Friday 29 April 2011
Tune of the Day: The High Road to Linton
Traditional Scottish tune
Linton is a small town in the Borders region of Scotland and England, strategically located in the center of lowland Scotland. It was a major hub for the old drove road network that fed Highland cattle to the lucrative English markets, and was as much a “cattle town” as any in the American wild west. The “high road” of the title probably refers to an old drove road, also known as “The Thieves Road” due to the numerous bandits which often plagued those who traveled it.
The third and fourth parts of the tune are frequently attributed to the late Scottish dance bandleader and piano accordion player Bobby MacLeod of Tobermory, although, as pointed out by Nigel Gatherer, MacLeod himself did not definitively claim them as his own.