In 1962, Roy Williamson teamed up with Bill Smith and Ron Cockburn to form the "Corrie Folk Trio". Their first performance was in the Waverley Bar in St Mary's Street, Edinburgh. After a few weeks Cockburn left. They had already accepted an engagement at the Edinburgh Festival so Williamson suggested that Ronnie Browne should be brought in to make up numbers. They also added female Irish singer Paddie Bell to become the "Corrie Folk Trio and Paddie Bell".
In 1966, Paddie Bell and Bill Smith left the group. Under the new name, The Corries, Williamson, a talented multi-instrumentalist, and Browne, the singer, performed at the Jubilee Arms Hotel in Cortachy, Angus. The early 1970s were the Corries' finest hour.
The Corries became legendary for the amount of instruments that were taken onstage during concerts; between the two members, instruments such as guitars, banjoes, mandolins, bodhráns, combolins, harmonicas and tin-whistles were used.
During the Corries' 1989 tour, Roy Williamson's health went into decline and he was diagnosed with a brain tumour. He spent his last years living in Forres, close to where he spent his school years. He died on 12 August 1990.
Ronnie Browne continued recording and moved into acting, as well as expanding his career as a noted painter, including commissions for the 1990 Scottish Rugby team's Grand Slam victory, but has now retired from performing.
In December 2007, The Corries were inducted into the Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame at the Scottish Trad Music Awards in Fort William, promoted by concertina virtuoso Simon Thoumire's Hands Up for Trad organisation.
Maids When You're Young
The Corries Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye ay
He's got no faloorum, he's lost his ding-doorum
So maids when you're young never wed an old man
An old man came courting me, hey ding-doorum down
An old man came courting me, me being young
An old man came courting me, fain he would marry me
Because he's got no faloorum, faliddle aye oorum
He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye ay
He's got no faloorum, he's lost his ding-doorum
So maids when you're young never wed an old man
When we went to church, hey ding-doorum down
When we went to church, me being young
When we went to church, he left me in the lurch
Maids when you're young never wed an old man
Because he's got no faloorum, faliddle aye oorum
He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye ay
He's got no faloorum, he's lost his ding-doorum
So maids when you're young never wed an old man
When we went to bed, hey ding-doorum down
When we went to bed, me being young
When we went to bed, he lay like he was dead
Maids when you're young never wed an old man
Because he's got no faloorum, faliddle aye oorum
He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye ay
He's got no faloorum, he's lost his ding-doorum
So maids when you're young never wed an old man
When he went to sleep, hey ding-doorum down
When he went to sleep, me being young
When he went to sleep, out of bed I did creep
Into the arms of a handsome young man
And I found his faloorum, faliddle aye oorum
I found his faloorum, faliddle aye ay
I found his faloorum, he's got my ding-doorum
So maids when you're young never wed an old man
The Corries' song, "Maids When You're Young", is a cautionary tale about the dangers of marrying an old man. The lyrics describe the story of a young maiden who is courted by an old man, but ultimately realizes the error of her ways. The chorus is particularly significant, with the repeated line "So maids when you're young never wed an old man" serving as a warning to all young women.
The verses of the song go into detail about the singer's experiences with the old man. She describes how he has lost his vitality and energy, with the repeated line "He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye oorum / He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye ay / He's got no faloorum, he's lost his ding-doorum" serving as a metaphor for his lack of sexual prowess.
The second verse discusses how the old man left the singer high and dry when they went to church, while the third verse describes how he was a dead fish in bed. The final verse is particularly poignant, as the singer reveals that she has found someone else to fulfill her sexual desires.
Overall, the song is a humorous but cautionary tale about the dangers of marrying a much older man. The chorus serves as a warning to young women to avoid making the same mistakes as the singer.
Line by Line Meaning
Because he's got no faloorum, faliddle aye oorum
He lacks vigor and energy
He's got no faloorum, faliddle aye ay
He lacks physical strength and vitality
He's got no faloorum, he's lost his ding-doorum
He has lost his spark and excitement
So maids when you're young never wed an old man
Young women should avoid marrying older, less lively men
An old man came courting me, hey ding-doorum down
An elderly man approached me with romantic intentions
An old man came courting me, me being young
I was youthful and inexperienced when an older man showed interest in me
An old man came courting me, fain he would marry me
The man was eager to make me his wife
When we went to church, hey ding-doorum down
When we went to church, the old man was unenergetic and lacked enthusiasm
When we went to church, he left me in the lurch
The old man abandoned or betrayed me during a crucial moment
When we went to bed, hey ding-doorum down
When we went to bed, the old man was lethargic and unresponsive
When we went to bed, he lay like he was dead
The old man was unresponsive and lacked passion in the bedroom
When he went to sleep, hey ding-doorum down
When the old man fell asleep, he was unresponsive and lacked energy
When he went to sleep, out of bed I did creep
I snuck out of bed because the old man was unfulfilling and lacked vigor
And I found his faloorum, faliddle aye oorum
I found passion, grit and excitement in a younger man
I found his faloorum, faliddle aye ay
I found his vitality, emotional energy and his excitement
I found his faloorum, he's got my ding-doorum
I found a young man who meets my needs and desires
Contributed by Ellie I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Aileen Lightbody
I once saw them performing this live at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh. Absolutely hilarious! I wonder where this was recorded because it would have been great to have seen the video of that performance. The banter between them and their interaction with the audience is, to me anyway, second to none.
troughsnout
This song is BRILLIANT. I just happened to notice that at 3:26, if you look behind them you will see a HUGE pair of shearing clippers hanging on the wall. It just seems to be 'apt' in a strange sort of way
Laurie Edwards
So nice to hear them having fun with the audience. Sounds genuine and like they're enjoying interacting with their people. Many bands despise their audiences and would rather die than have to deal with them directly, but the Corries sound like they're having a good time.
Suzanne Laing
They did. The banter was great at concerts right to the last ones when I twigged Roy wasn't well before he said he was going for surgery. Great loss to Scotland and our music.
My heart goes out to his daughter who broke down in tears as she shared on radio how he had written a song for her before his op and tried to play it after but couldn't. How heart breaking that must have been for them both. Despite being great musicians, neither of them learned to read music.
Jack Simpson-Rogers
I know of at least one fellow I loved to watch in movies, I think it's Roy Marsden, who was magnificent as detective Adam Dalgliesh, but preferred being on stage to being on camera.
Midnite Skulker
I love this song. My Mom brought the live album back from Scotland way back in the 70s. Great to hear it again on Youtube. thanks for the efforts at posting this song.
Tim Carr
As an ex-pat living in Australia I'd just like to say a very big thank you to mandolinda for uploading this and all other Corries songs, reminds me of home. I may be living 17,000 miles from home but Scotland will always own my heart!!
I'm Not Here
Ive never even heard of the Corries before...... Thanks so much for sharing this & introducing me to them. They're AWESOME!!! I'm going to listen to the rest of them, too.Wow!
Jon Holford
Takes me back to the Edinburgh folk scene of the 70s, when I was a younger lad and still had my fallorum!
Charles Cook
Thanks for posting this one! Great job with the video! And of course the music....well they are the Corries!