Get all 11 Bruce Coughlan releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of A Simply Extraordinary Life, Waiting For Rain, Stirring Up Ghosts Vol 1&2, A Minstrel in Moray, Go the Road, A River So Wide, The Wild Bird's Nest, Buchan Bluegrass, and 3 more.
1. |
A Minstrel in Moray
05:00
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A MINSTREL IN MORRAY
Oh the banks of the Lossie or the banks of the Spey
Oh the banks of the Lossie or the banks of the Spey
I woke at dawn; nearby, a bell was ringing
Somewhere a bird was singing; I don't know
I could hear, lorries grinding gears
In a roar that echoed from the high street below
And like a drum, my head was beating
A not-so-gentle reminder of the night before
I shook my head, and set the world to turning
With thoughts of daylight burning; places to go
These are the days I wish I'd known better
A repentant sinner in the cold light of dawn
I should have learned, sooner than later
But love her, or hate her, I should leave her alone
I splash my face in water, cold and clear
The day drab and drear, but I don't care
Sharp as a thistle, I hear a kettle's whistle
The smell of breakfast frying, drifts up the stair
These are the thoughts that set me thinking
And these are the words as they came to my mind
I could live the life of a tinker
As a poet and a drinker among people so kind
The nights are long, the hours are filled with laughter
The nights are stronger than whisky-o
Down the lane, somewhere a fiddle's playing
Somewhere the dancers swaying to and fro
Bend my ear with a well-weathered story
Sing me your songs of the wide-open road
Tell me your tales of long-ancient glory
Of heroes or highwaymen, or battles of old
It's half of four; the drink's got the best of me
Devil take the rest of me in these small hours
It won't be long, till morning comes along
And I'll be up and gone and on my way
I'd spend the days, a minstrel in Moray
If I had my choice, I might be there today
I'd sing the charms, Findhorn to Portknocky
Oh the banks of the Lossie or the banks of the Spey
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2. |
Isles of Stone
04:01
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ISLES OF STONE
I guess it was fate, a fancy of fortune
That first brought me here to walk on your shores
I did not come with notions about you
But charms so abound you, it's hard to ignore
You islands fare, like picture book pages
The mystic reverie that burns in your veins
Your weathered face; a true rock of ages
Is cast in my memory, forever to remain
And I wish I was in Kirkwall's cathedral
I wish I was where the mighty heroes lay
What dark, true tales; thinking of St Magnus
With a solitude that stirs right to the bone
On isles of stone
Was it here, the brave last provisioned?
When they crossed the wild ocean centuries ago?
And Logan's Well on the high street of Stromness
Still watches the ships as they come and they go
I wish I was in the Parish of Orphir
I wish I was by the Hall of Clestrain
Walking along and thinking of the Arctic
While a waning sun sets low on Scappa Flow
Over isles of stone
It's strange to miss a place that makes you feel lonely
It's sad to miss a place that can make you feel so small
A strange, uneasy feeling that your only passing through
Just a pilgrim in the scheme of it all
Still I wish I was within the Stones of Brodger
I wish I was in the ruins of Scarra Brae
In a cold north rain, I'm thinking of the ages
And wishing I had something more to say
And I wish I was by Kirkwall's cathedral
I wish I was in the pubs along the quay
In dark, true ales, I'm drinking with St Magnus
While the haunted winds of waiting winter moan
Over isles of stone
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3. |
Kinreen o' the Dee
04:33
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KINREEN O' THE DEE
I’ll blaw up my chanter, I’ve sounded fu’ weel
To mony a ranter, In mony a reel
An’ pour a’ my heart i’ the win’bag wi’ glee
Och hey, Kinreen o’ th’ Dee
The auld hoose is bare noo, a cauld hoose to me
The hearth is nae mair noo, th’ centre o’ glee
Nae mair for th’ bairnies the bield it has been
Och, hey! Kinreen o’ th’ Dee
For licht was th’ lauchter on Bonny Kinreen
