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BACK OF THE NORTH WIND (Brian McNeill) In the grey o' the gloamin' there sits an old man, Wi' a glint in his eye and a glass in his hand, And he sings to the new day when the old day is done, Cryin' "Where are my daughters and where are my sons?" cho: And it's rovin' for pleasure by mountain and stream, Rovin' for sorrow wi' whisky for dreams, Rovin' for fortune on a far foreign shore, At the back o' the north wind it's rovin' no more The old woman pulls at the old shuttle wheel, She sings o' the cradle, the plough and the creel, She sings to the bairns as she weaves and she spins, An old woman's song to the tune o' the wind There's a maiden who scatters the seed on the land, But the wind takes a share o' the seed from her hand, That others might harvest what Scotland can sow, As far as the blast o' the north wind can go. CHORUS FOLLOWED BY 9/8 JIG CALLED "THE ENTAIL" "The back o' the north wind" is a metaphor for Scotland. The song deals with her sons and daughters emigrating copyright: Grian Music From: Susanne (skw) [1991:] One of Europe's most enduring myths tells of a land behind the North Win d, and in some versions of the story, the land is Scotland. In terms of Scotland 's people, the idea is certainly credible - over the centuries they seem to have been prey to a perpetual outward force, pushing them to all parts of the globe. If it's a wind, then it's one that has many names, some harsh - poverty and per secution - and some hopeful - betterment, restlessness, a desire to know what's over the next hill, the next ocean. But it's a complex wind as well, perplexing, for the further the Scots are blown from home, the more that home seems to exer t its pull on them - and that's a paradox which has become part of our national character; anyone who wants to understand Scotland today must look at the lives of the Scots abroad, past and present. And nowhere have these lives had more imp act than across the Atlantic. (Notes Brian McNeill, 'The Back o' the North Wind' ) @Scottish filename[ NORWIND ML  8note Sheet |
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