"Hughie Graham" or "Hughie Graeme" is
Child ballad number 191, Roud 84, existing in several variants. It was collected by Robert Burns. There is a printed version in the Bodleian Library under the title "The Life and Death of Sir Hugh The Grime".
It is dated between 1672 and 1696.
The Burns version was printed by
James Johnson (engraver) in the
Scots Musical Museum
The ''Scots Musical Museum'' was an influential collection of traditional folk music of Scotland published from 1787 to 1803. While it was not the first collection of Scottish folk songs and music, the six volumes with 100 songs in each collected ...
1803. It is in volume 4 song no 303, pages 312 and 313.
The Vaughan Williams Memorial Library lists several other versions in printed collections, including "Scottish Ballads" (1829) by
Robert Chambers (publisher, born 1802)
Robert Chambers (; 10 July 1802 – 17 March 1871) was a Scottish publisher, geologist, evolutionary thinker, author and journal editor who, like his elder brother and business partner William Chambers, was highly influential in mid-19th-centu ...
.
Synopsis
Hughie Graham is caught for stealing the bishop's horse, and sentenced to hang. Several pleas to ransom him are unavailing. He sees his mother or father and sends greetings to his father, his sword to
Johnnie Armstrong
Johnnie Armstrong depicted in a 19th-century painting at the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne.">Newcastle_upon_Tyne.html" ;"title="Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne">Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne.
''Johnnie Armstrong'' ...
, and a curse to his wife. (The legend is that his motive for the horse-theft was that the bishop had seduced his wife.)
Border reivers were cattle thieves active from the late 13th century to the start of the 17th century on the border between Scotland and England.
Recordings
Ewan MacColl recorded a version on "Chorus From The Gallows" (1960) Topic 12T16 as "Hughie The Graeme" and on several other albums, including
"Ballads" Topic 2009 TSCD576D
Dáithí Sproule
Dáithí Sproule (born 23 May 1950) is a guitarist and singer of traditional Irish music. He is the grandson of Frank Carney and uncle of singer Claire Sproule.
Biography
Born and raised in Derry, Northern Ireland, at the age of 18 he moved ...
recorded a version with fiddling master
James Kelly and button box master
Paddy O'Brien (Offaly) on the Shanachie album ''Traditional Music of Ireland''.
The Scottish folk band
Malinky
Malinky is a Scottish folk band specialising in Scots song, formed in autumn 1998.
Career Early years
The original members were Karine Polwart from Banknock, Stirlingshire (vocals, guitar, bouzouki), Steve Byrne from Arbroath (vocals, guita ...
recorded a version of this song, called "Hughie The Graham", on their 2005 album ''The Unseen Hours''.
English folk singer
June Tabor
June Tabor (born 31 December 1947 in Warwick, England) is an English folk singer known for her solo work and her earlier collaborations with Maddy Prior and with Oysterband.
Early life
June Tabor was born and grew up in Warwick, England. As ...
recorded a version of this song on ''
An Echo of Hooves'' in 2003.
The Czech folk group
Asonance recorded a version translated to Czech called "Hugo Graem (Hughie the Graeme)" on ''Vzdálené ostrovy'' (Remote Islands) in 2003.
Connie Dover
Connie Dover is an American singer-songwriter who primarily writes and performs Celtic music and American folk music. Born in Arkansas and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, she started her career playing bluegrass before joining Celtic band Scarta ...
recorded the song as "Hugh the Graeme" on her album ''The Wishing Well''.
Ross Kennedy sang it on the "Various Artists" album "Fyre and Sworde" (1998) Fellside.
Footnotes
External links
''Hughie Graham''
with history
Child Ballads
Border ballads
Northumbrian folklore
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