Arwen Arabella Hardy, known professionally as Bella Hardy, is an English c… Read Full Bio ↴Arwen Arabella Hardy, known professionally as Bella Hardy, is an English contemporary folk musician, singer and songwriter from Edale in Derbyshire. She performed in various line-ups as a teenager, including The Pack and Ola, and reached the final of the BBC Young Folk Awards in 2004, but it was the release of her debut solo album Night Visiting in 2007 which garnered her recognition at the forefront of modern folk music.

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..."

My Johnny Was a Shoemaker
Bella Hardy Lyrics

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My Johnny was a Shoemaker
Traditional. From the singing of Steeleye Span.

My Johnny was a shoemaker and dearly he loved me
My Johnny was a shoemaker but now he's gone to sea
With pitch and tar to soil his hands
For to sail across the sea, stormy sea
For to sail across the stormy sea

His jacket was a deep sky blue and curly was his hair
His jacket was a deep sky blue, it was I do declare
For to reef the topsail up against the mast
And to sail across the sea, stormy sea
For to sail across the stormy sea

One day he'll be a captain bold with a brave and a gallant crew
One day he'll be a captain bold with a sword and a spyglass too
And when he has a gallant captain's sword
He'll come home and marry me, marry me
He'll come on home and marry me

My Johnny was a shoemaker and dearly he loved me
My Johnny was a shoemaker but now he's gone to sea
With pitch and tar to soil his hands
For to sail across the sea, stormy sea

For sail across the stormy sea

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Bella Hardy's song "My Johnny Was a Shoemaker" tell the story of a young woman reminiscing about her beloved Johnny, who was once a shoemaker. She describes Johnny's love for her and his occupation, but now he is gone to sea. The mention of pitch and tar alludes to the hard work and manual labor involved in sailing across the stormy sea.

The song paints a picture of Johnny's appearance, with his deep sky blue jacket and curly hair. The repetition of the line "For to sail across the sea, stormy sea" emphasizes the danger and uncertainty that comes with his chosen path. The lyrics suggest that Johnny's ambition is to become a captain with a brave and gallant crew, equipped with a sword and a spyglass. The woman longs for the day when Johnny returns as a captain and marries her.

The song captures the bittersweet nature of the woman's love for Johnny. While she misses him and longs for his return, she understands that his drive for adventure and ambition has taken him away from her. Despite this, she remains loyal and hopeful, eagerly awaiting the day when they can be together again.

Line by Line Meaning

My Johnny was a Shoemaker
The person I loved was a shoemaker

and dearly he loved me
He loved me deeply

but now he's gone to sea
But now he has left to go to sea

With pitch and tar to soil his hands
Using materials like pitch and tar that would dirty his hands

For to sail across the sea, stormy sea
In order to embark on a journey across the rough and unpredictable sea

His jacket was a deep sky blue
He wore a jacket that had a deep sky blue color

and curly was his hair
His hair was curly in texture

it was I do declare
I can confidently state this fact

For to reef the topsail up against the mast
To secure the topsail against the mast

And to sail across the sea, stormy sea
And to sail across the rough and unpredictable sea

One day he'll be a captain bold
One day he will become a brave captain