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Translation
The Elfin Night
There are three trumpeters standing on yonder hill
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
Blow their trumpets so loudly and shrilly
And the wind always blows my shawl1 away
If I had his trumpet in my chest2
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
And were in the arms of the lad that I like best
And the wind always blows my shawl away
If you want to be married to me
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
There's one thing you must do for me
And the wind always blows my cloak away.
I must have a fine linen shirt
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
Without a stitch of needlework
And the wind always blows my cloak away.
You must wash it in younder draw-well3
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
Where water never sprang nor did it fall
And the wind always blows my cloak away.
You must dry it on yonder hawthorn bush
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
That has not seen blossom since there were men
And the wind always blows my cloak away.
If I make a shirt for you
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
There's one thing you must do for me
And the wind always blows my shawl away.
My father has an acre of land
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
You must plow it with one of your hands
And the wind always blows my shawl away.
You must sow it without any seed
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
And roll it with a sheep's shin-bone
And the wind always blows my shawl away.
You must shear it with a scythe made of leather
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
And bind it with a peacock's feather
And the wind always blows my shawl away.
You must stack it in the sea
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
And bring the wheat sheaves to me dry
And the wind always blows my shawl away.
And if now you succeed in all this work
Blow, blow, blow winds, blow
Come to me and you'll get your shirt
And the wind always blows my shawl away.
- 1. although plaid is modern English, it has different meanings depending where you are, and additionally a plaid in Scotland was different for a man and for a woman: a man's plaid was a heavy woolen cloak or blanket, while a woman's plaid was either a woolen shawl or her main item of clothing. I've replaced it with the appropriate word according to which of the two characters is speaking in each verse.
- 2. the box for keeping stuff in, not the upper front of the body
- 3. A draw-well is a deep well where a bucket on the end of a rope is the means of getting water
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Submitted by 
michealt on 2014-11-11
michealt on 2014-11-11Added in reply to request by 
barsiscev
barsiscev Last edited by michealt on 2018-01-23
michealt on 2018-01-23✕
Ewan MacColl: Top 3
| 1. | The Ballad of Ho Chi Minh |
| 2. | The Elfin Knight |
| 3. | The 51st Division's Farewell to Sicily |
Idioms from "The Elfin Knight"
| 1. | Body blow |
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