1/8
S:Strathspey
B:Stewart-Robertson - The Athole Collection  (1884)
Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion
K:A
e>fe>c A>c A<E|F>EF>A B/B/B B>c|1 e>fe>c A>c A<E|F>AE>C A,/A,/A, A2:|2 
c<e f>e d>cB>A|G>AB>c A/A/A A2||a>b a<e a>ba<e|f>ef>a b/b/b b2|1 
a/b a<e f<ac<a|B>A B<c A/A/A A2:|2 a>e f<a e>f c<e|B>AB>c A/A/A A2||