Archie Fisher was born in Glasgow on 23 October 1939. In 1960 he moved to Edinburgh and appeared regularly at a folk club called "The Howff" run by Roy Guest. In 1962 Ray & Archie Fisher released a single on the Topic label, "Far Over the Forth". They appeared on the BBC programme 'Hootenanny'. In 1965 the whole family released an album "Traditional and New Songs from Scotland" under the name The Fisher Family.
Bert Jansch visited The Howff in 1960 and received guitar lessons from another regular performer, Len Partridge. Archie met Robin Williamson, Clive Palmer and Mike Heron, later to become The Incredible String Band.
By 1964 the Edinburgh Fringe could boast a folk festival in its own right. An album of the participants was released on Decca. It was called "Edinburgh Folk Festival vol 2" and contained tracks by Ray Fisher, Archie Fisher, Anne Briggs, and the Ian Campbell Folk Group (including Dave Swarbrick). Jansch and Briggs performed together but this was never recorded. At an early stage Archie recognised the power of Barbara Dickson's singing and in 1969 invited her to guest on his albums. His live act included 'All Around My Hat', later to become a hit for Steeleye Span. His song "Witch of the Westmorland" was recorded by Barbara Dickson in 1971 on her album "From the Beggar's Mantle", by Archie on "The Man With a Rhyme" in 1976, by Stan Rogers in 1979 and by Golden Bough in 1983.
In 1983 he started hosting a folk programme on Radio Scotland, called Travelling Folk. It is still running. He appeared as the lead guitarist on Tom Paxton's 1986 album, The Very Best of Tom Paxton. After Barbara Dickson achieved fame as an easy listening singer it was many years before she sang folk songs again. When she did, Archie was invited back to join her. Archie has toured Canada and the USA. His style of singing is very gentle and he avoids all electronic instruments. "Dark-Eyed Molly" has been recorded by Fairport Convention, Eva Cassidy, Stan Rogers, and Sheena Wellington. He now lives in the north of England.
Discography:
Ray & Archie Fisher
* Far Over the Forth (1962)
The Fisher Family
* Traditional and New Songs From Scotland (1965)
Solo Recordings
* Archie Fisher (1968)
* Orfeo (1970)
* Will Ye Gang, Love (1976)
* The Man With A Rhyme (1976)
* Sunsets I've Galloped Into (1995)
* Windward Away (2010)
With Barbara Dickson
* The Fate o' Charlie (1969)
* Thro' The Recent Years (1970)
With Garnet Rogers
* Off the Map (1986)
Coshieville
Archie Fisher Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And with the winds came we
And where the river hugs the wood
And blackthorns bloom in May
There stood a single rowan tree
So young and tender so were you
I loved you both as there you grew
The day I took the road that leads by Rannoch to the sea
We carved our names in Coshieville
The rowan leaves were still
But the darkening west was in your eye
Despite your kisses and my lies
My thoughts had crossed the hill
I broke your heart as the minutes passed
For I shrugged and said that nothing lasts
But many's the backward glance I cast
As I went north to the drill
The big wheels rumble up and down
The lorries know the way
I waved my hand I hitched a ride
We crossed the bridge at Rannochside
Where the diesel motors play
Then I set myself to a cliff of stone
My ear to the boring hammer's drone
And the ache inside I rued alone
For you were far away
But the money moved from Ericht's Loch
And the Great Glen beckoned on
At Moriston the hills grew pale
And we fought and drank through old Kintail
Till our money soon was gone
Then I cursed Loch Awe side's autumn rain
And the winter whiskey in Dunblane
Till the west winds rose in spring again
And my heart leapt to it's song
And I came at night to Coshieville
With a dozen hills aflame
You had another hand to hold
Beneath the names we carved of old
There was another name
You looked me through you made no sign
I drank the cup of bitter wine
But well I knew the fault was mine
And I went the road I came
The song "Coshieville" by Archie Fisher is a poetic reflection on love and regret. In the first verse, Fisher sets the scene of Coshieville, a small town where the river hugs the wood and the blackthorns bloom in May. He speaks of a single rowan tree that stands young and tender, just like the person he loved as they grew. The day he took the road that leads to the sea, he carved their names in Coshieville, but little did he know that this would be the beginning of his regretful journey.
In the second verse, Fisher reveals that he broke the heart of the person he loved by shrugging and saying that nothing lasts. Despite his kisses and lies, his thoughts had already crossed the hill, and he was on his way north to the drill. The big wheels rumble up and down, and the lorries know the way, but he was alone with the ache inside him, for the person he loved was far away.
In the final verse, Fisher reflects on how the money moved from Ericht's Loch, and the Great Glen beckoned on. He cursed the autumn rain in Loch Awe side, and the winter whiskey in Dunblane until the west winds rose in spring again, and his heart leapt to its song. He returned one night to Coshieville to find that the person he had loved had moved on, and there was another name beneath the names they had carved in the past. He drank the cup of bitter wine, knowing that the fault was his, before he went the road he came.
Line by Line Meaning
The west winds blow to Coshieville
The winds blowing towards Coshieville from the west
And with the winds came we
We arrived with the blowing of the west winds
And where the river hugs the wood
At the point where the river is close to the wood
And blackthorns bloom in May
When the blackthorn trees come to life in May
There stood a single rowan tree
At the location, there was a young rowan tree standing alone
So young and tender so were you
Just like the young rowan tree, you were also young and tender
I loved you both as there you grew
I saw you both growing and loved you dearly
The day I took the road that leads by Rannoch to the sea
The day I left, taking the road that goes by Rannoch towards the sea
We carved our names in Coshieville
We engraved our names in Coshieville
The rowan leaves were still
The leaves of the rowan tree were motionless
But the darkening west was in your eye
Your eyes were reflecting the darkening west
Despite your kisses and my lies
Although we kissed, I lied to you
My thoughts had crossed the hill
My mind was wandering off
I broke your heart as the minutes passed
I hurt you more and more with each passing minute
For I shrugged and said that nothing lasts
I dismissed your emotions, claiming that nothing lasts forever
But many's the backward glance I cast
I looked back at you many times as I was leaving
As I went north to the drill
As I headed towards the north for work
The big wheels rumble up and down
The large wheels kept rolling on the ground
The lorries know the way
The lorries were familiar with the route
I waved my hand I hitched a ride
I signaled for a ride and hitched a lift
We crossed the bridge at Rannochside
We went over the bridge at Rannochside
Where the diesel motors play
Where the diesel engines could be heard
Then I set myself to a cliff of stone
I found myself standing on a rocky cliff
My ear to the boring hammer's drone
I listened to the sound of the monotonous boring hammer
And the ache inside I rued alone
I regretted the pain I felt inside, all by myself
For you were far away
Because you were not with me
But the money moved from Ericht's Loch
The money came from Ericht's Loch
And the Great Glen beckoned on
The Great Glen was calling out to me
At Moriston the hills grew pale
The hills at Moriston looked pale
And we fought and drank through old Kintail
We fought and drank while we traveled through old Kintail
Till our money soon was gone
Until we ran out of money
Then I cursed Loch Awe side's autumn rain
I uttered expletives about the autumn rain in Loch Awe side
And the winter whiskey in Dunblane
And the winter whiskey from Dunblane
Till the west winds rose in spring again
Until the west winds began to blow again in the spring
And my heart leapt to its song
My heart filled with joy and excitement
And I came at night to Coshieville
I returned to Coshieville at night
With a dozen hills aflame
With the sight of the hills ablaze with fire
You had another hand to hold
I found you holding someone else's hand
Beneath the names we carved of old
Underneath the old names we had engraved
There was another name
There was an additional name
You looked me through you made no sign
You glanced at me but didn't give any indication
I drank the cup of bitter wine
I experienced the bitter taste of regret and heartbreak
But well I knew the fault was mine
I was fully aware that I was to blame
And I went the road I came
I returned home the same way I came
Contributed by Taylor H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.