John Gaudie was a fine young man in Shetland, so it's told
Many's the crowd in Lerwick town his fiddle and he did hold
They've danced it up and they've danced it down as he fiddled the tunes around
Of all the players in Shetland Isles, no better could be found
When John broke the prison door
The jailer hadn't seen his like before
He ran back to the Levenwick shore
And wrote himself a tune
John had his eye on a fair young girl that lived not far away
His were not the only eyes, so the rumours say
It happened down the Sandwick mines hewing the copper bed
His rival dropped a hammer down which struck John on the head
When John broke the prison door
The jailer hadn't seen his like before
He ran back to the Levenwick shore
And wrote himself a tune
It struck him such a fearful blow, weakening his mind
Left him with his fiddling still, but a job he couldn't find
For now he was prone to a fearful rage like the heat of the blazing sun
He would warn friends nearby, "I find her coming on."
One day while in Lerwick town on Commercial Street
Between the trance and the half napkin, he felt this terrible heat
He was seized by many hands and locked in the tollbooth
Under Sergeant Nicols' eye, his fury tried to soothe
When John broke the prison door
The jailer hadn't seen his like before
He ran back to the Levenwick shore
And wrote himself a tune
Now waking up on the prison floor, his temper got much worse
Kicking and stamping behind the door, he began to swear and curse
Pushing then with all his strength, the door at last gave way
He ran and ran across the fields. At home he meant to stay.
When John broke the prison door
The jailer hadn't seen his like before
He ran back to the Levenwick shore
And wrote himself a tune
When John broke the prison door
The jailer hadn't seen his like before
He ran back to the Levenwick shore
And wrote himself a tune
When John broke the prison door
The jailer hadn't seen his like before
He ran back to the Levenwick shore
And wrote himself a tune
