Like their peers The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield and Jefferson Airplane they were blessed with several considerable individual talents and produced music that -at least initially- was eclectic, as well as exploratory. This side of the band may best be heard on Heyday, a collection of tracks broadcast by the BBC. The move to a more British form of folk rock came primarily as a result of the enthusiasm of bassist Ashley Hutchings and producer Joe Boyd. Original singer Judy Dyble was replaced on their second LP What We Did On Our Holidays by Sandy Denny, an experienced folk singer and excellent composer in her own right. Fiddle virtuoso Dave Swarbrick joined, initially as sessioneer, on their third, Unhalfbricking. That LP has arguably their first two bona fide masterpieces. One is their version of the Sandy Denny song, Who Knows Where the Time Goes, popularized by Judy Collins, but characterised on their version by a perfect balance between Denny's vocals and the exquisite support of the group as a whole, and lead guitarist Richard Thompson in particular. The other is A Sailor's Life, the first to demonstrate the potential power of folk rock, the song exploding in an improvised and sophisticated instrumental coda that reaches beyond the words through the impassioned interplay of the whole band, led by the virtuosity of Thompson and Swarbrick in particular. Thompson also soon showed that he could create his own distinctive songs, notably the anthemic Meet on the Ledge, on Holidays.
The following LP Liege and Lief is perhaps Fairport's finest hour. Liege and Lief is generally remembered for its virtuoso versions of traditional folk songs but it also contains beautiful originals by Thompson and Denny. However the next, Full House -deliberately rockier in tone- has its particular gems, most notably Sloth, for its extended guitar/ fiddle duel and Poor Will and the Jolly Hangman, a perfect expression of Thompson's mordant humour; along with the sleeve notes, surely amongst the strangest and funniest ever.
The band continued with a series of personnel changes and albums, all with at least some high points, until it was temporarily disbanded in 1979, but played annual reunion concerts until it reformed in 1985. Since then, it has enjoyed stability and continues to tour and record regularly.
In part, the continuing success of Fairport Convention is due to the annual music festival it organizes. Cropredy Festival has been held every year since 1974 near Cropredy, a village five miles north of Banbury, Oxfordshire and can attract upwards of 20,000 fans.
In 2002 the band was given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. In 2006 Radio 2 listeners voted their 1969 album Liege & Lief as the Most Influential Folk Album of All Time. A mass reunion of living Fairport members performed at the ceremony.
John Barleycorn
Fairport Convention Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And these three men made a solemn vow, John Barleycorn would die
They've ploughed, they've sown, they've harrowed, thrown clods upon his head
Till these three men were satisfied John Barleycorn was dead
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
And little Sir John sprang up his head and so amazed them all
They've let him stand till midsummer's day and he looks both pale and wan
Then little Sir John's grown a long long beard and so become a man
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
They've hired men with the sharp-edged scythes to cut him off at the knee
They've rolled him and tied him around the waist, treated him most barbarously
They've hired men with the sharp-edged forks to prick him to the heart
And the loader has served him worse than that for he's bound him to the cart
So they've wheeled him around and around the field till they've come unto a barn
And here they've kept their solemn word concerning Barleycorn
They've hired men with the crab tree sticks to split him skin from bone
And the miller has served him worse than that for he's ground him between two stones
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
And the huntsman he can't hunt the fox nor loudly blow his horn
And the tinker he can't mend his pots without John Barleycorn
The song "John Barleycorn" by Fairport Convention is a traditional folk song that tells the story of the life and death of the personification of barley and grain, John Barleycorn. The song is divided into three parts, each describing a different stage of John Barleycorn's life. The first part describes how three men come from the west to try their fortunes and make a vow to kill John Barleycorn. They plow, sow, and harrow the ground before finally clodding his head until they are sure he is dead. The second part of the song describes how John Barleycorn is reborn when the rains come and he starts to grow. He continues to grow until midsummer's day when he has become a man with a long beard. The final part of the song describes how John Barleycorn is finally harvested by a group of men who hire others to cut him down and bind him to a cart. Despite their efforts, John Barleycorn proves to be the strongest and most enduring, as he is eventually turned into beer and brandy that everyone enjoys.
