John Edmond wrote:Have you heard the phantom piper in the sky?
Was he Argyll and Sutherland, ???? or HLI
Was he Atholl, Cosby, Gordon, or a Royal Scot?
Was a Cameroonian, ??? or Black Watch
Was he royal Scottish Borderer
Scot's Guards or Fusiliers
Royal Regiment of Scotland
????????
Was he Scottish or South African, from Ireland or the States?
Australia, New Zealand, or Canadian Great Lakes?
They heard him in the American Independence War
And he was heard in battle in Spain's Peninsular
Napoleon's armies also heard him in their time
And balaclava Russians, when they fought with the Red Lion
In India, when Lucknow was besieged and freed again
And Zulu warriors heard him on an African plain
He was heard in Egypt, and down to the Sudan
In the Boer War battles, and in Afghanistan
At the Battle of the Somme, where the poppies now grow free
Again at the landings at Dunkirk and Normandy
On the barren rocks of Aden, Tyrone, Gibraltar
From Korea to Palestine, and the island of Malta
Wherever he came from, wherever he has been
He sometimes has been heard, but never been seen
Wherever kilted warriors have been sent to fight and die
There will always be a phantom piper in the sky
The first two paragraphs are the ones I am unsure about. I tried to transcribe as much as I could understand, but it may be inaccurate. I've confident about the rest of the song, that I've transcribed it accurately.
Now, for my analysis of the lyrics
They heard him in the American Independence War
The American Revolution (1775-83)
And he was heard in battle in Spain's Peninsular
A Napoleonic war where Britain helped Spain depose Napoleon's brother from their throne and restore their original monarchy (1807-14)
Napoleon's armies also heard him in their time
The Brits fought many wars with Napoleonic France from 1803 until Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815
And balaclava Russians, when they fought with the Red Lion
The Crimean War (1853-56)
In India, when Lucknow was besieged and freed again
The Siege of Lucknow (1857), part of the Sepoy Mutiny against British rule
And Zulu warriors heard him on an African plain
The Anglo-Zulu war (1879)
He was heard in Egypt, and down to the Sudan
I think this is a reference to the Mahdist War (1881-1899), since it seems to fit in the chronology, but I'm not sure
In the Boer War battles,
The two Boer Wars in Southern Africa (1880-81 and 1899-1902)
and in Afghanistan
Not sure which war this is a reference to. I doubt it's the modern Afghanistan War, since it wouldn't fit chronologically. This is more likely to be a reference to one or more of the three Anglo-Afghan Wars (1839-42, 1878-80, and 1919)
At the Battle of the Somme, where the poppies now grow free
World War I (1914-18)
Again at the landings at Dunkirk and Normandy
World War II (1939-1945), although I don't remember there being a landing at Dunkirk, I just remember an evacuation. This may be Edmond exercising his artistic license so the lyrics scan better.
On the barren rocks of Aden
The Aden Emergency (1963-67) in Yemen. [url=https://www.scotslanguage.com/articles/node/id/484]"The Barren Rocks of Aden" is a Scottish march that is often played on bagpipes
Tyrone
I think this one is a reference to the Troubles in Ireland (1966-98)
Gibraltar
I am not sure what war this is a reference to. I can't find any evidence of a war being fought in Gibraltar in the second half of the 20th century. I think Edmond mentioned Gibraltar here because it rhymes with Malta.
From Korea
The Korean War (1950-53)
to Palestine,
I don't think this is a reference to the Israeli War of Independence (1947-49), since, according to Wikipedia, Britain wasn't a combatant in it. More likely, this is the Arab Revolt (1936-39), in which 262 British soldiers lost their lives
and the island of Malta
Malta was besieged in WWII, and this might be a reference to that. It's out of chronological order, but necessary to make it rhyme with Gibraltar (since Edmond's accent is non-rhotic)