An licht was the fit-fa’ that danced o’er the green
An’ licht were the hearts a’, and lichtsome the eyne
In Bonny Kinreen
The auld kirk looks up o’er the dreesome auld dead
Like a saint speaking hope o’er some sorrowfu’ bed
Fareweel the auld kirk, and fareweel the kirk-green
Och, hey!, Kinreen o’ the Dee
Fareweel the auld braes that my han’ keepit green
Fareweel to the places we’d wonder unseen
Ere the licht o’ my heart cam to Bonny Kinreen
Kinreen o’ the Dee
Though little the thing be, oor ain we can ca’
That little we cling be the mair that it’s sma’
Though puir was oor hame, and though wild was the scene
Och, hey!, Kinreen o’ the Dee
The place we wa’d cling to, puir simple auld fools
O’ oor births and oor bridals, oor blisses an’ dools
Where the wee bits o’ bairnies lie cauld wi’ the mools
In Bonny Kinreen
The auld folk, the young folk, the wee anes an’ a’
A hunder year’s hame birds are harried awa’
Harried an’ hameless whatever wind blaws
Och, hey!, Kinreen o’ the Dee
Och, hey!, Kinreen o’ the Dee
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4. |
When the Rain Falls Down
03:59
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WHEN THE RAIN FALLS
It's an Autumn day in Inverness, and soon the night will follow day
The sky is leaden, in a thousand shades of grey
And it looks like rain, it looks like rain
Cold wind is howling up the street
November’s rattling at the door
No use pretending, ‘cause we’ve seen it all before
And if it feels like rain, well then it must be rain
When the rain falls down, and the rain falls, around my head
And the rain will wash away the pain
When the rain falls down
I’m huddled in a doorway, eating "chippies" from a sack
A stream of muddy water running down my back
And it’s always the rain, always the rain
When the rain falls down, and the rain falls all around my head
And the rain will wash away the pain
When the rain falls down
I’ve got this muddy water running through my veins
There’s never rain enough, to wash my blues
Awa-ay! a-hey-hey-yeah? Wa-ay! a-hey-yeah!
Awa-ay! a-hey-hey-yeah? Wa-ay! a-hey-yeah!
Day is shifting into shadows, mirrored on the flagstone street
The sun is sinking in a brilliant shock of blue
And I’m thinking of you, I’m thinking of you
When the rain falls down, and the rain falls down around my head
And the rain will wash away the stains
When the rain falls down
When the rain falls down
When the rain falls down
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5. |
A Mile Aboon the Spey
03:25
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A MILE ABOON THE SPEY
I rose up wi' the larks at the brak' o' day
And set my thochts on a grand stravaig
Through familiar haunts ance mare tae stray
Afore I gang awa'
I waulked doon the burn tae th' Spey side braw
Where salmon leapt in th' bricht day's sun
And the shy roe deer they scamped awa
Fare blithe were they tae see
But as I cam 'roon 'neath the auld brig span
Where beech trees tower owe'r the yella whins
Oh, my heart grew sad, as a cauld Firth wind
Cam creepin' up ow'er the Spey
We hae sung and ranted th' whole nicht lang
And ne'er hae wanted for pint nor dram
Fae the auld brig eastword I waulked a mile
Weel met wi' lauchter, an' mony a smile
For they ken it will aye be a lang, lang syne
That I'll be gane awa'
Gin I played the minstrel my lang day's end
I'll ne'er hae kenned sich a time as then
'till I see your welcome smiles again
A mile aboon the Spey
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6. |
Stone House
03:52
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THE STONE HOUSE
In the thrumming of the rain, lies a lonesome sound
There’s channels in the slate, where the water washes down
There's a challenge in the wind, and in the gathering night
In shades of moss and lichen, the black, the green and grey
A vast, sweeping countryside is fading with the day
But etched on the horizon, she towers before the light
As through the countless seasons, since no one remembers when
For whatever rhyme or reason
This stone house still stands…she still stands
Rise up ye withered harridan, standing black against the sky
Reaching out your stony limbs, to curse the bitter night
A wind whips up the leaves around, you can hear the owlets cry
