Swarbrick was born in New Malden, Surrey and grew up in Birmingham. He learnt the rudiments of the violin from a local fiddler and attended the Birmingham College of Art (now the Birmingham Institute of Art and Design) in the late 1950s. Playing guitar, he joined Beryl Marriot's Ceilidh Band in Birmingham. Beryl encouraged him to take up the fiddle again.
Swarbrick joined the Ian Campbell Folk Group in 1960. In 1966 he teamed up with Martin Carthy and the pairing had a significant influence in the contemporary folk music scene. In 1969 he joined folk-rock group Fairport Convention. In 1973 he contributed mandolin to Al Stewart's "Past, Present, & Future" album.
In 1984 Swarbrick formed Whippersnapper, a group renowned for its acoustic prowess. In 1989 he decided to leave to concentrate on solo work and revive his partnership with Martin Carthy.
In 1993 Swarbrick moved to Australia and met and began working with Alistair Hulett. Returning to England in 1996, he started working with Kevin Dempsey, who has recently joined Uiscedwr.
There was considerable embarrassment for the Daily Telegraph newspaper in 1999 when it published a premature obituary for Swarbrick after he was admitted to hospital with a chest infection. After many years of steadily worsening health due to emphysema, he was fortunate enough, in October 2004, to receive a double lung transplant and has now been released from hospital and it is to be hoped he is on the road to improved health and a better quality of life after being confined to a wheelchair for some years.
In 2004 he was given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.
In 2006 Swarb started touring again with ex-Fairporter Maartin Allcock and Kevin Dempsey as Swarb's Lazarus; they appeared at the Cropredy Festival.
Byker Hill
Dave Swarbrick Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I would have another gill
And I would make the piper play
The bonny lass of Byker Hill
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more, me boys
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Me, Ginny, she sits over late up
Me, Ginny, she sits over late up
Me, Ginny, she sits over late up
Between the pint pot and the cup
It's down the pits, we'll go me marrers
It's down the pits, we'll go me marrers
Well, try our wills and use our skill
To cut them ridges down below
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more, me boys
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more
Me, Ginny, she is never near
Me, Ginny, she is never near
And when I call out, "Where's me supper?"
She orders up another pint of beer
When first I come into the dirt
I had no trousers nor pit shirt
And now I've getting two or three
Walker Pit done well by me
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more, me boys
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more
Hey Ginny, come home to your little baby
Hey Ginny, come home to your little baby
Hey Ginny, come home to your little baby
With a pint of beer all under your arm
The poor coal cuttee gets two shillings
The deputy get half a crown
And the over man gets five and sixpence
That's just for riding up and down
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more, me boys
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more
Geordie Johnson had a pig
And he hit it with a shovel and it danced a jig
All the way to Byker Hill
He danced the Elsie Marley
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more, me boys
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Collier lads for ever more
The song "Byker Hill" is a traditional English folk song that is said to be written in the 18th or 19th century in the North East area of England. The song is about colliers who work in coal mines in Byker Hill and Walker Shore, and the struggle and hardship they face. The singers refer to their wives and girlfriends, who they name as "Ginny," and they sing about their struggles with alcohol and money. The chorus, "Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads, collier lads for ever more, me boys," refers to their identity as colliers and the pride they have in their work.
The verses of the song talk about the daily routines of miners and their hardships, such as working long hours in the mines for very little pay, the lack of food and clothing, and the struggle to support their families. The song describes the miners' defiance in the face of such hardship, as they draw comfort from their wives, girlfriends, and each other. The song's lyrics deal with themes that are still relevant today, such as class struggles and the exploitation of workers.
Line by Line Meaning
If I had another penny
If I had a penny more
I would have another gill
I would buy another drink
And I would make the piper play
And I would ask the piper to play
The bonny lass of Byker Hill
The beautiful girl of Byker Hill
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, me lads
Byker Hill and Walker Shore, my friends
Collier lads for ever more, me boys
Coal miner lads for all time, my friends
Me, Ginny, she sits over late up
My wife Ginny stays up late
Between the pint pot and the cup
Drinking beer
It's down the pits, we'll go me marrers
We'll go down the coal mines, my friends
Well, try our wills and use our skill
We'll do our best with our experience and ability
To cut them ridges down below
To extract the coal from below
Me, Ginny, she is never near
My wife Ginny is never around
And when I call out, "Where's me supper?"
And when I ask, "Where's my dinner?"
She orders up another pint of beer
She orders another beer
When first I come into the dirt
When I first started working in the mine
I had no trousers nor pit shirt
I had no pants or work shirt
And now I've getting two or three
And now I have two or three
Walker Pit done well by me
I've been doing well working at Walker Pit
Hey Ginny, come home to your little baby
Hey Ginny, come home to our little baby
With a pint of beer all under your arm
With a pint of beer in your hand
The poor coal cuttee gets two shillings
The coal miner gets two shillings
The deputy get half a crown
The deputy gets two and a half shillings
And the over man gets five and sixpence
And the supervisor gets five and sixpence
That's just for riding up and down
That's for simply going up and down the mine
Geordie Johnson had a pig
Geordie Johnson had a pig
And he hit it with a shovel and it danced a jig
And he hit it with a shovel and it danced
All the way to Byker Hill
All the way to Byker Hill
He danced the Elsie Marley
He did a dance called the Elsie Marley
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
Written by: SIMON EMMERSON, ELIZA CARTHY, MARTIN CARTHY, ALI FRIEND, ANDY GANGADEEN, SHEEMA MUKHERJEE, SIMON RICHMOND, KAY SUTCLIFFE, CHRIS WOOD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jim Penson - Bluegrass Musician
More modern versions of this song level the timing out and make it more comfortable to modern ears, but this original is amazing. Carthy is a legend. RIP Swarbrick.
Mark Brown
He's a musical genius, but to put some context behind my comment, we used to live nearby. His family are lovely people, but it would be wrong I think to say we were especially close. More of a "hello" when putting the bins out. I think my dad was slightly intimidated by the youthful recklessness of his music! Years passed, he lives elsewhere now, and obviously has a lot on. Yet when we buried my dad, he was there at the funeral. Says a lot about the man, and maybe a bit about my dad too.
Andy Dawson
She's now 10. I ended up singing her to sleep, and went right back to "Byker Hill". And ended up talking about being part of a long history and tradition, and how important it was that things went on. She's now in bed asleep, much better reconciled to things in the context of family and mutual care in the long term. Thanks Martin and Swarbss.
La Paunche
I think only Martin Carthy could sing this version, in this time signature and speed. A great favourite.
Random Hajile
The internet has proven you right, so far.
Beggar Wall
The perfect English folk voice.
Ian Carroll
I discovered martin and dave when i was 14 or so. a friend of mine brought me to a gig in Whelans in Dublin Ireland, and i was blown away by what i heard. Martin was touring with his wife and daughter at the time, and the quality of the music was incredible. now i go to see them every time they play dublin. this is the finest english folk music you are ever going to hear.....
Jennifer McNish
Clever combination. Great facility together with words, notes and syncopation.
Andy Dawson
This will be a personal and slightly odd tale. This song is one of my eternal favourites. I come from the North-West, rather than the North East of England, but fell in love with this when first heard Carthy, when I was 15. I've sung this to by daughter since she was born; usually as "me Maddie (her name) sits ower late-up." etc. It's always got her to sleep. We've just had a bad night. Her first pet's died, which has brought to the surface a lot of stuff about her grandmther dying (cont)
Brian Stevens
What a magic duo. Love both of them.