Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Love's like a dizziness

Traditional

“Love's like a dizziness” as printed in The Book of Scottish Song (1843).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 238 1843 · historical text
Public domainScottish songFolk
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Book of Scottish Song, edited by Alexander Whitelaw, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

I Lately liv'd in quiet case,

An' never wish'd to marry, O;

But when I saw my Peggy's face,

I felt a sad quandary, O.

Though wild as ony Athol deer,

She has trepan'd me fairly,

Her cherry cheeks, and een sae clear,

Harass me late an' early, O.

O! love! love! laddie,

Love 's like a dizziness!

It winna let a puir body

Gang about his business!

To tell my feats this single week

Wad mak' a curious diary, O:

I drave my cart against a dyke,

My horses in a miry, O:

I wear my stockings white an' blue,

My love's sae fierce and fiery, O:

I drill the land that I should plow,

An' plow the drills entirely, O.

O! love! love! &c.

Soon as the dawn had brought the day,

I went to theek the stable, O;

I coost my coat, an' ply'd away

As fast as I was able, O.

I wrought a' morning out an' out

As I'd been redding fire, O;

When I had done, and look'd about,

Behold it was the byre, O!

O! love! love! &c.

Her wily glance I'll ne'er forget;

The dear, the lovely blinkin' o't,

Has pierc'd me through and through the heart,

And plagues me wi' the prinklin' o't,

I try'd to sing, I try'd to pray,

I try'd to drown't wi' drinkin' o't:

I try'd wi' toil to drive't away,

But ne'er can sleep for thinkin' o't.

O! love! love! &c.

Were Peggy's love to hire the job,

An' save my heart frae breakin', O,

I'd put a girdle round the globe,

Or dive in Corryvrekin, O;

Or howk a grave at midnight dark

In yonder vault sae eerie, O;

Or gang and spier for Mungo Park

Through Africa sae dreary, O.

O! love! love! &c.

Ye little ken what pains I prove I

Or, how severe my plisky, O;

I swear I'm sairer drunk wi' love

Than e'er I was wi' whisky, O!

For love has rak'd me fore an' aft,

I scarce can lift a leggy, O:

I first grew dizzy, than gaed daft,

An' now I'll dee for Peggy, O.

O! love! love! &c.

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. Historical text published in The Book of Scottish Song (1843); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Book of Scottish Song (1843), edited by Alexander Whitelaw, “Love's like a dizziness”

Every contribution in this 1843 anthology predates modern copyright terms by more than a century; any contributor died at least 130 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide (life+70 terms expired no later than 2020).

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-12. 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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