Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

The King of the Fairies

Traditional

“The King of the Fairies” as printed in The Black-Bird Songster (1840).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 417 1840 · historical text
Public domainScottish songSongster
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Black-Bird Songster, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

A wee, wee man came to our toun en,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

An' lie sang sae sweet, that tho hale o' our men

Lap aff their looms the carle to see.

Verse 2

His cap was red, an' his broeks were green,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

An' his jacket the shortest that ever was seen,

An' tho queerest colour you ever did see.

Verse 3

His noso was as flat as the back o' my han',

Fiddledum, faddledum, foe, fee, fee;

An' his feet wad hae covered an acre o' lan',

Yet his Boots cam' o'er the lid o' his knee.

Verse 4

His e’en were grey without ony white,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

An' his teeth were as black as the middle o' night,

When the moon has forsaken this countrie.

Verse 5

His legs were as bow'd as the half o a hoop,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

An' his arms were sae lang, ho no'er needit to stoop,

For he picked up preens without bending his knee

Verse 6

He laughed, and tho hale o' tho mon o' our toun,

Fiddledum, faddlodum, fee, fee, fee;

Lap out o' their wits and fell down in a swoon,

The fiont o' them had the power to flee.

Verse 7

Не sang, and they sprang to their feet in a crack,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

Now what I relate is a notable fact,

For I was sleeping whon I did it see.

Verse 8

He play'd them a jig, and the dancing began,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

And he led them to where a big water down ran,

Where he donked them till they were like to dio.

Verse 9

This queer wee man lap up on a hill,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

And he open'd his mouth like the door o' a mill,

I hope sic a mouth I will ne'er again see.

Verse 10

But thunder no'er gied sic a terriblo roar,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

As when ho announced that the dancing was o'er,

An' bade them fareweel, an' awa' did flee.

Verse 11

Weary and wet our men cam' hame,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

An' swore the wee man was surely to blame,

For using sic freedoms in ony countrie.

Verse 12

Ye'll wonder what came o' this wee, wee man,

Fiddledum, faddledum, fee, fee, fee;

He bought a green coat— an' to fairy lan' ran,

An' now he is king o' that countrie.

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. Historical text published in The Black-Bird Songster (1840); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Black-Bird Songster (1840), “The King of the Fairies”

Every contribution in this 1840 songster predates modern copyright terms; any contributor died more than 130 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide; the edition carries a Wikisource PD-old determination.

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 2026-10-26. 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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