Afton Water
R. Burns


Flow gently, sweet Afton, among thy green braes,
Flow gently, I'll sing thee a song in thy praise;
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream;
Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream.

Though stock-dove whose echo resounds thro' the glen,
Ye wild whistling blackbirds in yon thorny den,
Thou green-crested lapwing, thy screaming forebear,
I charge you disturb not my slumbering fair.

How lofty, sweet Afton, thy neighbouring hills,
Far marked with the courses of clear winding rills;
There daily I wander as norn rises high;
My flocks and my Mary's sweet cot in my eye.

How pleasant thy banks and green valleys below,
Where wild in the woodlands the primroses blow;
There oft, as mild evening creeps over the lea,
The sweet-scented birk shades my Mary and me.

Thy crystal stream, Afton, how lovely it glides,
And winds by the cot where my Mary resides;
How wanton thy waters her snowy feet lave
As gathering sweet flow'rets, she stems thy clear wave!

Flow gently, sweet Afton, among thy green braes,
Flow gently , sweet river, the theme of my lays;
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream
Flow gently, sweet Afton, disturb not her dream.

Midi sequenced by Barry Taylor

This song of Robert Burns was presented by him to Mrs General Stewart of Stair and Afton, who was the first lady of 'station' to realise his genius. It later appeared in James Johnson's "The Scots Musical Museum" in 1792. In 1786 when the song was written, Burns was in love with Mary Campbell, 'Highland Mary', and it is to be supposed that she is the 'Mary' referred to in the song. The Afton is a small Ayrshire tributary of the River Nith running through what was once the property of Mrs General Stewart who is reported to have been 'extremely gratified by the poet's reference to her domain'.

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