Though tempered by the wind and rain that shaped a rugged land
She bares the tempest yet again
And the stone house still stands
She still stands
Long after her oaken beams have vanished into dust
After broken bars and chains have faded into rust
In the face of passing ages lies a constant you can trust
The seasons storms rage on and on
As against the fading light
She braces up her ancient walls
To the cold of the night
With prideful work a mason’s hand, a thousand years since gone
Through each archway and lintel laid
His signature in stone
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7. |
Apron Strings
03:44
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APRON STRINGS
From a nail by the door
Hangs a rag, pale and worn
Though the wealth of its service, cannot be ignored
For it once stretched as wide
As my tender young dreams
And oh, the lessons I learned by those auld apron strings
Where it’s threadbare and torn
Shows the toil, tears and wear
There, she once held my small world from all fear, or care
With her arms opened wide
How her smile gave me wings
And oh, the tales I first heard, by those auld apron strings
How well I recall
When those colours shown bright
Amidst clamour and clatter, her voice, pure and light
It was there I could sigh
And it’s there I would sing
And oh, the joy I knew then, by the auld apron strings
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8. |
Sweet Water & Whisky
03:11
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SWEET WATER AND WHISKY
When I was a child, I’d drink sweet water
Clear, sweet water from the fresh, cold stream
I never had a care or a trouble
Or strayed from a path, that was pure and clean
When the ways of the world leave a stain on your pallet
Only hard liquor can wash it clean
If it kicks like a mule, you can bet I’ve had it
Trying to wash off the dust and the dirt I’ve seen
Beer by the pail, and wine by the gallon
Hard, hard liquor, every strength and style
But I’ll never get enough of that clear, sweet water
Or pure malt whiskey ‘till the day I die
For every young man with a thirst for adventure
There’s liquor from every point on the globe
I’ll leave it tae th’ Scots fer th’ pure, malt whisky
There’s nothin’ much sweeter in the world, to know
You can take your bourbon, take your corn whiskey
Throw ’em in a sack, in to the deep blue sea
But save me just enough of that pure, malt whisky
And I’ll be as happy as a man can be
These years gone by, I’ve begun to mellow
Not hard ‘round the edges as I used to be
I take a little drop of that clear, sweet water
Whenever I take of the malt whisky
You can save me all of your grand elixirs
Spare the mixer and I’ll do just fine
If I take a little drop of that pure, malt whisky
And drink sweet water until the well runs dry
But if you give me just a drop of that clear, sweet water
I’ll drink malt whisky ‘till the barrel runs dry
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9. |
Ower Lang Awa'
04:26
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OWER LAND AWA'
The day that ye bade me fareweel
My hairt was like to break
I turned awa’ wi’ mony a sigh
An a’ just for your sake
The joys an’ pleasure noo I share
Ah! Me, are unco sma’
The rosy blush I used tae wear
Has faded clean awa’
Oh, dinna bide ower lang awa’
Gin ye ha’e lo’e for me
For, gin ye dae, in spite o’ a’
In sorrow will I dee
At hame I daurna mak’ nae mane
Sin’ lo’e has been my fate
But, like the dove, I mourn my lane
Berefted o’ my mate
In vain tae me the birdies sing
Doon by the trysting tree;
In vain tae me the floories spring
Sin’ yer nae there wi’ me
Oh, gin ye langer bide awa’
Ere surly winter rave,
The mavis at the evenin’s fa’
Will chant aboon my grave
Oh, dinna bide ower lang awa’
Gin ye ha’e lo’e for me
For, gin ye dae, in spite o’ a’
In sorrow will I dee
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Bruce Coughlan Maple Ridge, British Columbia
Pacific Canadian-based recording & performing artist, Bruce Coughlan has spent decades making Acoustic Roots Music Music of all descriptions. An expressive singer and rock-solid guitarist, Bruce is driven by one guiding principle: It's all about the Song. ... more
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