Try get some today!
About the song
Apple brandy is a topic of some importance for the hobbits on Laurelin. The drink has many uses: adding a bit of soothing warmth to yer tea, bringing a party alive... or cooling off yer fingers after a particularly vicious bout of lute strumming (old musician's trick - at least if yer avoid licking the brandy off yer fingers). The trick is of course to pick the right cask, or yer will be in for a surprise.
Obviously, the drink needs a song, and here is one I wrote for Lone Bards Friday on February 12th. It is best sung to the melody of the traditional Scottish tune "The Yew Tree", below in a version of The Battlefield Band.
Should yer want the lyrics to more of me songs, have a look in me songbook!
Lyrics: Grand Brandy Song
Far north in the Shire, where the winters are dire Where the breeze cools you right to the bone Where the young dress up warm to conform with the norm And the gaffers all mutter and moan There's a need to feel tender and toasty There's a need for that warm soothing glow So they boil and they brew, all the four seasons through Always the hard liquor flow
The brandy is fine Made from sweet apple wine
Once a lad from the moor sought to brandy procure He had heard that the strong drink was tasty So he went to a farm and he turned on his charm But alas, his complexion was pasty When they saw him, the children went hiding All the dogs barked well into the night And the farmer he said, 'you look just like the dead 'Scram and get out of my sight'
The brandy is fine Made from sweet apple wine
The thirsty young lad felt dejected and sad But his mind was still set on the drink So he plotted and planned with his old lute in hand 'I will sing 'til the old farmer blinks 'In a matter of moments he'll slumber 'In a matter of minutes he'll sleep 'I will get to his still and my cup I will fill 'Golden rewards I will reap'
The brandy is fine Made from sweet apple wine
The lad by the fence, now feeling thirsty and tense When he strummed out a chord filled with need And that song full of yearn, made the old farmer turn 'til he went for a nap near the weed So the laddie went into the farmstead To the barn for his thirst to abate He grabbed hold of a flask, then he picked up a cask Ran from the farmer's estate
The brandy is fine Made from sweet apple wine
He hid in the wood, feeling elated and good 'With my cunning there's no way to stop me 'I have had to work hard, but I got my reward 'Now I'll savour my first taste of brandy' So he opened the cask with a hammer And he drank with a yearning so deep But he spluttered and coughed, cause that taste was just off Juice from both turnip and neep
The brandy is fine Made from sweet apple wine
The Yew Tree
Here is the original song, performed by The Battlefield Band. Enjoy!
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