A protest against the proposed closure of the railway in Fife, Scotland.
Oh there came a troop of Irish dragoons
Came marching up through Fyvie-O
And the reason that they marched all the way from Marble Arch
There was no railways running up tae Fyvie-O
After the forty-five was over and done
Geordie¹ said tae Wade¹, Man alivey-o
Grab a pick and grab a spade and don’t come back till ye have made
Me a road running all the way tae Fyvie-o
So Wade he grabbed a shovel and he built the king a road
It ran through the Borders to Fyvie-o
He built the king a road and it wasnae verra broad
But it speeded the journey up tae Fyvie-oh [Note 092.1]
You’ve all heard of Watt¹ the celebrated Scot
Brewing up some coffee after bringin’ Oh
As he watched the kettle steam, Jimmy Watt began to dream
And he invented the very first steam engine Oh [Note 092.2]
Soon after came the train, product of a Scottish brain
And the railway lines sprang up to Fyvie-Oh
Aye and many an English cheil² made his fortune on the deal
When they built the railway line to Fyvie-Oh
But it’s different today for the railways dinna pay
So they called in Doctor Beeching Oh
He came straight from I C I, in his pukka old school tie [Note 092.3]
You should just hear the nonsense he is preaching Oh
He telled Uncle Mac¹, did the economic quack¹ [Note 092.4]
Take all the railway lines from Fyvie-oh
Take the railway lines away and the bloody thing will pay
And the national economy will thrivey-oh
So now Doctor Dick don’t you play this dirty trick
If you should value your livey-oh
Or you’ll end up on your back fastened to a railway track
In the path of the last train out of Fyvie-oh. [Note 092.5]