First of all, happy early birthday, Red. Sorry I can’t be there (*sad face*).

That being said, I’ve got a special present for you! It started a few months ago when I got the itch to play some guitar (which, though a rare occurrence, is still something I can’t ignore). I started off re-learning songs I used to know long ago, but somewhere along the way I thought it’d be a cool idea to record a song with your name in the title. This turned out to be a loftier mission than expected (seems there aren’t many to choose from aside from Rod Stewart’s song and a few others).

After doing some googling, I came upon a poem written by George Washington Johnson in 1820 called When You and I Were Young, Maggie. It was later set to music and is apparently a pretty popular folk song worldwide.

After that it was adapted in the 1920s for a play, though many of the words were changed. For more background on the history of the poem, click here.

Anyway, long story short, the original and the adaptation are all a little dour, though I did like parts of them. Basically, I kept the parts that I liked, tweaked them here and there, and mixed in my own lyrics. I also changed the rhythm and the chord structure to be a bit more modern and a little less Irish (though the original poem and song aren’t actually Irish… long story).

So without further ado, I give you my rendition of When You and I Were Young. Enjoy!

 

There you have it! Granted, I’m not the best singer, guitarist, composer, etc., but it was a fun little project and hopefully you enjoy it.

Oh, here is my take on the lyrics:

I wandered to our hill, Maggie,
To watch the scene below
The green is gone from the hill, Maggie,
Where the tulips used to grow
Let’s sing of days gone by, Maggie,
When you and I were young
When I first said I loved you, Maggie,
And you said you loved only me.

The chestnut bloomed through the glade, Maggie,
The robins sang from the trees,
The golden daffodils shone, Maggie,
And danced with the leaves on the breeze,
Our dreams we laid before us, Maggie,
The hopes of yesterday,
When I first said I loved you, Maggie,
And you said you loved only me.

Our life is a well-written page, Maggie,
And time alone was the pen
They say we are agèd and grey, Maggie,
But so were we back then
You’re just as fair as you were, Maggie,
When you and I were young
When I first said that I loved you, Maggie,
And you said you loved only me.

Love you, Red!