The tune is from the Hebrides Islands, off the north cost of Scotland. An alternate title Lewis Bridal Song refers to the Isle of Lewis, which may be its origin.
This is a lament written in the late 1700's for the closing of the Whisky distilleries in Scotland. It may also be played as a slow air. The forbidding of distilling whisky was due to a national grain shortage at the time, but the ban was subsequently lifted. Whisky was required for births, weddings and funerals so Scots often buried stores for forthcoming ceremonies. There is a story in Glenlyon of a man who emigrated, forgetting his whisky. He wrote back saying where it was buried but they never found it, or so they claimed.
The tune is named for Northumbrian musician Jamie Allen (1734-1810), who was a famous smallpipes player. He was son of a gypsy woman, made improvements to the design of the pipes, was often a fugutive from justice, and died in prison seven years into a life sentence for horse-stealing. The prison, under Elvet Bridge in Durham UK, was a night club in 2008 and 2009.