Cerys Matthews MBE (born Cerys Elizabeth Matthews on 11 April 1969 in Cardi… Read Full Bio ↴Cerys Matthews MBE (born Cerys Elizabeth Matthews on 11 April 1969 in Cardiff) is a Welsh singer, songwriter, author, and broadcaster. She was a founding member of Welsh rock band Catatonia and a leading figure in the "Cool Cymru" movement of the late 1990s.

Matthews learnt to play guitar at the age of nine, sang Welsh folk songs and taught herself traditional songs from all over the globe including blues and Irish folk songs. She was a member of the West Glamorgan Youth Orchestra. The band Catatonia formed in 1992 after Matthews and guitarist Mark Roberts began dating, as well as writing songs together, at the end of 1991. Catatonia split in mid-2001, and Matthews released her first solo album , Cockahoop, in May 2003. Her second album Never Said Goodbye was released in August 2006. In November 2007 she released a mini-album of Welsh language songs Awyren=Aeroplane.

At the 2013 Sony Radio Academy Awards, Matthews won Gold for her popular BBC 6 music Sunday morning show, which she programmes and hosts. She is the One Show’s cultural reporter and writes and presents radio and television documentaries on subjects as diverse as Cuba, early classical composers, shark fishing and early female blues players. A collector of songs for over thirty years, Matthews is a columnist for the world music magazine ‘Songlines’, and her sing-along book, ‘Hook, Line and Singer’, published by Penguin was a Sunday Times bestseller. She is the author of children’s stories ‘Tales from the Deep’ and ‘Gelert: A Man’s Best Friend’.

Matthews has curated for theatres and the Tate Modern and was artistic director for the opening ceremony of the World Music Expo 2013. She was awarded an inaugural St David Award for her services to culture this year from the First Minister of Wales.

Also in 2013, Matthews wrote and presented a six-part television series looking into the history of centuries old folk songs in her native Wales. In October 2014 Matthews releases an album of music and poetry by Dylan Thomas as well as an Archive Hour programme for BBC Radio 4 looking into her uncle Colin Edward’s role in amassing a huge archive on this great lyrical poet. Matthews has created a cultural festival, 'The Good Life Experience'. She is a judge for the Dylan Thomas Prize for young writers, and for the Forward Prizes for poetry.

Her 2010 self-produced album of traditional Welsh songs, ‘Tir’, is the biggest selling Welsh language album of the decade; the second volume, ‘Hullabaloo’ followed in 2013.

Matthews dueted with Sir Tom Jones on the perennial winter favourite, ‘Baby it’s Cold Outside’. She is Vice President for the homeless charity, Shelter, Vice President of the Hay Festival of Literature and the Arts, is patron of the Dylan Thomas Society and Ballet Cymru, and is Arts Ambassador for the Linden Lodge School - a specialist school for sensory impairment.

Matthews lives in West London with her husband and children.

A Bird In Hand
Cerys Matthews Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

midday sun and my world's begun to come up roses
i got a ringside ticket playing domino with a friend of mine
sitting getting old in the shade of the same old tree
i got change in my pocket a bird in my hand
it's singing for dinner and i understand
wake me gentlyin the morning
take me easy in the afternoon
i'm whiling away the hours

i'm good for nothing, nothing's good enough for me
i'm going nowhere, there's nowhere i'd rather be
than sitting getting old in the shade of the same old tree
i got change in my pocket and a bird in my hand
it's singing for dinner and i understand
wake me gently in the morning
take me easy in the afternoon
im whiling away the hours

humdrum becomes routine
i open my mouth and feel
new words on my tongue
they already run, like honey

wake me gently in the morning

take me easy in the afternoon
i'm whiling away the hours

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Cerys Matthews's "A Bird In Hand" seem to portray a peaceful and contented existence, where the poet is happy to idle away the hours with simple pleasures like playing dominoes and listening to a singing bird. The midday sun symbolizes a new beginning, and the poet's world is looking up. She acknowledges that she is good for nothing, but that it's also true that nothing is good enough for her. She is perfectly contented to grow old with a pocket full of change and a bird in her hand that she knows will sing for her dinner.

As the song progresses, we see a subtle shift in tone. The humdrum existence she describes starts to become routine, and she hungers for something new. The poet mentions that new words come naturally to her, like honey, and she seems ready for a change. Despite this restlessness, the song's overall message remains one of contentment; the poet is happy to while away the hours and enjoy the peaceful serenity of her life.

Line by Line Meaning

midday sun and my world's begun to come up roses
It's midday, the sun is shining and everything is going well for me today.

i got a ringside ticket playing domino with a friend of mine
I am enjoying a good game of dominoes with a friend.

sitting getting old in the shade of the same old tree
I am relaxing in the shade of a tree, enjoying a moment of peace.

i got change in my pocket a bird in my hand
I am content with what I have in life, including a bird that is singing for me.

it's singing for dinner and i understand
The bird is singing for its food and I appreciate the simplicity of nature.

wake me gently in the morning
I prefer to wake up slowly and calmly in the morning.

take me easy in the afternoon
I like to take it easy and relax in the afternoon.

i'm whiling away the hours
I am happily passing the time by doing nothing.

i'm good for nothing, nothing's good enough for me
I am content with being unproductive and simple pleasures are enough for me.

i'm going nowhere, there's nowhere i'd rather be
I am not ambitious and am happy where I am in life.

humdrum becomes routine
Everyday life can become repetitive and mundane.