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Scotland's Story Lyrics
Michael McGrory from west Donegal
You came to Glasgow with nothing at all
You fought the landlord then the Afrika korps
When you came to Glasgow with nothing at all
Abraham Caplan from Vilnius you came
You were heading for New York but Leith's where you've stayed
You built a great business which benefits all
Since you came to this land with nothing at all
In Scotland's story I read that they came
The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane
But so did the Irishman, Jew and Ukraine
They're all Scotland's Story and they're all worth the same
Joseph D'Angelo dreams of the days
When Italian kids in the Grassmarket played
We burned out his shop when the boys went to war
But auld Joe's a big man and he forgave all
In Scotland's story I'm told that they came
The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane
But where's all the Chinese and Indian names?
They're in my lands story and they're all worth the same
Christina McKay, I learned of your name
How you travelled south from Delny one day
You raised a whole family in one room they say
And the X on the line stands in place of your name
So in the old story I'll bet that I came
From Gael and Pict and Angle and Dane
And a poor migrant girl who could not write her name
It's a common old story but it's mine just the same
All through the story the immigrants came
The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane
From Pakistan, England and from the Ukraine
We're all Scotland's story and we're all worth the same
Your Scotland's story is worth just the same
You came to Glasgow with nothing at all
You fought the landlord then the Afrika korps
When you came to Glasgow with nothing at all
You were heading for New York but Leith's where you've stayed
You built a great business which benefits all
Since you came to this land with nothing at all
The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane
But so did the Irishman, Jew and Ukraine
They're all Scotland's Story and they're all worth the same
When Italian kids in the Grassmarket played
We burned out his shop when the boys went to war
But auld Joe's a big man and he forgave all
The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane
But where's all the Chinese and Indian names?
They're in my lands story and they're all worth the same
How you travelled south from Delny one day
You raised a whole family in one room they say
And the X on the line stands in place of your name
From Gael and Pict and Angle and Dane
And a poor migrant girl who could not write her name
It's a common old story but it's mine just the same
The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane
From Pakistan, England and from the Ukraine
We're all Scotland's story and we're all worth the same
Song Info
Submitted by
dvdiesxp On Apr 21, 2009
More The Proclaimers
I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)
Sunshine On Leith
Letter From America
Cap In Hand
I'm On My Way
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
Well, it seems pretty obvious what the song is about. It's an attack on animosity and hatred towards people who aren't "pure" scots, like asian or eastern european immigrants. The Proclaimers are objecting to the idea that just because you're not Scottish born and raised and with ancestry stretching back to the Celts it makes you somehow a lesser person.
This stanza in particular, I think highlights this:
In Scotland's story I'm told that they came The Gael and the Pict, the Angle and Dane But where's all the Chinese and Indian names? They're in my lands story and they're all worth the same
A very uplifting and important message, this, and Craig and Charlie deserve a big pat on the back for preaching it.