I have to admit I get easily bored with the repetitive music of the local radio stations. What’s even worse is the totally mindless babbling of the various morning show hosts. There are exceptions, of course, but only very few. One morning, during a drive to the nearest Panera Bread, I discovered a tape in my wife’s car. A few years ago we had temporarily switched cars, because she felt safer with my Jeep Grand Cherokee in the winter. The temporary status turned to permanent, and now I drive my wife’s Nissan Altima. It’s for the better, anyways, since she transports our two year old son all the time.

The tape turned out to contain two Loreena McKinnett CDs, one being Parallel Dreams, the other Elemental. Well, I did complain about the repetitive music of the local radio stations but I have to admit that I listened to the tape every time I drove the Altima.

Loreena McKennitt is one of my favorite artists. She is a Canadian singer, composer, harpist, and pianist, most famous for writing, recording, and performing world music with Celtic and Middle Eastern themes. She is known for her refined soprano vocals.

Loreena McKennitt does write her own songs, but she also adapts traditional songs or turns historic poems into music. One song on Parallel Dreams caught my attention from the first time I heard it. It is an example of an adaptation, and this song is Annachie Gordon.

The original title is Lord Saltoun and Auchanachie, and it is a Scottish folk song. The lyrics are wonderful, and Loreena McKennitt’s beautiful voice makes this song nothing short of extraordinary.

According to Wikipedia, its heroine, Jeannie, is to be married off at the insistence of her father to a wealthy man, Lord Sultan, but she is in love with Anachie Gordon, the subject of the song. The song chronicles her resistance to the marriage before she is eventually dragged to the church. Jeannie refuses to sleep in the same bed until her father comes down and tells her maid to undo her gown. Jeannie collapses at her father’s feet and dies for love of Anachie. Anachie, having been away at sea, returns where Jeannie’s distressed maidens tell him that Jeannie has been married in his absence and has now died of a broken heart. Anachie tells the maidens to take him to the chamber where Jeannie lies and then, having kissed her cold lips, also dies of a broken heart.

For more detailed information on the song log on to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annachie_Gordon.

For more information on Loreena McKennitt log on to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loreena_McKennitt.

Annachie Gordon

Harking is bonny and there lives my love
My heart lies on him and cannot remove
It cannot remove for all that I have done
And I never will forget my love Annachie
For Annachie Gordon he’s bonny and he’s bright
He’d entice any woman that e’er he saw
He’d entice any woman and so he has done me
And I never will forget my love Annachie.

Down came her father and he’s standing at the door
Saying Jeannie you are trying the tricks of a whore
You care nothing for a man who cares so much for thee
You must marry Lord Sultan and leave Annachie
For Annachie Gordon is barely but a man
Although he may be pretty but where are his lands
The Sultan’s lands are broad and his towers they run high
You must marry Lord Sultan and leave Annachie.

With Annachie Gordon I beg for my bread
And before I marry Sultan his gold to my head
With gold to my head and straight down to my knees
And I’ll die if I don’t get my love Annachie
And you who are my parents to church you may me bring
But unto Lord Sultan I’ll never bear a son
To a son or a daughter I’ll never bow my knee
And I’ll die if I don’t get my love Annachie.

Jeannie was married and from church was brought home
When she and her maidens so merry should have been
When she and her maidens so merry should have been
She goes into her chamber and cries all alone.

Come to my bed my Jeannie my honey and my sweet
To stile you my mistress it would be so sweet
Be it mistress or Jeanne it’s all the same to me
But in your bed Lord Sultan I never will lie
And down came her father and he’s spoken with reknown
Saying you who are her maidens
Go loosen up her gowns
And she fell down to the floor
And straight down to his knee saying
Father look I’m dying for my love Annachie.

The day that Jeanne married was the day that Jeannie died
And the day that young Annachie came home on the tide
And down came her maidens all wringing of their hands
Saying oh it’s been so long, you’ve been so long on the sands
So long on the sands, so long on the flood
They have married your Jeannie and now she lies dead.

You who are her maidens come take me by the hand
And lead me to the chamber where my love she lies in
And he kissed her cold lips till his heart it turned to stone
And he died in the chamber where his love she lies in.

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