Join

Whistle & I'll come to you my lad

Key details

Archive number
NTS/02/25/BRN/02/140
Alt. number
3.6306
Date
August 1793
On display
No
Creator
Burns, Robert (Author)
Recipient
Thomson, George

Explore correspondence between the creator and recipient

Description

Whistle & I'll come to you my lad.

Begins: "O whistle, and I'll come to ye, my lad" 3 four-line verses and chorus.

light hearted love song by Robert Burns describing how a young lady wants her sweetheart to pay her amorous attentions, but not too openly. (poem no 420)

In this first page of the song Robert Burns shows the 'Come -hither' attitude of the girl to her sweetheart. However he is to approach her covertly, not approaching her directly or too publicly.

In this page the young lady advises her sweetheart to protest her interest in her though he might concede her good looks. However he must not pay attention to another woman in case he is enticed away.

Burns derived this song from an old fragment (in the Herd collection) as he often did, and offered it to George Thomson attached to his letter of August 1793 (letter no 578) for inclusion in his collection of Scottish Airs.

Archive information


Hierarchy

  1. Robert Burns, collection of poems and songs ( )
  2. Whistle & I'll come to you my lad

Caring for collections

A gift of £5 a month can help us ensure collections like the Robert Burns Collection receive ongoing care and are shared with as many people as possible.

Donate today