Robert Burns: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Come boat me o'er to Charlie

Robert Burns

“Come boat me o'er to Charlie” as printed in The Poetical Works of Robert Burns (1887).

Robert Burns: Collected Lyrics Text 133 1887 · historical text
Public domainScottish songSong lyrics
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Poetical Works of Robert Burns, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

Come boat me o'er, come row me o'er,

Come boat me o'er to Charlie;

I'll gie John Ross another bawbee,

To boat me o'er to Charlie.

We'll o'er the water and o'er the sea,

We'll o'er the water to Charlie;

Come weal, come woe, we'll gather and go,

And live or die wi' Charlie.

Verse 2

I lo'e weel my Charlie's name,

Tho' some there be abhor him:

But O, to see auld Nick gaun hame,

And Charlie's faes before him!

Verse 3

I swear and vow by moon and stars,

And sun that shines so early,

If I had twenty thousand lives,

I'd die as aft for Charlie.

We'll o'er the water and o'er the sea,

We'll o'er the water to Charlie;

Come weal, come woe, we'll gather and go,

And live or die wi' Charlie!

Credits

Written by Robert Burns

Words by Robert Burns. Historical text published in The Poetical Works of Robert Burns (1887); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Poetical Works of Robert Burns (1887), “Come boat me o'er to Charlie”

Every text in this 1887 collected edition is by Robert Burns (1759-1796), who died more than 230 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide; the edition carries a Wikisource PD-old determination and a pre-1931 United States publication.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

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Retrieved 2026-10-25. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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