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
Rhosyn Wyn / Winterrose
June Tabor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Aus einer Wurzel zart
Wie uns die Alten sungen
Von Jesse kam die Art
Und hat ein Blümlein bracht
Mitten im kalten Winter
Wohl zu der halben Nacht
Davon Isaias sagt
Ist Maria die reine
Die uns das Blümlein bracht
Aus Gottes ew'gem Rat
Hat sie ein Kind geboren
Und blieb ein reine Magd
Das Blümelein, so kleine
Das duftet uns so süß
Mit seinem hellen Scheine
Vertreibt's die Finsternis
Wahr Mensch und wahrer Gott
Hilft uns aus allem Leide
Rettet von Sünd und Tod
The lyrics are a German hymn titled Es ist ein Ros entsprungen, which means "A rose has sprung up". The hymn describes the birth of Jesus, referring to him as a rose that has grown from a tender root. The rose is also called a "Winterrose" because it blooms in the middle of winter, during the darkest and coldest time of the year. The hymn then goes on to talk about Mary, the mother of Jesus, who gave birth to him as part of God's eternal plan. Mary is described as a pure virgin who remained pure even after the birth of Jesus.
The imagery used in the hymn is both religious and poetic. The rose, which symbolizes love and beauty, is used as a metaphor for Jesus. The fact that the rose blooms in winter, when everything else is dead or dormant, is a metaphor for the hope and joy that Jesus brings, even in the midst of darkness and despair. Mary, who is also known as the "rose of Sharon" in Scripture, is portrayed as a humble and faithful servant of God who was chosen to bring Jesus into the world.
June Tabor's interpretation of the hymn adds another layer of meaning to the lyrics. Her haunting and melancholy rendition of the song emphasizes the sorrow and suffering that Jesus endured, as well as the sacrifice that Mary made in giving birth to him. The winter imagery is also enhanced, as Tabor's voice conveys the cold, stark beauty of a winter landscape, and the sense of disorientation and confusion that can accompany the darkest days of the year.
Line by Line Meaning
Es ist ein Ros entsprungen
A rose has sprung up
Aus einer Wurzel zart
From a tender root
Wie uns die Alten sungen
As the ancients sang to us
Von Jesse kam die Art
The kind that came from Jesse
Und hat ein Blümlein bracht
And brought a small flower
Mitten im kalten Winter
In the middle of the cold winter
Wohl zu der halben Nacht
Well into midnight
Das Röslein, das ich meine
The little rose that I mean
Davon Isaias sagt
About which Isaiah said
Ist Maria die reine
Is the pure Mary
Die uns das Blümlein bracht
Who brought us the flower
Aus Gottes ew'gem Rat
By God's eternal plan
Hat sie ein Kind geboren
She gave birth to a child
Und blieb ein reine Magd
And remained a pure virgin
Das Blümelein, so kleine
The little flower, so small
Das duftet uns so süß
That sweetly fragrances us
Mit seinem hellen Scheine
With its bright shining
Vertreib's die Finsternis
Drives away the darkness
Wahr Mensch und wahrer Gott
True man and true God
Hilft uns aus allem Leide
Helps us out of all suffering
Rettet von Sünd und Tod
Saves us from sin and death
Writer(s): Traditional
Contributed by Mila G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.