By yon bonnie banks and by yon bonnie braes, where the sun shines bright on the green land, where me and my true love were ever born together, on the bonnie, bonnie banks of the Ploughman. I'll take the high road and I'll take the low road, and I'll be in Scotland for four years, but me and my true love will never meet again on the bonnie, bonnie banks of the Ploughman. It was then that we parted in yon shady glen on the steep,
steep sides of Ben Lomond, well in purple hues, the highland hills with you, and the moon coming up in the gloaming. I'll take the high road and I'll take the low road, and I'll be in Scotland for four years, but me and my true love will never meet again on the bonnie, bonnie banks of the Ploughman. The wee birdies sang on the wildflower spring, and in sunshine the waters are green, but the brook and hardy sands may second spring again,
though the wayful naysayers pray the green. I'll take the high road and I'll take the low road, and I'll be in Scotland for four years, but me and my true love will never meet again on the bonnie, bonnie banks of the Ploughman.
Transcribed by AI from the recording above. These are noisy hundred-year-old cylinders, so expect misheard words and the occasional invented line — trust your ears over the text.
Audio public domain, courtesy of the UCSB Cylinder Audio Archive. Transcript CC BY 4.0. Free to reuse, including commercially, with credit.