Brochan Lom

"Brochan Lom" is a Scottish Gaelic nonsense song about porridge. The tune is popular and appears frequently at Scottish country dances and ceilidhs. It falls into the category of "mouth music" (Puirt a beul), used to create music for dancing in the absence of instruments. It is a strathspey song and is commonly sung or played for the Highland Schottische (a popular ceilidh dance),^[1] and for the Highland Fling.

As an instrumental tune, Brochan Lom is also known as The Orange And Blue, Katy Jones’, Kitty Jones, Kitty Jones’, The Orange & Blue Highland, Orange And Blue, The Orange And Blue Highland Fling.^[2]

Lyrics

The words vary in different traditions but a common variant is:

English translation

Brochan lom, tana lom, brochan lom na sùghain Brochan lom, tana lom, brochan lom na sùghain Brochan lom, tana lom, brochan lom na sùghain Brochan lom 's e tana lom 's e brochan lom na sùghain   Séist Brochan tana, tana, tana, brochan lom na sùghain Brochan tana, tana, tana, brochan lom na sùghain Brochan tana, tana, tana, brochan lom na sùghain Brochan lom 's e tana lom 's e brochan lom na sùghain   Thugaibh aran dha na gillean leis a' bhrochan sùghain Thugaibh aran dha na gillean leis a' bhrochan sùghain Thugaibh aran dha na gillean leis a' bhrochan sùghain Brochan lom 's e tana lom 's e brochan lom na sùghain   Séist   Seo an rud a gheibheamaid o nighean gobh' an dùine, Seo an rud a gheibheamaid o nighean gobh' an dùine, Seo an rud a gheibheamaid o nighean gobh' an dùine, Brochan lom 's e tana lom, 's e brochan lom sùghain.   Séist

Porridge thin and meagre, porridge thin from sowans. Porridge thin and meagre, porridge thin from sowans. Porridge thin and meagre, porridge thin from sowans. Porridge thin, it is meagre and thin, it is porridge thin from sowans.   Chorus Meagre and thin porridge, thin, thin, meagre porridge Meagre and thin porridge, thin, thin, meagre porridge Meagre and thin porridge, thin, thin, meagre porridge Porridge thin, it is meagre and thin, it is porridge thin from sowans.   Give ye bread to the young men with sowans-gruel, Give ye bread to the young men with sowans-gruel, Give ye bread to the young men with sowans-gruel, Porridge thin, it is meagre and thin, it is porridge thin from sowans.   Chorus   This is what we used to get from the smith's daughter at the Dun This is what we used to get from the smith's daughter at the Dun This is what we used to get from the smith's daughter at the Dun Porridge thin, it is meagre and thin, it is porridge thin from sowans.   Chorus

"This above was a jocular song that arose about some ill-made porridge, which being very thin was declared to be like gruel, or even 'sowans' (the fermented juice of oatmeal husks boiled, in bygone times a favourite article of food in Scotland."^[3]

Use in movies

• It appears as a drinking song in Whisky Galore! ^[4]
• It is a background music theme in The Bridal Path.^[5]
• In Pasolini's film The Canterbury Tales, Nicholas in the Miller's Tale spies John the Carpenter (Michael Balfour) singing this tune while leaving for Osney and runs next door to make advances on his wife Alison. The recording used in the film is of Jimmy MacBeath.

Recordings

• The Highland Council website "Am Baile: Highland history and culture" has two versions:

• a version with voice and piano from the CD Cluich Còmhla – Òrain is Ranna where the words are very clearly pronounced.
• a version sung by Christina Stewart with instrumental accompaniment, from the album Bairn's Kist (2011).

• The website of Learning and Teaching Scotland has a version on violin.
• Calum Kennedy recorded this on the album "Songs in Gaelic" (2008)^[6]
• Robin Hall & Jimmie Macgregor with The Galliards recorded this on the album Scottish Choice (1960)^[7]
• Oran recorded a version on their album "Kith & Kin".
• The Glasgow Gaelic Musical Association recorded a choral version on the album "Orain Is Puirt-a-Beul" (1993).
• The Session lists 16 instrumental recordings of the tune.

External links

• Brochan Lom, Learning and Teaching Scotland. Includes a recording, a list of the musical concepts exemplified by the tune, and a score with the concepts as annotations
• Brochan Lom, Traditional, Scots Independent. Includes phonetic pronunciation of the Gaelic words.
• Sheet Music - Brochan Lom, Mama Lisa's World: International Music & Culture
• Lyric Request: Brochan Lom Tana Lom / Hot Porridge Cold, and Lyrics Add: Brochan Lom, discussions on the Mudcat Cafe Forum regarding the meaning and pronunciation of the words

Notes

1. Learning and Teaching Scotland. "Music of Scotland: Strathspey - Brochan Lom". Archived from the original on 7 August 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
2. The Session (25 October 2003). "The Orange And Blue reel". Retrieved 1 November 2013.
3. Frances Tolmie. One Hundred and Five Songs of Occupation from the Western isles of Scotland (1911).
4. "Whisky Galore - drinking song". YouTube. 6 June 2013. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
5. "The Bridal Path (1959)". IMDb. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
6. Kennedy, Calum (10 November 2008). "Brochan Lom". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
7. Hall, Robin; Macgregor, Jimmie (24 September 2010). "Brochan Lom, Tana Lom / Bodachan A' Mhirein". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved 1 November 2013.