Songs, by The Ettrick Shepherd
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Songs, By the Ettrick Shepherd is a collection of 113 songs by James Hogg published in 1831. All except one of the songs had previously appeared in print, mostly either in Hogg's earlier publications or in a range of periodicals.
During the 1820s songs by Hogg had appeared in a number of periodicals, most notably in the Noctes Ambrosianae series in Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine. In April 1830 Hogg announced to William Blackwood that he was selecting the best of these songs for a 'pocket volume'.[1] In the event the choice was not limited to the previous decade: Hogg assembled songs from throughout his career, so that the volume offers a comprehensive survey of his work in the field. He was closely involved with the production of the volume between October and December, adjusting the contents and correcting the proofs, although his nephew Robert played a minor part in the process.[2] In preparing the volume, Hogg provided most of the songs with short explanatory headnotes. The contents are presented as a miscellany rather than with any formal categorisation.[3]