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Horkstow Grange
Steeleye Span Lyrics


Australia Traditional When I was a young man, my age seventeen, I oug…
Bonny Birdy Traditional O it's of a knight on a summer's night Was ridi…
Bonny Irish Boy Woods As I roved out one morning All in the blooming…
Erin Traditional At the setting of the sun When my long day's…
Horkstow Grange Steeleye Span sing Horkstow Grange In Horkstow Grange there …
I Wish That I Never Was Wed Traditional O ladies take pity on me, Let me in your compan…
Lord Randall Johnson "O where have you been, Lord Randall, my son? Where…
One True Love Traditional Cold blows the wind o'er my true love, Cold blo…
The Old Turf Fire Traditional Oh the old turf fire And the hearth swept clean…
The Parting Glass Traditional Of all the money that e'er I had I spent it…
The Tricks of London Traditional In London town I lost my way In Oxford city …


Ben - Moderator


on Bonny Moorhen

Hi Stuart, We have corrected the description above.

Stuart Tartan


on Bonny Moorhen

The song Bonny Moorhen by Steeleye Span is a traditional Scottish ballad that tells the story of a bird, the Bonny Moorhen, and its journey through the glen and over the sea. The narrator of the song expresses affection and admiration for the bird and asks others to toast its health when they are out drinking. The Bonny Moorhen is described as having a rainbow of feathers, including blue, which is unusual for a bird, and invites it to come to the narrator. However, in the second verse, the song takes a darker turn as the narrator reveals that the bird has gone over the sea and will not return until the summer. But when it does return, only certain people will know, suggesting that not everyone will be happy about the Bonny Moorhen's return. The third verse introduces a new element to the story, two men named Ronald and Donald who are out on the fen, presumably trying to hunt or harm the bird. The narrator calls for the Bonny Moorhen to come to them for safety. Overall, the song is a mix of admiration for the beauty of nature and a warning about the dangers that can lurk in it. The Bonny Moorhen represents something pure and innocent, but there are those who would try to harm it, and the song is a call to protect it.

This description of the song completely misses the point in every way. It IS NOT about a bird.
It is an allegorical Jacobite-era song about Bonny Prince Charlie (the bonny moorhen). The colours mentioned, for instance, are the colours of the Clan Stuart tartan.