On Friday, November 22, 1996 at 2:00:00 AM UTC-6, Rusty Celt wrote:
Someone asked awhile back for these song lyrics and I don't recall
them being posted. Since I just found a tape with the lyrics, here
they are:
Fare ye well ye banks of Sicily
Fare ye well ye valley and shore
There's no Scot will mourn the loss o' ya
Poor bloody soldiers are weary.
The pipe he is tuned and he's pipin' away
He won' be in town for his vino today
The sky is like Antrim, all cloudy and gray
And the song that he's playin' is eerie
Fare ye well...
It's march down the stair, and line on the bay
Your pack's on your back now the boats are away
You're waitin' your turn while the fife and drum play
And the song that they're playin' is eerie
Fare ye well...
The drum he is polished, the drum he is grand
He can no' be seen for his straps and his bands
He's greased himself up for a photo and stand
To leave with his Lola, his dearie.
Fare ye well...
-------------------------------
Rusty Aasheim
These are the lyrics from the Chad Mitchel Trio...it is a later version of the song from the 1960s. Craig is correct that it is actually Pipie (Bagpipe major) and Drummie (Drum Major).
The lyrics quoted by other users are older versions..such as Hamish's. One version I saw goes something like "ah the bricht chaulmers are eerie" rather than " and the song that they're playing is eerie.
The song describes a paradox between the feelings of many soldiers being glad to be heading home as repeatedly expressed in the chorus (theres no Scot who'll mourn the loss o ya) and the sad feeling of the Pipe major who will miss the wine (vino) and the
Drum Major who will miss his lover (lola). Hence the sad music they are playing is "eerie" (at odds with the situation).
Some versions of the song use the (somewhat derogatory coming from a non-celt) term "Jock" instead of "Scot"
Earliest versions are almost unintelligible to me due to use of Celtic dialect and slang.
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