Burns Banter - Ep.17 Robert Burns - To A Louse

Address to the Toothache, written in 1786.

In the late 1700's dentistry didn't really exist. If you got the toothache you had to just deal with the pain, there was no pain relief. If things got really bad you would have to find someone willing to pull your teeth out. Probably a barber / surgeon.

Robert put all of his pain into this poem. You can almost feel the pain and misery of the ongoing toothache as you make your way through the verses.

Enjoy!

This week I am working in Stockholm.

I managed to get two English colleagues, Jim and Ru, to take part in a Burns quiz. The quiz is made up of two rounds of 10 questions, with the second 10 having a very Swedish twist. This was filmed in the Quality Hotel Globe in Stockholm after an afternoon spent wandering around the old town and having a few beers. 

I hope you enjoy it, join in, and get a better score than Jim and Ru.

Cheers!

My love is like a red red rose is a beautiful love song written by Robert Burns around 1792. 

Robert said that it was an old Scots song that he had collected in the country. I believe it may well have been old, but Robert must have rewritten it. I believe this as it has very modern language which includes the concept of geological time, which was practically unheard of at the time.  This may have come from Roberts friendship with James Hutton, who was a pioneer in this field. 

It was first published in 1794 by Pietro Urbani in his work, Scots Songs, although it had a different tune to the one we know today. Pietro was a singer composer from Milan that Robert met in 1793. The song we sing today, with the tune we know today,  (called low down in the broom), was first put together by a Paisley composer / editor called Robert Archibald Smith in 1821. The publication was called 'Scottish Minstrel'.

My love is like a red red rose is a beautiful song, check out some versions of it on youtube. It's well worth it.

To a Louse is a poem written by Robert Burns in 1786. It is set in the church at Mauchline during a Sunday Service. At first glance the poem is about a head lice, but, it is in fact about perception and the social classes.

Robert is Sitting in Church and sees a head lice on a very prim and proper lady. He can't believe the impudence of the head lice and says it should have chosen someone else to be upon. Someone like a tramp or a ragged boy. However he goes on to say that according to the head lice we are all the same.

At the end of the poem Robert says that it would be a great gift if we could see ourselves as other people see us, it would from many blunders free us, and foolish  notions.

Very true...

Holy Willie's Prayer is a fabulous satirical poem. It's one of the best satirical poems ever written in the Scots tongue. It is all about the hypocrisy of the Church, and one person in particular. 

Willie Fisher was an elder of the kirk in Mauchline, and spied on people and then told the Church to punish them for their sins. He took a dislike to Gavin Hamilton and a feud started. This resulted in a court case which angered Robert Burns, who went on to use this incident as the basis for this poem. Gavin won the court case, with the help of another lawyer, Robert Aitken.

The poem that this incident inspired is a work of art, and is performed at many Burns Suppers the world over.

Robert also wrote Epitaph to Holy Willie and The Kirk's Alarm, two other poems about Willie Fisher.

What is a Burns Supper? 

I look at the classic Scottish Celebration, The Burns Supper. I ask what is is all about?, when did it start?  and why should I go to one? For the answers to these questions listen to this episode!

Also, if you like Scotland, interesting food, (Haggis), enjoy a drink, and like a sing along - you will love a Burns Supper!!!

In this episode of Burns Banter we play some of Robert Burns songs and tunes. 

I have guests! on this weeks show we have the band 'Garbh Uisge'. We chat about songs such as 'A Fond Kiss', 'Auld Lang Syne' and 'Green Grow the Rashes'. Garbh Uisge treat us to some live performances and unfortunately I also sing.

We hear some great burns waltz's and fast reels, talk about the stories behind the songs and generally have a good time. Tune in, listen and maybe even sing along with us ...

Slange Var!!!

Willie Wastle, also known as 'Sic a wife Willie had' as a grotesquely funny poem / song about how unbelievably ugly Willie's wife is. Robert Burns wrote this poem in 1792 and he goes into comically hideous detail about this poor woman's appearance.   

The actual reason, or inspiration behind Robert Burns writing 'Willie Wastle' has been lost to history, but two different thoughts remain. One is that it is cover for some political rant about an incident or argument that has been long forgotten. The other thought is its actually about a specific woman. If it is about a specific woman then she probably annoyed or angered Robert in some way and he has repaid that anger by ripping her apart in verse.

Listen to this episode, hear the description of this unfortunate woman, (I explain all the Scots words so its easy to understand), and decide for yourself what the poem is actually about...

Slange Var !

Auld Lang Syne is Robert Burns most famous song, and the second most sung song in the English language. Yet, most people have no idea what it means, or where it came from.

In this episode I tell you where the lyrics for Auld Lang Syne came from, where the famous tune came from, and what the song is actually about! I explain all the difficult Scottish words so that you can finally understand this song that you have been singing for years.

listen to this episode and never be confused again whilst singing Auld Lang Syne.

I also explain why it is so popular.....

PLEASE NOTE: I say in this episode that George Thomson published 'The Scots Musical Museum' , this is wrong, he published 'Select Scottish Airs', which Burns contributed heavily to. It was James Johnson who published 'The Scots Musical Museum'. He produced six volumes between 1787 and 1803. Robert Burns was the main contributor and virtual editor of the volumes until his death in 1796. Stephen Clarke was the musical editor.

Cheers! Alastair

WARNING!!!! This episode is better watched as a video.

https://youtu.be/i9RZ_t_JWQU?si=ksa_zMSxzDf44bu3

In this episode I go on a whistle stop tour of Robert Burns sites in Ayrshire. These include: the house Robert was born in, The Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, the auld Alloway kirk, the Brig O' Doon, the Tarbolton bachelors club, Poosie Nansies Pub and Mossgiel Farm.

Poosie Nansies pub, and the characters that drank there, was the inspiration behind the epic Burns cantata 'The Jolly Beggars'. I was inspired by the place and recited 'Willie Wastles Wife'. The Auld Alloway kirk is where, in the poem Tam O' Shanter, Tam  saw the witches and the devil dancing. Mossgiel farm is where Robert wrote a huge amount of his poems, this is where he wrote 'to a mouse'. I recite the poem in front of the field where Robert went through the mouses nest with his plough.

If you want to see the places in ayrshire where Robert lived and worked then this is the episode for you!