Tabor's earliest public performances were at the Heart of England Folk Club (at the Fox and Vivian pub) in Leamington Spa in the mid 1960s. In the late 1960s an appearance at the Sidmouth Folk Festival led to folk club bookings and she contributed to various records. One of her earliest recordings was in 1972 on an anthology called Stagfolk Live. She also featured on Rosie Hardman's Firebird (1972) and The First Folk Review Record (1974). At the time she was singing purely traditional unaccompanied material but in 1976 she collaborated with Maddy Prior on the Silly Sisters album and tour, with a full band that included Nic Jones. It provided the launching pad that same year (1976) for her first album in her own right, Airs and Graces. She later joined again with Prior, this time using the name Silly Sisters for their duo. Starting in 1977 Martin Simpson joined her in the recording studio for three albums before he moved to America in 1987. (Simpson has returned from America to be a guest guitarist on albums in the 2000s.) After his departure, she started working closely with pianist Huw Warren.
In 1990, Tabor recorded an album with the folk-rock band OysterBand entitled Freedom and Rain. She went on tour with OysterBand, and the Rykodisc label published a limited-run promotional live album the following year. Many of her current fans first discovered her through this tour and album with the OysterBand. In 1992 Elvis Costello wrote "All This Useless Beauty" specifically for Tabor, and she recorded it on Angel Tiger.
Since then her solo albums have included:
A Quiet Eye (1999)
Rosa Mundi (2001)
An Echo of Hooves (2003)
At the Wood's Heart (2005)
Apples (2007)
Ashore (2011)
Ragged Kingdom is a 2011 album by June Tabor & Oysterband.
Since 2006, Tabor has also been working with Huw Warren and Iain Ballamy as Quercus.
Website: www.junetabor.co.uk
Bonnie James Campbell
June Tabor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bonny James Campbell rode out on a day
He saddled, he bridled, how gallant rode he
Home came his good horse but never came he
Home came his good horse but never came he
Out came his mother, weeping full sore
Out came his new bride, a-tearing her hair
My barn is to build and my baby unborn,
My barn is to build and my baby unborn."
Saddled and bridled and booted rode he,
A plume in his helmet, a sword at his knee
His hounds running by him, his hawk flying free
Home came his good horse but never came he
Home came his good horse but never came he
Empty the saddle, all bloody to see...
Home came his good horse but never came he
Home came his good horse but never came he
The lyrics of "Bonnie James Campbell" by June Tabor tell the tragic story of a Scottish man who goes out for a ride one day and never returns. The first verse sets the scene of the highlands and the Tay river where Bonny James Campbell rode out. He is described as gallant, riding with all the necessary accessories, but something goes wrong and he never returns home. The second verse speaks from the point of view of his family who are devastated by his disappearance. His mother weeps and his bride is tearing her hair out in grief. She speaks of their unfinished business- the meadow that needs to be tended and the unborn child that James will never meet.
The last verse gives us a clearer picture of James Campbell. He is described as a nobleman with a plume in his helmet, a sword at his knee and his hounds and hawk accompanying him on his ride. He is clearly well-respected and well-off, adding to the tragedy of his disappearance. The repeated line "Home came his good horse but never came he" emphasizes the gravity of the situation: James Campbell may have met with foul play, or gotten lost, or met an accident, but the fact is that he is missing and presumed dead. The song leaves the listener with a sense of sadness for a life cut short and a family left to grieve.
Line by Line Meaning
High upon highlands and low upon Tay
Bonny James Campbell rode out in the hills and valleys by the River Tay.
He saddled, he bridled, how gallant rode he
James Campbell rode his horse with style and confidence, fully equipped with a saddle and bridle.
Home came his good horse but never came he
James Campbell's horse returned home without him, implying that he died or disappeared.
Out came his mother, weeping full sore
James Campbell's mother emerged from her home crying heavily at the news of his disappearance.
Out came his new bride, a-tearing her hair
James Campbell's recent wife came outside, pulling out her hair in despair over his vanishing.
My meadow lies green and my corn is unshorn,
My barn is to build and my baby unborn,
My barn is to build and my baby unborn.
The bride laments her unfulfilled life without her husband, as her crops remain unharvested, her barn unbuilt, and her baby yet to be born.
A plume in his helmet, a sword at his knee
His hounds running by him, his hawk flying free
James Campbell was well-equipped for his journey, wearing a feather in his helmet and carrying a sword, accompanied by his dogs and a free-flying hawk.
Empty the saddle, all bloody to see...
The saddle was found with traces of blood, implying that James Campbell suffered a violent fate.
Home came his good horse but never came he
James Campbell was still missing, leaving his horse to come back alone.
Contributed by Bailey D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.