Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

They're a' Teasing Me

Traditional

“They're a' Teasing Me” as printed in The Black-Bird Songster (1840).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 420 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

O wha is he I loo sae weel?

Wha was my heart an' a',

O wha is he? 'tis sair to tell

He's o'er the seas awa',

There's Charlie ho's a sodger lad,

And Davie blythe is he,

And Willie in his tartan plaid,

They’re a' teasing me.

Verse 2

O they're a' tease teasing,

They're a' teasing me.

They're a' tease teasing,

O they're a teasing me.

Verse 3

There's Carl the chief o' Daftne glen,

And he has land and store,

With flow'ry mead, and shady fen,

And siller e'er and o'er.

“Quoth he, sweet lass, I'll marry thee

(Yestreen in yonder shaw,)

And thou my ain true bride shall be,

And Queen o' Daftne ha!"

O they're a' tease, &c.

Verse 4

But which my Jamie comes again,

Young Carl will then descry,

That siller is but empty gain,

To hearts nae gowd can buy.

My Jamie's brave, my Jamie's braw,

My Jamie's a' to me,

And tho' his siller store be sma'

Yet his I'll only be.

For they're a' tease, &c.

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), “They're a' Teasing Me”

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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