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Hebridean LullabyHebridean Lullaby
A lullaby from Scotland

Hebridean Lullaby

Key: A minor~55 BPMGuitar & Piano chordsOriginal · Hebridean, Scotland
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Hebridean Lullaby Lyrics. An original lullaby inspired by the Outer Hebrides, where women traditionally sang waulking songs while working handwoven Harris Tweed cloth. These songs were sung in rhythm as groups of women beat the newly woven cloth against a table to soften it, trading call-and-response Gaelic verses that could stretch on for as long as the work itself took. Here you will find the lyrics, meaning, and chords.

Sing & play

Lyrics & chords

An original arrangement, with guitar & piano chords above each line.

Verse

Am Dm Am
Sleep now, little one, the waulking song is still,
Dm Am E7
the woven tweed rests folded now, upon the island hill.
Am Dm Am
Sleep now, little one, the ocean spray is near,
Dm Am E7
tomorrow’s sun will rise for you, and chase away all fear.
In English

What the words mean

“Sleep now, little one, the waulking song is still, the woven tweed rests folded now, upon the island hill. Sleep now, little one, the ocean spray is near, tomorrow’s sun will rise for you, and chase away all fear.”
Play it

Chords — guitar & piano

Am
x
Guitar
CEA
Piano
Dm
xx
Guitar
DFA
Piano
E7
Guitar
EBG#
Piano
Good to know

What “Hebridean Lullaby” Means

In the Outer Hebrides, women traditionally gathered to sing waulking songs (puirt a beul) while working handwoven Harris Tweed cloth by hand. This original lullaby draws on those weaving and island-song images of Hebridean life.

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