Daily Ramble 41 - POETIC SINGING

April 30, 2020

POETIC SINGING

This morning my favorite song came to mind, Robert Burns' "Green Grow The Rashes." I thought, "Why not sing it instead of writing a ramble?" That felt like something simple, natural and fully in tune with the most ancient mode of human entertainment - close to the singing of the birds and the howling of the wolves.
Of course, being a human composition, by a great poet, this song is deep and meaningful on many levels. At the conclusion of my rendition I will add some comments. [The original version of this ramble had me singing but getting that audio file into Blogger was too complicated.]

Here is Ewan Maccoll singing Robert Burns' "Green Grow The Rashes." I learned the song from him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOSgzY5QkyU

[Chorus]
Green grow the rashes, O,
Green grow the rashes, O,
The sweetest hours that e'er I spend,
Are spent amang the lasses, Oh.

There's nought but care on ev'ry han',
In ev'ry hour that passes, O,
What signifies the life o' man,
An' 'twere na for the lasses, O,
Green grow, etc.

The war'ly race may riches chase,
An' riches still may fly them, O,
An' tho' at last they catch them fast,
Their hearts can ne'er enjoy them, O.
Green grow, etc.

But gie me a cannie hour at e'en,
My arms about my dearie, O,
An' war'ly cares, an' war'ly men,
May a' gae tapsalteerie, O!
Green grow, etc.

For you sae douce, ye sneer at this,
Ye're nought but senseless asses, O,
The wisest man the warl' e'er saw,
He dearly lov'd the lasses, O.
Green grow, etc.

Auld Nature swears, the lovely dears
Her noblest work she classes, O,
Her prentice han' she try'd on man,
An' then she made the lasses, O!   
Green grow,etc.

In this poem Burn manages to cover,with wit and profundity, three important topics, loving relationships, human greed and religion. He handles all three with enjoyable poetry and penetration.

He gives human intimate relationships first place in balancing and overcoming the cares of life and bringing about its sweetest moments. He rejects those who focus on accumulating riches (which never satisfy their hearts). He scorns those who sneer at his valuation of relationships, pointing out the Biblical example of wise King Solomon, reputedly the consummate appreciator of women.
Finally, in a magisterial conclusion, he gives the creator god the feminine form of Nature and cleverly changes the creation of man into an early experiment by her "apprentice hand," culminating in the more perfect form of woman.

Odd footnote: The word "gringo," used in Mexico to describe Americans supposedly originates from the Mexican War (1846-1848), when American Soldiers would sing the very popular song, Robert Burns’ Green Grow the Rashes (gringo = green grow)

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