Playing his first live concerts at the age of 11 in pubs on the Isle of Wight, he played in several rock bands during his teens - one of which, Targa, played regularly on the London circuit, finally getting their own headlining concert at London’s prestigious Marquee Club.
During the 1990s he was trained as a Bard, poet and storyteller in the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, and it was during this time that he found his artistic expression within folk music, forming the ‘Mystic Folk’ band Spiral Castle for a support concert with Robin Williamson (founder member of the Incredible String Band). Spiral Castle played regularly during the late 90s at festivals including the Pagan Federation International Conference at Fairfield Halls in Croydon.
He released his debut solo album, "Herne’s Apprentice", in 2002. He followed this with "The Hills They Are Hollow" in 2003, "Spirit of Albion" in 2006, and "The Cauldron Born" in 2008. In 200, he released "Tales from the Crow Man", an album of mostly traditional folk songs alongside Eric Bogle’s classic anti-war song Green Fields of France. In 2010 he the live album "As Nature Intended" (download only). His album "Antlered Crown and Standing Stone" was released November 2012, and "Sabbat" was released in 2014.
After the release of Sabbat, Damh began a multi-year project to create the Four Branches of the Mabinogion in audio format, with song, story and film-type scoring. Y Mabinogi – The First Branch was released in 2017 with The Second Branch coming out the following year. The Third Branch was released in 2020.
John Barleycorn
Damh the Bard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Their fortunes for to try
And these three men made a solemn vow
John Barleycorn must die.
They ploughed, they sowed, they harrowed him in
Threw clods all upon his head
And these three men made a solemn vow
John barleycorn was Dead.
They let him stand for a very long time
Till the rains from heaven did fall
Then little Sir John's sprung up his head
And so amazed them all
They let him stand till the Midsummer Day
Till he grew both pale and wan
Then little Sir John's grew a great, long beard
And so become a man.
They hire'd men with scythes so sharp
To cut him off at the knee.
They bound him and tied him around the waist
Serving him most barb'rously.
They hire'd men with their sharp pitch-forks
To prick him to the heart
But the drover served him worse than that
For he's bound him to a cart.
They rolled him around and around the field
Till they came unto a barn
And these three men made a solemn mow
Of poor John Barleycorn
They hire'd men with crab-tree sticks
To strip him skin from bone
But the miller, served him worse than that,
For he's ground him between two stones.
Here's Little sir John in the nut-brown bowl
And brandy in the glass
But Little Sir John in the nut-brown bowl's
Proved the stronger man at last
For the hunts man he can't hunt the fox
Nor cheerily blow his horn
And the tinker, can't mend Kettle or pot
Without a little Barleycorn.
The song "John Barleycorn" is a traditional English folk song that personifies barley as a man named John Barleycorn. The lyrics tell the story of three men who vow to kill John Barleycorn, representing the process of planting and harvesting barley to make beer or whiskey. The first verse describes the plowing, sowing, and harrowing of the fields to plant the barley, while the next verses describe the growth of the plant, the harvesting, and the various ways in which it is processed.
However, despite the men's efforts to kill John Barleycorn, he continues to grow and transform, ultimately becoming the source of their sustenance and pleasures. The last verse describes how the barley is made into beer and whiskey, with Little Sir John (the barley) proving stronger than the huntsman, who can no longer hunt without his drink, and the tinker, who can no longer work without his little bit of Barleycorn. This song has been interpreted as a celebration of the cycle of life and death, the power of the natural world, and the transformative properties of alcohol.
Line by Line Meaning
There were three men came out of the West
Three men came from the western region
Their fortunes for to try
They came to try their luck or fate
And these three men made a solemn vow
The three men pledged a serious promise
John Barleycorn must die.
The target of their vow is to kill John Barleycorn
They ploughed, they sowed, they harrowed him in
The three men planted John Barleycorn and worked the land around him
Threw clods all upon his head
They covered John Barleycorn's head with lumps of earth
And these three men made a solemn vow
The vow to kill John Barleycorn continues
John barleycorn was Dead.
John Barleycorn was killed
They let him stand for a very long time
They left John Barleycorn alone for a lengthy period
Till the rains from heaven did fall
Until the rain began to fall from the sky
Then little Sir John's sprung up his head
The plant grew fresh shoots and buds
And so amazed them all
Everyone was surprised by this growth
They let him stand till the Midsummer Day
John Barleycorn was left untouched until mid-summer
Till he grew both pale and wan
The plant grew weak and unwell
Then little Sir John's grew a great, long beard
The plant grew a long beard-like feature
And so become a man.
The plant matured into adulthood
They hire'd men with scythes so sharp
They employed men with razor-sharp cutting tools
To cut him off at the knee.
The men cut John Barleycorn down to the knee
They bound him and tied him around the waist
They tied John Barleycorn's waist or middle
Serving him most barb'rously.
They treated him in a barbaric manner
They hire'd men with their sharp pitch-forks
They employed men with sharp, pronged tools
To prick him to the heart
The men pierced John Barleycorn's heart with the pitchforks
But the drover served him worse than that
The drover treated John Barleycorn more harshly than the pitchfork men
For he's bound him to a cart.
The drover tied John Barleycorn to a cart or vehicle
They rolled him around and around the field
They pushed John Barleycorn around the field
Till they came unto a barn
They transported John Barleycorn to a barn
And these three men made a solemn mow
The three vow-makers make another serious promise
Of poor John Barleycorn
They pledge to do something about John Barleycorn
They hire'd men with crab-tree sticks
They employed men with sticks made from crab-tree wood
To strip him skin from bone
The men skinned John Barleycorn down to the bone
But the miller, served him worse than that,
The miller treated John Barleycorn even worse than the stick men
For he's ground him between two stones.
The miller crushed John Barleycorn between two heavy stones
Here's Little sir John in the nut-brown bowl
Little Sir John lies in a brown bowl
And brandy in the glass
There's brandy in a glass
But Little Sir John in the nut-brown bowl's
However, Little Sir John in the brown bowl proves
Proved the stronger man at last
To be the stronger force in the end
For the hunts man he can't hunt the fox
The huntsman is unable to hunt the fox
Nor cheerily blow his horn
He can't even blow his hunting horn with enthusiasm
And the tinker, can't mend Kettle or pot
The tinker is unable to mend or fix any pots or kettles
Without a little Barleycorn.
Without using a bit of Barleycorn
Contributed by Harper V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.