This time of year, I often get asked about “Auld Lang Syne” since I’m one of those people with an old Scottish name. It might also be because I once actually attended a New Year’s Eve party in Scotland. You aren’t allowed to throw a New Year’s Eve party in Scotland without singing Auld Lang Syne with all of the verses, in the original Scottish dialect.
Robert Burns penned the words in 1788, although he said they were actually much older and he simply wrote down what he heard from an elderly man. That old man might have remembered some phrases from a 1711 poem by James Watson. The song was originally performed to a different tune that nobody liked, including Burns. So it was changed to a traditional folk song melody, slowed way down. That made it a big hit. So the song wasn’t really written as much as it was assembled out of various “spare parts” over time. The tune uses the pentatonic scale, which is a musical scale consisting of five notes. This means you can play the tune of Auld Lang Syne on the piano using only the black keys, if you really want to.
Auld Lang Syne is one of the most frequently performed and recorded songs in the world. Guy Lombardo performed it every New Year’s Eve from 1929 through 1977. His 1947 recording is the most iconic version and it set the gold standard for the saxophone vibrato. It has been recorded by over 700 artists including Prince, The Flaming Lips, Benny Goodman, Bruce Springsteen, Duke Ellington, BB King, Elvis Presley and, of course, Alvin and the Chipmunks. Personally, I recommend the BB King version.
The words “Auld Lang Syne” mean “the good old days” in the Scottish dialect. The first verse of the song poses a question: Could old friends and the good old days ever be forgotten? The remaining four verses are rarely heard, which is unfortunate because they tell a story that answers the question. In the story, two old sweethearts meet for the first time after many years apart since life took them to different parts of the world. They reminisce about many happy memories from long ago and agree to drink a toast to the good old days before parting. Since they drink a toast, it is implied that old friends, old loves and the good old days are not forgotten. That’s what the Scottish words actually mean.
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Now, back to that Scottish New Year’s Eve party I attended. Even though I was invited, and the Scottish people were very good to me, I was deemed to be bad luck at a Scottish New Year’s Eve party. That was neither because I was American nor did it have anything to do with my Scottish ancestry. Can you guess why a guy like me would be considered bad luck at a Scottish New Year’s Eve party?
It was because of ... blond hair. At least it used to be blond. Specifically, it is bad luck in that part of the world for a large blond-haired man to be the first person through your door after midnight in the new year, because of ... the Vikings. In the old days, the villages along the coast of England and Scotland were raided by the Vikings quite often and the Viking raiders were mostly big blond-haired ruffians. The local Scottish men were usually a little smaller and dark-haired. So it is considered good luck for a smaller, dark-haired man to be the first person through your door after midnight on New Year’s Eve and an omen that your village will be safe from the Vikings all year.
So, as midnight approached, the people at this Scottish New Year’s Eve party pinned me down on the sofa while a dark-haired guy ran out the back door and around to the front door while everybody belted out Auld Lang Syne (all five verses) in the original Scottish dialect.
This New Year’s Eve, if someone insists on croaking out Auld Lang Syne at midnight, please cut them some slack. They are really just asking you to toast old friends and the good old days. Just don’t open the door at midnight for any big blond dudes or, you know … Vikings!
Tom McCune is a member of the Belmont City Council and second trumpet with the West Bay Community Band.
As often seems to be the case, a Guest Perspective column was just about the most enjoyable part of a recent Daily Journal ("Auld Lang Syne", by Belmont City Council member Tom McCune, page 7 on Friday, December 30, 2022).
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(3) comments
Good will, friendship and kind regard to all.
As often seems to be the case, a Guest Perspective column was just about the most enjoyable part of a recent Daily Journal ("Auld Lang Syne", by Belmont City Council member Tom McCune, page 7 on Friday, December 30, 2022).
Thank you Tom. Thank you Daily Journal.
Happy Hogmanay to you!
Tom - that is a great story. Thanks and Happy New Year.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
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