Gordon Easton is from the Blackhills of Tyrie near Fraserburgh, where his family has crofted for generations. He learned many of his old songs from his mother and grandmother and is well-known for his fiddle, jew’s harp and ‘moothie’ playing, not to mention his considerable skills as a ‘diddler’. 

At the age of 84, he recorded this his first CD (www.springthyme.co.uk/ah05). In recent years he has become a fixture on the festival competition scene, sometimes entering as many as five competitions. In 2004 he was made an honorary life member of the TMSA. In 2007 he was a guest at the Whitby Folk Week.

The farm of Barnyards on the Delgaty castle estate a mile from Turriff gave rise to one of the most famous of the old bothy ballads. Greig opens his Buchan Observer article on Ploughman Songs with Barnyards (FSNE 4, GD 3: 347).

Scots Words 
The song is rich in the Buchan or Doric dialect of the Scots language. As with any language, the Scots tongue has its regional dialects. Click on the following link to discover more about Scots and get direct access to the online Scots Language dictionary: www.springthyme.co.uk/scotslanguage

The Barnyards o Delgaty

1: As I gaed doun tae Turra market,
Turra market for tae fee,
I met in wi a fairmer chiel,
Fae the barnyards o Delgaty.

Chorus:
Lilten adie touran adie, lilten adie touran ae,
O lilten lourin lourin lourin, the barnyards o Delgaty.

2: He promised me the twa best horse,
That ever gaed in iron sheen;
Fan I gaed hame tae the barnyards,
There wis naething there but skin and bane.

3: Noo the auld black horse sat on his hunkers,
The auld dun meer lay on her wime, [i.e. belly
And aa that I could up and cry,
They widna rise at yokin time.

4: Noo Lang Meg Scot she maks ma brose,
It's wi her I canna agree,
First a knot an syne a mote and then a knot, [i.e. a lump then a little
And aye the ither jilp o bree. [i.e. spill the rest

5: Noo Jean MacPherson maks ma bed,
You should see the marks upon ma shins,
Jean, the coorse illtrickit jaud, [i.e. mischievous girl
She fills ma bed wi prickly whins.

6: Fin I gang tae the kirk on Sunday,
Mony a bonnie lass I see,
Sittin by her faither's side,
An winkin o'er the pews at me.

7: Noo some can drink and nae get drunk,
Some can fecht and nae get slain,
I can coort anither chiel's lass,
An aye gang welcome tae ma ain.

8: Ma cannle nearly burnt oot, [i.e. candle
The snotter's fairly on the wane, [i.e. the wick burnt down
So fare ye weel ye barnyards,
Ye'll niver catch me here again.

Chorus:
Lilten adie touran adie, lilten adie touran ae,
O lilten lourin lourin lourin, the barnyards o Delgaty.

Gordon Easton: Barnyards o Delgaty

Springthyme is a record label dedicated to presenting Scotland's living tradition in song and music. Founded in 1974 by musician and singer Pete Shepheard, the label has introduced many fine singers, musicians to the world of recorded music. The very first album was recorded during the weekend traditional music festival held in Kinross in 1973 with musicians including Aly Bain and Tom Anderson and the Shetland Fiddlers and the first recording of ballad singer Stanley Robertson of Aberdeen. Other artistes on Springthyme include Jim Reid, The Foundry Bar Band, Ossian, Jock Duncan, Bill Black, Duncan Williamson, Lizzie Higgins, Jim Crawford, Tom Hughes, John Watt & Davey Stewart, Iain McLachlan and many more including a CD from Pete's own band Shepheard, Spiers & Watson. Springthyme has also issued recordings from their field recordings archive in cooperation with the Musical Traditions label.