Auld Lang Syne
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And auld lang syne?
Chorus:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne.
And surely, ye'll be your pint stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
Chorus: For auld lang syne, etc.
We twa hae mn about the braes
And pou'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd mony a weary foot
Sin' auld lang syne.
Chorus: For auld lang syne, etc.
-We two hae paidled i' the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.
Chorus: For auld lang syne, etc.
And here's a hand, my trusty fiere,
And gie's a hand o' thine;
And we'll tak' a right gude-willy waught,
For auld lang syne.
Chorus: For auld lang syne, etc.
Auld Lang Syne
Described by Burns as 'a song of
olden times,
He wrote only two of the verses.
The others are original, passed down
from singing parent to listening child.
Music was vital to Burns in capturing
old songs and he taught himself to
play the fiddle to enable him to pick
out and record the tunes, which he did
by noting down his fingering on paper.
Many old folk-songs would have been lost
to us. The handclasp in the last
verse is the emblem of brotherhood amongst
men. What other song commands such universal
homage worldwide? What gathering would be
considered properly wound up without the
rendering of Auld Lang Syne as a finale?
And who, with Scottish blood in their veins,
would welcome in a New Year without it?