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..."
Young Edmund
Bella Hardy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He ploughed the main much gold to gain for Emily we are told
When seven years had gone and passed he did return him home
To show the gold that he had gained down on the lowlands low
Her father kept a public house, it stood down by the sea
“Young Edmund you can enter there and all night you can stay
And I’ll meet you here tomorrow, just don’t you let my father know
As Edmund he did enter there, well all his gold he did show
Said Emily’s cruel father, “This gold shall be your foe
For your wealth and all you money shall soon my fortunes grow
And I’ll send your body sinking down into the lowlands low”
As Edmund on his pillow lay and scarce had fell asleep
It’s Emily’s cruel father into the room he did creep
He has dragged and raised him out of bed and to the sea he did go
And he’s sent his body sinking down into the lowlands low
As Emily on her pillow lay, she had a frightful dream
She dreamt she saw her young Edmund laid in a crystal stream
And so early the next morning to her father’s house she did go
Because she loved him dearly who ploughed the lowlands low
“Oh father where’s the stranger, come here last night to lie?”
“Oh he is dead, no tales he’ll tell” her father did reply.
“Oh father, cruel father, you shall die a public show
For the murder of that young Edmund who ploughed the lowlands low”
It’s Emily’s cruel father, could day nor night take rest
For the murder of this young Edmund he therefore did confess
He was tried and he was sentenced and he died a public show
For the murder of that young Edmund who ploughed the lowlands low
Bella Hardy’s song “Young Edmund” tells the story of a tragic love story between a servant girl named Emily and a sailor named Edmund. Edmund had gone away to sea to gain wealth, and when he returned seven years later, he went to see Emily’s father to offer him the gold he had amassed. The father, however, was not pleased with the idea of Edmund’s wealth and saw it as a threat to his own fortune. In the night, the father crept into Edmund’s room, murdered him, and chucked his body into the sea. Emily had a dream of her lover lying in a stream, and when she went to her father’s house to inquire about Edmund, her father confessed to the murder. Her father was later tried and executed for his crime.
The story of “Young Edmund” is a classic tale of tragedy and betrayal. It highlights the theme of greed and how it can drive someone to do unspeakable acts. Emily’s father was depicted in the song as being driven by greed, leading him to commit a heinous crime. The story also shows how love can transcend even death, as Emily remained devoted to Edmund even after his murder, which ultimately brought her father to justice.
Line by Line Meaning
Young Emily was a servant girl, her lover a sailor bold
Emily was a house help and her lover was a brave sailor
He ploughed the main much gold to gain for Emily we are told
He sailed across many seas and amassed plenty of wealth for Emily
When seven years had gone and passed he did return him home
After seven years, he returned home
To show the gold that he had gained down on the lowlands low
He came back to exhibit the wealth he had accumulated in some lowlands
Her father kept a public house, it stood down by the sea
Emily's father owned an establishment by the sea
“Young Edmund you can enter there and all night you can stay
Emily's father let Edmund stay overnight at their place
And I’ll meet you here tomorrow, just don’t you let my father know
Father was not to know that Edmund was with Emily
That your name it is that young Edmund who ploughed the lowlands low”
Father didn't know that Emily's lover was the wealthy sailor who ploughed some lands
As Edmund he did enter there, well all his gold he did show
Edmund went there and displayed all his wealth
Said Emily’s cruel father, “This gold shall be your foe
Father saw Edmund's wealth as a threat
For your wealth and all you money shall soon my fortunes grow
Father wanted to steal Edmund's wealth and use it to make himself richer
And I’ll send your body sinking down into the lowlands low”
Father decided to kill Edmund and throw his body into some lowlands
As Edmund on his pillow lay and scarce had fell asleep
As Edmund was about to sleep
It’s Emily’s cruel father into the room he did creep
Father sneaked into Edmund's room
He has dragged and raised him out of bed and to the sea he did go
He pulled Edmund out of bed and took him to the sea
And he’s sent his body sinking down into the lowlands low
Father killed Edmund and dumped his body into the lowlands
As Emily on her pillow lay, she had a frightful dream
Emily had a scary dream while sleeping
She dreamt she saw her young Edmund laid in a crystal stream
In her dream, she saw Edmund's body in a clear stream
And so early the next morning to her father’s house she did go
The next morning, Emily went to her father's house
Because she loved him dearly who ploughed the lowlands low
She was in love with the man who had amassed wealth from some lowlands
“Oh father where’s the stranger, come here last night to lie?”
Emily asked her father where Edmund was
“Oh he is dead, no tales he’ll tell” her father did reply.
Father told Emily that Edmund was dead and won't reveal what happened to him
Oh father, cruel father, you shall die a public show
Emily cursed his father, calling him cruel and wished him public execution
For the murder of that young Edmund who ploughed the lowlands low”
Emily accused her father of murdering the man who got rich from some lowlands
It’s Emily’s cruel father, could day nor night take rest
Father couldn't sleep or rest properly
For the murder of this young Edmund he therefore did confess
Father confessed to killing Edmund
He was tried and he was sentenced and he died a public show
He was tried, convicted, and publicly executed for murdering Edmund
For the murder of that young Edmund who ploughed the lowlands low
He was executed for Edmund's murder from lands that he had plowed
Contributed by Taylor J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.