Edinburgh-based The Corries emerged from the 1960s Scottish folk revival. Their rendition of the traditional ‘The Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomond‘ has its roots in the Jacobite uprising of 1745 when Charles Stuart a.k.a. Bonnie Prince Charlie tried to claim the British throne.From the very first notes of accordion and harmonica, the listener is transported to a majestic longing. And once Roy Williamson‘s strong, clear oakwood voice enters, the words themselves thaw into music. ‘O wither away my bonnie May/ Sae late an’ sae far in the gloamin’/ The mist gather grey o’er moorland and brae/ O wither sae far are ye roamin?’
This lament for a lost love – supposedly by a soldier named Donald MacDonald, who was captured at the Battle of Culloden, for his beloved Moira – is really a haunting ghost song.
The Corries’ rendition is striking for its purity and clarity of voice. The chorus line – ‘O ye’ll take the high road/ an’ I’ll take the low/ I’ll be in Scotland afore ye/ For me and my true love will never meet again/ By the bonnie bonnie banks o’ Loch Lomond – leaves us with ripples of sadness.
