Unknown - Weel May The Keel Row Lyrics

Weel May the Keel Row

As I came thro' Sandgate,
Thro' Sandgate, thro' Sandgate,
As I came thro' Sandgate,
I heard a lassie sing:
"O, weel may the keel row,
The keel row, the keel row,
O weel may the keel row
That my laddie's in."

"O wha's like my Johnnie,
Sae leish, sae blithe, sae bonnie?
He's foremost 'mang the mony
Keel lads o' coaly Tyne;
He'll set or row sae tightly
Or, in the dance sae sprightly,
He'll cut and shuffle slightly,
'Tis true, were he nae mine.
He wears a blue bonnet,
Blue bonnet, blue bonnet,
He wears a blue bonnet
A dimple in his chin.
And weel may the keel row,
The keel row, the keel row,
And weel may the keel row
That my laddie's in."

Note: a keel is a boat; leish is lithe. The song was first
published around 1770, and has been called the national anthem of
the Tyne River.
Recorded, many years ago, by Jo Stafford.