On this last and lovely night

My Dark-Haired Maid

Mo nighean dubh, the hills are bright,
And on this last and lovely night,
I'd fain frae auld Knockgowan's height
Look owre the glen wi' thee.
Never mair we'll tread its heather,
Never doun the lea
Liltin' will we shear thegither,
Fu' o' mirth and glee,
Fortune's blasts o' wintry weather
Drive us owre the sea,
But lang's we're blest wi' ane anither,
Fie! let fears gae flee.
Yet see, my dear, the hills are bright,
And on this last and lovely night
I'd fain frae auld Knockgowan's height
Look owre the glen wi' thee.

Mo nighean dubh, 'twas there we met,
And O! that hour is precious yet,
When first my honest vow could get
Love's tearfu' smile frae thee.
Hearts were pledged ere either knew it,
What's to be maun be,
Mine was tint ere I could trow o't
Wi' that glancing e'e.
Dear Knockgowan and the view o't
Ne'er again we'll see,
O let me gang and tak adieu o't
Laoth ma chree, wi' thee.
Mo nighean dubh, 'twas there we met,
And O! that hour is precious yet,
When first my honest vow could get
Love's tearfu' smile frae thee.



The words to this song were written for the tune 'Mo nighean dubh' by Dr John Park (1805-1865), who was a Presbyterian minister in St Andrews. According to Songs of the North, whence I got the text, 'Laoth ma chree' is a Gaelic expression which means literally "calf of my heart". This is Percy Grainger's choral version of the song: