As a child she was always singing. Edale, in Derbyshire, was the ideal place to nurture this natural ability, with an abundance of communal song. Having played the fiddle a small amount at school, Bella attended a Folkworks Youth Summer School in Durham age 13. Motivated by the number of young people playing folk music, she was inspired to begin working on folk fiddle. She also met many of her great friends and musical companions.
Some of these new friends arranged to meet up again, and on New Year's Day a year later The Pack was formed. Initially The Pack was a way for this group of people to get free tickets to festivals. The spirited performances and complex arrangements of the 12 piece band proved a resounding success, and they went on to play many of the scene's greatest stages, including Cambridge Folk Festival main stage in 2003. In 2002, the only Pack album 12 Little Devils was released, with fRoots calling it "... a genuine feel good album. Get yours now!".
Hardy released her debut solo album Night Visiting in 2007, to critical acclaim. Mojo gave her a 4* 'Brilliant' rating, fRoots wrote "Bella Hardy is more than a new generation folk revivalist... Her potential is massive", and Taplas Magazine noted "...her debut CD solo album is a piece of wondrous beauty and inventive incisiveness". In 2008 she was nominated for the Horizon Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. She was also nominated for Best Original Song the same year with Three Black Feathers, which Jim Moray went on to record on his 2008 album Low Culture.
Hardy released her second solo album In The Shadow of Mountains in 2009 at the Cambridge Folk Festival. Again it gained critical acclaim. English Dance and Song Magazine wrote "It's astounding and somewhat daunting to realise this is only Bella's second album... Surely no-one has any right to be writing songs with the sophistication of 'Sylvie Sovay', so early in their career..."
Bridge of Dean
Bella Hardy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And time's washed down as melted snow
There sleeps the unnamed girl laid low
Weed tangled hair pulled to and fro
Her life dragged to the undertow
Down by the of Dean
All Hallow's Eve left ghosts there
Her same old path to home seemed strange
That friendly way so rearranged
Each well known tree took evil shape
Down by the of Dean
She's crossed Dean and dropped down right
And left behind safe city's lights
Gone wandering home quite out of sight
Each bang and flash of firework bright
Left her shaking by the riverside
Down by the of Dean
So scared she runs for Saunders Street
In tripping steps and heart skip beat
While man made thunder splits the sky
Hygieia cries as she runs by
But the roaring river spurs her own
Down by the of Dean
That creeping feeling something's wrong
She's glancing back and running on
Down to the arch and almost there
A hand grabs out behind the stair
Why can no-one hear her screaming there
Down by the of Dean?
The healing draughts of St. Bernard's Well
They could not help her as she fell
Down in the water still she lies
With reaching arms and pleading eyes
But no-one knows as they walk by
Down by the of Dean
No sign to mark the place
Save a lonely pink glove half buried in mud
Oh sing on high you church bells toll
An hourly mass for the unnamed girl
For her lonely lost forgotten soul
Down by the of Dean
Bella Hardy's "Bridge of Dean" tells the story of an unnamed girl who met her tragic end in the River Leith. The first verse sets the scene, with the melody following the flow of the river as the lyrics describe the girl's hair being pulled by weed tangles and dragged to the undertow. The chorus emphasizes the location of the tragedy: Dean, where the girl meets her demise in the midst of All Hallow's Eve and Bonfire Night celebrations. The second verse brings the girl physically closer to danger, with fireworks startling her and leading her to run toward the city - but the river eventually spurs her back. The final verse details the girl's disturbing final moments and emphasizes just how forgotten she is.
Line by Line Meaning
Leith Waters run, Leith Waters flow
The Leith Waters stream flows through the area
And time's washed down as melted snow
Time passes and things change gradually over time
There sleeps the unnamed girl laid low
An unnamed girl is buried there
Weed tangled hair pulled to and fro
Her hair is tangled in the weeds
Her life dragged to the undertow
She was swept away by the river's undertow and drowned
Down by the of Dean
This happened by the Bridge of Dean
All Hallow's Eve left ghosts there
On Halloween, the area is said to be haunted
In Bonfire Night's chill wood smoked air
On Bonfire Night, the air is smoky and cold
Her same old path to home seemed strange
The route she usually takes home now seems unfamiliar
That friendly way so rearranged
Even the familiar surroundings seem different
Each well known tree took evil shape
Even the trees that she knows well seem scary
Down by the of Dean
All these feelings are experienced in the area by the Bridge of Dean
She's crossed Dean and dropped down right
She has crossed the bridge and gone down to the riverside
And left behind safe city's lights
She left the safety of the city lights behind
Gone wandering home quite out of sight
She went on her way, unnoticed by anyone
Each bang and flash of firework bright
The loud noises and bright lights of the fireworks startled her
Left her shaking by the riverside
She was left trembling by the side of the river
Down by the of Dean
All of this is happening in the area by the Bridge of Dean
So scared she runs for Saunders Street
Terrified, she runs towards Saunders Street
In tripping steps and heart skip beat
Her steps are unsteady and her heart is pounding
While man made thunder splits the sky
The noise of the fireworks sounds like thunder
Hygieia cries as she runs by
Hygieia, the goddess of health, cries out as the girl runs by
But the roaring river spurs her own
The sound of the rushing river urges her on
Down by the of Dean
All of this is happening by the Bridge of Dean
That creeping feeling something's wrong
She has a feeling that something is not right
She's glancing back and running on
She keeps looking over her shoulder and keeps running
Down to the arch and almost there
She runs towards the arch, which leads to safety
A hand grabs out behind the stair
Someone grabs her from behind as she reaches the stairs
Why can no-one hear her screaming there
She screams for help but nobody can hear her
Down by the of Dean?
Did all of these events happen by the Bridge of Dean?
The healing draughts of St. Bernard's Well
The healing waters of St. Bernard's Well could not save her
They could not help her as she fell
Despite her attempts to save herself, she fell into the water
Down in the water still she lies
Her body is still in the water
With reaching arms and pleading eyes
She seems to be reaching out for someone to save her
But no-one knows as they walk by
People are unaware of the girl's fate as they pass by
Down by the of Dean
All of this took place by the Bridge of Dean
No sign to mark the place
There is no indication that something tragic happened there
Save a lonely pink glove half buried in mud
The only remnant of the girl is a half-buried pink glove
Oh sing on high you church bells toll
The church bells toll to remember the girl and her tragic fate
An hourly mass for the unnamed girl
The church holds a mass every hour to remember the unnamed girl
For her lonely lost forgotten soul
The church prays for the girl's soul to find peace
Down by the of Dean
All of this happened by the Bridge of Dean
Contributed by Emily C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.