The Bonny Swans Songtext
von Loreena McKennitt

A farmer there lived in the north country
A hey ho and me bonny o
And he had daughters one, two, three
The swans swim so bonny o

These daughters they walked by the river′s brim
A hey ho and me bonny o
The eldest pushed the youngest in
The swans swim so bonny o

Sometimes she sank, sometimes she swam
A hey ho and me bonny o
Until she came to a miller's dam
The swans swim so bonny o

The miller′s daughter, dressed in red
A hey ho and me bonny o
She went for some water to make a bread
The swans swim so bonny o


Oh father, oh daddy, here swims a swan
A hey ho and me bonny o
It's very like a gentle woman
The swans swim so bonny o

He laid her on the bank to dry
A hey ho and me bonny o
There came a harper passing by
The swans swim so bonny o

He made harp pins of her fingers fair
A hey ho and me bonny o
He made harp strings of her golden hair
The swans swim so bonny o

He made a harp of her breast bone
A hey ho and me bonny o
And straight it began to play alone
The swans swim so bonny o

They brought it to her father's hall
A hey ho and me bonny o
And there was the court, assembled all
The swans swim so bonny o


He laid the harp upon a stone
A hey ho and me bonny o
And straight it began to play alone
The swans swim so bonny o

And there does sit my father the king
A hey ho and me bonny o
And yonder sits my mother the queen
The swans swim so bonny o

And there does sit my brother Hugh
A hey ho and me bonny o
And by him William, sweet and true
The swans swim so bonny o

And there does sit my false sister, Anne
A hey ho and me bonny o
Who drowned me for the sake of a man
The swans swim so bonny o