Song of the Day 12/31: Aqua String Band, “Auld Lang Syne”

As a poem, “Auld Lang Syne” dates to 1788, when Robert Burns sent it to the Scots Musical Museum with a note that read, “”The following song, an old song, of the olden times, and which has never been in print, nor even in manuscript until I took it down from an old man.” It was soon set to an ancient folk tune and was quickly associated with New Year’s celebrations. New Year’s celebrations ’round these parts have for more than a century have included Philadelphia’s Mummers Parade, so who better to ring out 2019 than a Mummers string band? This clip isn’t from the parade — it’s from a summer concert at the Bridesburg Recreation Center, which is about as Philly as you can possibly get.

The first recorded version came when the Mummers Parade hadn’t even been around for a decade — it was made in 1910 by Frank C. Stanley, a prolific early recording star who died later that year.

If you want to get really Scottish about the song, here are the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards performing it on bagpipes.