Blink o'er the Burn Bessie
BLINK O'ER THE BURN, BESSIE (AND I'LL FOLLOW THEE). AKA - "Blink o're the Burn Sweet Betty." Scottish, English; Air (3/4 time). England, Northumberland. D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABBCCDD. The title appears in Henry Robson's list of popular Northumbrian song and dance tunes, compiled and printed c. 1800. Composer Franz Joseph Haydn (1750-1819) fashioned a setting of the air. Robert Burns adapted the song for Johnson's Scots Musical Museum, from an older song by Joseph Mitchell (d. 1738), who was a "literary adventurer" patronized by Sir Robert Walpole. Mitchell's original begins:
Leave kindred and friends sweet Betty,
Leave kindred and friends for me;
Assur'd thy servant is steady,
To love, to honour, to thee.
Printed source: McGibbon (Scots Tunes, Book 1), c. 1762; p. 15.
Blink o'er the Burn Bessie: annotations
X:1
%
T:Blink over the Burn sweet Betty
M:3/4
L:1/8
R:Air
Q:"Slow"
B:James Oswald – Caledonian Pocket Companion, vol. 1 (1760, p. 19)
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:G
ag|Tf3e (f/g/a)|A4 Tf>e|d2B2 (ag)|Tf3 e (f/g/a)|A3 gTf>e|
d4 (ag)|Tf3e d2|A2 (3agf (3gfe|d2B2 (fg)|a2 (ba)(gf)|
g2 (ag)(fe)|d4::AG|F2A2d2|{B}A3 gfe|d2B2 (AG)|F2A2d2|
(FE) D2 T(f>e)|d4 (AG)|(FG) T(G3>F/2G/4)|A4 T(f>e)|d2B2 (fg)|
a3 g f2|g2 (ag)(fe)|d4::ag|Tf3e d2|(a<g)(f<e)d<^c|{c}B4a2|
Tf3e d2|(A<g)(f<e)(d<^c)|{^c}d4 (AG)|FDFA d2|
(f/g/a) (d/e/f) (B/c/d)|G4 (AG)|F2A2d2|bg {f}Te4|d4:|
|:(AG)|FDFA d2|fD(fe)(d^c)|{^c}B4d2|A3B A2|
{ef}g2 (fe)(d^c)|{c}d4 (AG)|F2A2d2|(e/f/g) (f/g/a) (g/a/b)|
(BGB)d g2|b3a g2|f2 (ag)(fe)|d4:|]
X:1
%
T:Bink o're the Burn Sweet Betty
M:3/4
L:1/8
R:Air
Q:"Slow"
S:McGibbon - Scots Tunes, Book 1 (c. 1762)
Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion
K:D
a2 |T{g}f3e (f/g/a) | A3 fTe>d | B4 (f/g/a) |T{g}f3e (f/g/a) | A3 fe>f|d4 (f/g/a) |
T{g}f3e (f/g/a) | A3 fTe>d | B4 fg | a2 (ba)T(gf) | g2 (ag) T(fe) | d4 :: AG |
F2A2 B>d | A3 fTe>d | B3 dA>G | F2A2 B>d | A3 fe>f | d3 BA>G | F2A2 B>d |
A3 fTe>d | B4 (fg) | a2 baTgf |T(gf/g/) agTfe | d4 :: a2 | f>gfe (f/g/a) |
A2 (d/e/f) Te>d | B4 (f/g/a) |T{g}f3e (f/g/a) | Af/g/ agT(fe) | d4 (f/g/a) |
T{g}f3 e (f/g/a) | A2 (g/4f/2<e) (f/4e/2<d) | B4 f>g |T(ag/a/) (b/a/)T(gf) |
(g/e/f/g/) agTfe | d4 :: A>G | (FA) d2 B>d | A2 (e/f/g/f/) Te>d | B3 dA>G |
(F/4E/2<D) (A/4/G/2F) (d/4c/2<B) | A2 (a>g)T(f>e) | d3 BA>G |
(F/4E/2<D) (A/4G/2<F) (d/4c/2<B) | A2 (e/f/g/f/) Te>d | B4 (A/B/4c/4d/4e/4f/4g/4) |ag/a/ baT(gf) | (g/4f/2<e) Te3d | d4 :||
X:33
%
T:Blink o'er the burn, my sweet laddie. CJF.033
T:No.1. CJF.033
R:Air
C:J Smith
S:C.J.Fox MS, 1829/33, Beverley,E.Yorks.
N:The extra note at the start of section 3 is as in MS. - PJH.
B:Kidson Coll.Mitchell Lib.M1805
O:England
A:East Yorkshire
Z:vmp.P J Headford 2000 & 2008
M:6/8
L:1/8
Q:3/8=60
K:G
"p"d|"$"\
d>ed dbg|e2cc2e|d>ed dbg|fg^ga2d|!
d>ed dbg|ecB cde|dgb {b}aga|gdbHg2||!
"ff"b|bag gfe|f2bb2b|bag c'af|^de^e fga|!
bag gfe|=f2a c'af|gab ag^f|efg ">"fe"D.C."d||!
K:C
g|"dol."c'ba gfe|a2f dec|Bc^c def|ef^f gab|!
c'ba gfe|dag fed|cBA GAB|(d3"$"c2)|]