The band expressed Denny's vision of the potential of folk rock to express complex meaning and deep personal emotion, using traditional ballad forms, but with the power of a rock band. Their self-titled first album (Fotheringay) was also only one of two albums, as they broke up a year later, in January 1971, while working on their second (recently released). The cause appears to have been personal difficulties, made worse by lack of success and thus income! Oddly for such talented musicians the band were widely reported to have been poor in live performance, which may well have also contributed to their short life as a band. Tracks later surfaced on her three-disc compilation.
The rhythm section was formed by Gerry Conway and Pat Donaldson, lauded by Denny as the best in the business. In the absence of Richard Thompson, who was prepared to tour with her, and act as session musician but wanted to follow his own career, lead guitar was taken by Jerry Donahue, whose transatlantic country roots and softer personality brought a different, less edgy feel to the music. However he was a skilled technician, with great feel, as he showed on their album, and later Fairport Convention records. The group was completed by rhythm guitarist and second lead vocalist Australian Trevor Lucas, whom Denny was to marry, and who also later accompanied her back into Fairport.
Fotheringay contains a majority of tracks by Sandy Denny, with one each by Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot and Trevor Lucas, as well as the atmospheric trad arr. Fotheringay, The Banks of the Nile.
In 2007 the BBC announced that Donahue would be attempting to complete the abandoned project (which he accomplished using previously unheard takes from the original archived tapes). Permission had finally been granted and the work was completed by summer of the following year. The resulting album, titled Fotheringay 2, was released by Fledg'ling Records on 29 September 2008.
The Sea
Fotheringay Lyrics
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You'll never follow, and I'll never show.
D'you see the water and watch it flow
And float an empty shell,
And you think that I'm hiding from the island.
You've a fault in your senses. Can you feel it now?
Time? What is that? I've no time to care.
I've lived for a long while nearly everywhere.
You will be taken, everyone, you ladies and you gentlemen.
Fall and listen with your ears upon the paving stone.
Is that what you hear? The coming of the sea?
Sea flows under your doors in London town.
And all your defences are all broken down.
You laugh at me on funny days, but mine's the slight of hand.
Don't you know I am a joker, a deceiver?
And I'm waiting for the land.
In Fotheringay's "The Sea," the singer is contemplating their place in the world and questioning whether those around them truly understand them. The first stanza sets up this theme, with the singer musing on whether others truly wonder about them or if they are simply blindly following along. The imagery of watching water flowing and an empty shell floating suggests a feeling of being adrift and disconnected.
The second stanza takes a darker turn, with the singer seeming to assert their independence from the constraints of time and place. They have lived everywhere and have no care for time, seemingly implying that they are free to act as they please. The following lines suggest a warning to all, that they will be taken, and that they should listen closely to the world around them. The final lines of this stanza, "Is that what you hear? The coming of the sea?" imply a sense of impending doom or change.
The final stanza brings the song full circle, returning to the idea of the sea as a powerful force that can break down even the most fortified of defenses. The singer seems to hint that they are not what they appear, that they are a joker and a deceiver waiting for something specific, perhaps the land. The final line of the song is ambiguous and haunting, leaving the listener to wonder what exactly the singer is waiting for.
Line by Line Meaning
Do I ever wonder? You don't know.
I have deep contemplations, but you aren't aware.
You'll never follow, and I'll never show.
You won't understand me, and I won't open up to you.
D'you see the water and watch it flow
Do you observe the movements of the sea?
And float an empty shell,
As an empty shell drifts through the sea.
And you think that I'm hiding from the island.
You believe I'm avoiding something or someone on land.
You've a fault in your senses. Can you feel it now?
You're mistaken or misguided in your perception. Can you recognize it?
Time? What is that? I've no time to care.
Time doesn't matter to me; I'm indifferent.
I've lived for a long while nearly everywhere.
I have lived in many places for a long time.
You will be taken, everyone, you ladies and you gentlemen.
Everyone, including you, will eventually pass away.
Fall and listen with your ears upon the paving stone.
Pause and listen closely to what's happening around you.
Is that what you hear? The coming of the sea?
Do you perceive the approach of the sea?
Sea flows under your doors in London town.
The sea reaches your doorstep in the city of London.
And all your defences are all broken down.
Your protections and barriers are useless against the sea's power.
You laugh at me on funny days, but mine's the slight of hand.
You mock me on happy days, but I am skilled at deception.
Don't you know I am a joker, a deceiver?
Do you not realize that I'm someone who tricks and misleads others?
And I'm waiting for the land.
I'm anticipating the arrival of solid ground.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Catherine Genevieve Mary Lucas, Justin Finch, Leon Eric Beckenham, Simon Aurell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind