The Bonny Swans by Loreena McKennitt
The Bonny Swans by Loreena McKennitt

The Bonny Swans

Loreena McKennitt * Track #2 On The Mask and Mirror

Download "The Bonny Swans"

The Bonny Swans by Loreena McKennitt

Release Date
Tue Mar 22 1994
Performed by
Loreena McKennitt
Writed by
Loreena McKennitt & Traditional
About

The second song on Canadian artists fifth album, Bonny Swans takes inspiration from old folklore. The story goes by many names, such as “The Two Sisters”, “The Twa Sisters”, and “The Cruel Sister” to name a few. The murder ballad is about a woman who is killed by her older sister for the sake of a m...

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The Bonny Swans Lyrics

A farmer there lived in the north country
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And he had daughters one, two, three
The swans swim so bonny-o
These daughters they walked by the river's brim
A hey ho and me bonny-o
The eldest pushed the youngest in
The swans swim so bonny-o

Oh sister, oh sister, pray lend me your hand
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And I will give you house and land
The swans swim so bonny-o
I'll give you neither hand nor glove
A hey ho and me bonny-o
Unless you give me your own true love
The swans swim so bonny-o

Sometimes she sank, sometimes she swam
A hey ho and me bonny-o
Until she came to a miller's dam
The swans swim so bonny-o
The miller's daughter, dressed in red
A hey ho and me bonny-o
She went for some water to make her bread
The swans swim so bonny-o

O father, o daddy, here swims a swan
A hey ho and me bonny-o
It's very like a gentle woman
The swans swim so bonny-o
They laid her on the bank to dry
A hey ho and me bonny-o
There came a harper passing by
The swans swim so bonny-o

He made harp pins of her fingers fair
A hey ho and me bonny-o
He made harp strings of her golden hair
The swans swim so bonny-o
He made a harp of her breast bone
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And straight it began to play alone
The swans swim so bonny-o

He brought it to her father's hall
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And there was the court assembled all
The swans swim so bonny-o
He laid the harp upon the stone
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And straight it began to play alone
The swans swim so bonny-o

There does sit my father, the King
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And yonder sits my mother the Queen
The swans swim so bonny-o
And there does sit my brother Hugh
A hey ho and me bonny-o
And by him William, sweet and true
The swans swim so bonny-o

And there does sit my false sister Anne
A hey ho and me bonny-o
Who drowned me for the sake of a man
The swans swim so bonny-o

The Bonny Swans Q&A

Who wrote The Bonny Swans's ?

The Bonny Swans was written by Loreena McKennitt & Traditional.

Who produced The Bonny Swans's ?

The Bonny Swans was produced by Loreena McKennitt.

When did Loreena McKennitt release The Bonny Swans?

Loreena McKennitt released The Bonny Swans on Tue Mar 22 1994.

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