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(100) Page 76 - For a' that, and a' that
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76
THE SONGS OF SCOTLAND.
= 84
H
FOR A' THAT, AND A THAT.
MODFRATO
ED
tfct
ps
■* ft n.
* —•— *
t-
m^m
=£=q^
Is
tliere, for ho - nest po - ver - ty, That hangs his head, an' a' that ? The
4.t
faUULj^^ g
A^e
g=^^
cow - ard-slave, we pass him by ; We dare be puir, for a' that. For
that, and
ss
I
^M
m
tat
5=fc
that, Our toils ob-scure, an' a' that, The rank is but the gui - nea-stamp ; The
The first line ought to be sung thus ; —
=*=!=£
man's the gowd, for
that.
Is there, for ho - nest po - ver - ty,
&c.
What tho' on hamely fare we dine,
Wear hodden-grey, 1 an' a' that?
Gi'e fools their silks, an' knaves their wine;
A man's a man, for a' that ;
For a' that, an' a' that.
Their tinsel show, an' a' that,
The honest man, tho' e'er sae puir,
Is king o' men, for a' that
Ye see yon birkie, 2 ca'd a lord,
Wha struts, an' stares, an' a' that ;
Tho' hundreds worship at his word,
He's but a cuif. 3 for a' that.
For a' that, au' a' that,
His ribbon, star, and a' that,
The man of independent mind.
He looks an' laughs at a' that.
1 Cloth used by the peasantry, which has the natural colour of the wool.
* Try ; attempt ; venture.
A king can mak' a belted knight,
A marquis, duke, an' a' that ;
But an honest man's abune his might —
Gude faith, he maunna fa' 4 that !
For a' that, an' a' that,
Their dignities, an' a' that,
The pith o' sense, the pride o' worth,
Are higher ranks than a' that.
Then let us pray, that come it may,
As come it will, for a' that,
That sense an' worth o'er a' the earth,
May bear the gree, 6 an' a' that ;
For a' that, an' a' that,
It's comin' yet, for a' that,
That man to man, the warld o'er,
Shall brothers be, for a' that.
- A young fellow. 3 A simpleton ; a fool.
e Pre-eminence ; superiority.
" For a' that, an' a' that." We have no information regarding the authorship of the air. Burns wrote two songs
to it; one for the Museum, in 1789, beginning "Tho' women's minds, like winter winds;" and the other in 1794.
The latter is the song we have adopted. Mr. Stenhouse speaks of this song as follows : — " In 1794, Burns wrote the
following capital verses to the same air, which were handed about in manuscript a considerable time before they
appeared in print. They unfortunately came out at a period when political disputes ran very high, and his enemies
did not fail to interpret every sentence of them to his prejudice. That he was the zealous friend of rational and con-
stitutional freedom, will not be denied ; but that he entertained principles hostile to the safety of the State, no honest
man that knew him, will ever venture to maintain. In fact, what happened to Burns, has happened to most men of
genius. Buring times of public commotion, there are always to be found vile and dastardly scoundrels, who, to
render themselves favourites with those in power, and push their own selfish views of interest and ambition, are ever
ready to calumniate the characters, and misrepresent the motives and actions of their neighbours, however good,
innocent, or meritorious." See Museum Hlustrations, vol. iii. pp. 284, 285. In other editions, the melody begins
with two semiquavers ; for these we have substituted a quaver, as more manly and decided, and therefore better
suited to the character of the words ; and as the accentuation of the first line of the song requires a slight alteration
of the melody, we have given the proper notation for it at the end of the air.
THE SONGS OF SCOTLAND.
= 84
H
FOR A' THAT, AND A THAT.
MODFRATO
ED
tfct
ps
■* ft n.
* —•— *
t-
m^m
=£=q^
Is
tliere, for ho - nest po - ver - ty, That hangs his head, an' a' that ? The
4.t
faUULj^^ g
A^e
g=^^
cow - ard-slave, we pass him by ; We dare be puir, for a' that. For
that, and
ss
I
^M
m
tat
5=fc
that, Our toils ob-scure, an' a' that, The rank is but the gui - nea-stamp ; The
The first line ought to be sung thus ; —
=*=!=£
man's the gowd, for
that.
Is there, for ho - nest po - ver - ty,
&c.
What tho' on hamely fare we dine,
Wear hodden-grey, 1 an' a' that?
Gi'e fools their silks, an' knaves their wine;
A man's a man, for a' that ;
For a' that, an' a' that.
Their tinsel show, an' a' that,
The honest man, tho' e'er sae puir,
Is king o' men, for a' that
Ye see yon birkie, 2 ca'd a lord,
Wha struts, an' stares, an' a' that ;
Tho' hundreds worship at his word,
He's but a cuif. 3 for a' that.
For a' that, au' a' that,
His ribbon, star, and a' that,
The man of independent mind.
He looks an' laughs at a' that.
1 Cloth used by the peasantry, which has the natural colour of the wool.
* Try ; attempt ; venture.
A king can mak' a belted knight,
A marquis, duke, an' a' that ;
But an honest man's abune his might —
Gude faith, he maunna fa' 4 that !
For a' that, an' a' that,
Their dignities, an' a' that,
The pith o' sense, the pride o' worth,
Are higher ranks than a' that.
Then let us pray, that come it may,
As come it will, for a' that,
That sense an' worth o'er a' the earth,
May bear the gree, 6 an' a' that ;
For a' that, an' a' that,
It's comin' yet, for a' that,
That man to man, the warld o'er,
Shall brothers be, for a' that.
- A young fellow. 3 A simpleton ; a fool.
e Pre-eminence ; superiority.
" For a' that, an' a' that." We have no information regarding the authorship of the air. Burns wrote two songs
to it; one for the Museum, in 1789, beginning "Tho' women's minds, like winter winds;" and the other in 1794.
The latter is the song we have adopted. Mr. Stenhouse speaks of this song as follows : — " In 1794, Burns wrote the
following capital verses to the same air, which were handed about in manuscript a considerable time before they
appeared in print. They unfortunately came out at a period when political disputes ran very high, and his enemies
did not fail to interpret every sentence of them to his prejudice. That he was the zealous friend of rational and con-
stitutional freedom, will not be denied ; but that he entertained principles hostile to the safety of the State, no honest
man that knew him, will ever venture to maintain. In fact, what happened to Burns, has happened to most men of
genius. Buring times of public commotion, there are always to be found vile and dastardly scoundrels, who, to
render themselves favourites with those in power, and push their own selfish views of interest and ambition, are ever
ready to calumniate the characters, and misrepresent the motives and actions of their neighbours, however good,
innocent, or meritorious." See Museum Hlustrations, vol. iii. pp. 284, 285. In other editions, the melody begins
with two semiquavers ; for these we have substituted a quaver, as more manly and decided, and therefore better
suited to the character of the words ; and as the accentuation of the first line of the song requires a slight alteration
of the melody, we have given the proper notation for it at the end of the air.
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Special collections of printed music > Glen Collection of printed music > Printed music > Wood's edition of the songs of Scotland > (100) Page 76 - For a' that, and a' that |
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Permanent URL | https://digital.nls.uk/91338943 |
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Description | Scottish songs and music of the 18th and early 19th centuries, including music for the Highland bagpipe. These are selected items from the collection of John Glen (1833 to 1904). Also includes a few manuscripts, some treatises, and other books on the subject. |
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Description | The Glen Collection and the Inglis Collection represent mainly 18th and 19th century Scottish music, including Scottish songs. The collections of Berlioz and Verdi collected by bibliographer Cecil Hopkinson contain contemporary and later editions of the works of the two composers Berlioz and Verdi. |
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