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Baroness Carolina Oliphant Nairne

Carolina Oliphant, Lady Nairne (16 August 1766 – 26 October 1845) – also known as Carolina Baroness Nairn in the peerage of Scotland and Baroness Keith in that of the United Kingdom – was a Scottish songwriter. Many of her songs, such as, "Will ye no' come back again?", "Charlie is my Darling" , "The Rowan Tree" and "Wi' a Hundred Pipers' remain popular today, almost two hundred years after they were written. One of her songs, "Caller Herrin'", was sung at the 2021 commemoration of the 1881 Eyemouth disaster. She usually set her words to traditional Scottish folk melodies, but sometimes contributed her own music.

Carolina Nairne and her contemporary Robert Burns were influenced by the Jacobite heritage in their establishment of a distinct Scottish identity, through what they both called national song. Perhaps in the belief that her work would not be taken seriously if it were known that she was a woman, Nairne went to considerable lengths to conceal her identity (even from her husband) when submitting her work for publication. Early on she called herself Mrs Bogan of Bogan, but feeling that gave too much away she often attributed her songs to the gender-neutral B.B., S.M., or "Unknown".

Although both working in the same genre of what might today be called traditional Scottish folksongs, Nairne and Burns display rather different attitudes in their compositions. Nairne tends to focus on an earlier romanticised version of the Scottish way of life, tinged with sadness for what is gone forever, whereas Burns displays an optimism about a better future to come.

Birth and Death Data: Born July 16, 1766, Died October 27, 1845

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1907 - 1924

Roles Represented in DAHR: lyricist

Notes: Also referred to as "Lady Nairne."

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor B-4851 10-in. 10/1/1907 I'm wearing awa' to the land o' the leal Gwilym Miles Baritone vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Victor B-10833 10-in. 7/25/1911 I'm wearing awa' John Barnes Wells Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Victor B-19337 10-in. 3/5/1917 Wi' a hundred pipers Farquhar Murray Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Victor B-19522 10-in. 3/28/1917 I'm wearing awa' to the land of the leal Julia Culp Contralto vocal solo, with piano lyricist  
Victor B-30237 10-in. 6/2/1924 I'm wearin' awa', Jean Merle Alcock Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Columbia 19252 10-in. 3/8/1911 I'm wearing awa' to the land o' the leal Mary Desmond Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Columbia 46238 10-in. 12/4/1915 I'm wearin' awa' to the land of the leal Louis Graveure Baritone vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Columbia 36883 12-in. ca. 1914 Will ye no come back again? Margaret Woodrow Wilson Female vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Columbia 75161 12-in. 8/24/1922 Caller herrin' Muriel Brunskill ; Albert W. Ketelbey Female vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Edison 2199 10-in. Mar. 1913 Wearing awa' to the land Carrie Bridewell Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Edison 2965 10-in. Apr. 1914 I'm wearing awa' Merle Tillotson Female vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Edison 5653 10-in. 7/2/1917 The land o' the leal Amy Ellerman Contralto vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  
Edison 6939 10-in. 9/22/1919 Wi' a hundred pipers Charles E. Gallagher Male vocal solo, with orchestra lyricist  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Nairne, Carolina Oliphant, Baroness," accessed April 23, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102785.

Nairne, Carolina Oliphant, Baroness. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 23, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102785.

"Nairne, Carolina Oliphant, Baroness." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 23 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/102785

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