Wake up ya dunderheids
Smell the flowers not the weeds
Put another barb in your books for me
I’ll make my own kind of poetry
I look out my window, what do I see?
A crack in the sky and a hand reaching down to me
All the critics came today
And it looks as though they’re here to stay

What are we coming to
No room for me
No fun for you
I think about a world to come
Where the poems are judged by the olden ones
Written in pain, written in awe
By a puzzled man who questioned
What we were here for
All the strangers came today
And it looks as though they’re here to stay

Robert Fergusson (Robert Fergusson)
Don’t you know you’re driving the
Literary critics insane
Robert Fergusson (Robert Fergusson)
Don’t you know you’re driving the
Literary critics insane
They all make it plain
You gotta make way for another superior

Look out for your conscience
Don’t paint your poets in golden rays
Don’t kid yourselves, you’re the ones with taste
Wipe that smug sneer off your face
I was the first punk poet, so I guess
That makes Robbie post punk, oh yes
All the nightmares came today
And it looks as though they’re here to stay

‘Caller Water’ extract read by Adam Armstrong

from the EP Idle Fancies

Event: ‘Robert Fergusson: the simmer o’ his life’.
Join James Robertson, Rhona Brown, David A Annand and Tommy Reckless to celebrate the life, legacy and legend of Scots poet Robert Fergusson.
Timings: Weds 1 May 2024, 7pm – 8.15pm.
Location: Canongate Kirk, 53 Canongate, Edinburgh, EH8 8BN. (Venue changed due to high demand).
Tickets: £7/£5 conc. Get your tickets here.