Line by Line Meaning
There were three men come out of the west, their fortunes for to try
Three men ventured westward hoping to improve their fate
And these three men made a solemn vow, John Barleycorn would die
The three men vowed to kill John Barleycorn
They've ploughed, they've sown, they've harrowed, thrown clods upon his head
They labored hard to kill John Barleycorn, even to the point of burying him
Till these three men were satisfied John Barleycorn was dead
They worked until they were convinced John Barleycorn was no more
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
Drinks, such as beer and brandy, are present
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
Despite all efforts to kill him, John Barleycorn emerged stronger than ever before
They've let him lie for a long long time till the rains from heaven did fall
They left John Barleycorn alone until rainwater came down
And little Sir John sprang up his head and so amazed them all
John Barleycorn grew back, which surprised everyone
They've let him stand till midsummer's day and he looks both pale and wan
John Barleycorn remained standing until midsummer's day, appearing weak and sickly
Then little Sir John's grown a long long beard and so become a man
John Barleycorn grew a beard, signifying his maturation to adulthood
They've hired men with the sharp-edged scythes to cut him off at the knee
The men used sharp scythes to cut John Barleycorn at the knee
They've rolled him and tied him around the waist, treated him most barbarously
They rolled John Barleycorn and tied him around the waist, severely mistreating him
They've hired men with the sharp-edged forks to prick him to the heart
They used sharp forks to prick John Barleycorn near the heart
And the loader has served him worse than that for he's bound him to the cart
John Barleycorn was bound to a cart by the loader, who treated him even worse
So they've wheeled him around and around the field till they've come unto a barn
They dragged John Barleycorn in circles around the field until they reached a barn
And here they've kept their solemn word concerning Barleycorn
They fulfilled their promise to kill John Barleycorn
They've hired men with the crab tree sticks to split him skin from bone
Men used sticks made of crab apple wood to break John Barleycorn's skin and bones
And the miller has served him worse than that for he's ground him between two stones
To make things worse, the miller ground John Barleycorn between two grindstones
And the huntsman he can't hunt the fox nor loudly blow his horn
The huntsman is unable to perform his duties because of John Barleycorn's influence
And the tinker he can't mend his pots without John Barleycorn
Even the tinker is affected by John Barleycorn's absence, as he requires him to function properly
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
Alcoholic beverages are still present
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
Despite everything done to him, John Barleycorn prevailed
There's beer all in the barrel and brandy in the glass
Drinks are still being served
But little Sir John, with his nut-brown bowl, proved the strongest man at last
John Barleycorn emerged victorious, regardless of all attempts to eliminate him
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: TRADITIONAL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Keith Keller
Glad Linda showed up to save this and Simon's outfit (?).
mini mae
😎💖
Nuarda Nuarda
'We plough the fields and scatter' - I'm sure that this melody is the same as the hymn.
Annuvyn Arawn
+Nuarda Nuarda yeah. it is an earlier song with even earlier roots though, being established in both ballad and verse forms by 1750, 'We plough the fields and scatter' starts in a german poem from 1771 and was just one of many verses. it was cut down over the years and eventually transalted. The version you know now was published in English in 1861 but had been in use for quite a while.
The tune is German and was published around 1812. JB has several earlier English folk tunes that were commonly used and the lyric is tweaked to fit.
AngusOnkel
Annuvyn Arawn ..... Baurnlied 😊 Farmers Song 😊
Connie S
@Annuvyn Arawn The Lord works in mysterious ways... turning hymns into drinking songs... and drinking songs into hymns.
Hedgehog's Right of Passage
They were alive in 1968,this its a joke! If me Mum had 4 wheels & steering,she'd be an automobile.
Laurence Siegel
It's not a joke, it's some of the best music ever made on this planet. And most of them are still alive and performing - go to the Cropredy festival when the pandemic's over and you'll see them.
Laurence Siegel
@Hedgehog's Right of Passage Thanks!
Hedgehog's Right of Passage
@Laurence Siegel B"H,The name Siegal in Hebrew is סגל סגן לכהנים is a "trick name" It comes from an an abreviated word and a hint: S'gan L'Cohenim "Helper of the Cohen" which refers to the Levi Tribe since the Levi did work with the Cohenim.The Europeans who so loved the jews tthought that Siegal was a German name. All the best to you.