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
The Merchant's Son
June Tabor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And to the begging he has gone.
He mounted on his noble steed
And awa wi pleasure he did ride.
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
A beggar wench of low degree.
He took pity on her distress
An' says: "My lass, you′ve got a pretty face."
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
They both inclined now to have a drink,
Into a public house they went.
They ordered ale and brandy too
Till the both of them got rolling fu'.
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
They both inclined to go to bed
And under cover soon were laid.
Strong ale and brandy went to their heads
And both now slept as they were dead.
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
Later on the wench she rose
And put on now the merchant's clothes.
With his hat so high and his sword so clear
And she′s awa wi the merchant′s gear.
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
Early next morning the merchant rose
And looking round for to find his clothes.
There's nothing left into the room
But a ragged petticoat and a wincey gown.
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
The merchant being a stranger to the town
He put on the old coat and gown
And down the street he loudly swore,
He would never lie with a beggar no more.
Fal al the dooral i do
Fal al the day
The Merchant's Son is a ballad that tells the story of a wealthy man's son who chooses to abandon his privileged life for a life of begging. He takes his horse and sets off to explore the world as a beggar. While on his journey, he meets a beggar woman, whom he takes pity on and eventually sleeps with. The two get drunk and fall asleep, only for the woman to wake up in the morning, don the man's clothes and leave with his belongings. The man, waking up to find himself robbed, puts on the beggar woman's clothes in disgust, swearing never to associate with beggars again.
The song is largely a commentary on the struggle between the rich and the poor and the inconsistent nature of power. The man, who once had everything, is reduced to nothing by the end of the song while the beggar woman, who had nothing, gains something. The lyrics also highlight the vulnerability of people who are unfamiliar with a new environment, as the man's lack of knowledge regarding his new location led to his downfall. The Merchant's Son is a song that speaks to the fallibility of human nature and the notion that "the only constant is change."
Line by Line Meaning
A merchant's son, he lived in wrong
The son of a wealthy merchant had fallen on hard times and was living in poverty.
And to the begging he has gone.
He resorted to begging to survive.
He mounted on his noble steed
He rode off on his horse.
And awa wi pleasure he did ride.
He rode away happily.
A beggar wench he chanced to meet,
He encountered a female beggar.
A beggar wench of low degree.
She was from a lower social class.
He took pity on her distress
He felt sympathy for her situation.
An' says: "My lass, you've got a pretty face."
He complimented her appearance.
They both inclined now to have a drink,
They decided to have a drink together.
Into a public house they went.
They went to a tavern.
They ordered ale and brandy too
They ordered both ale and brandy.
Till the both of them got rolling fu'.
They drank until they were drunk.
They both inclined to go to bed
They decided to go to sleep.
And under cover soon were laid.
They got into bed.
Strong ale and brandy went to their heads
The alcohol affected them strongly.
And both now slept as they were dead.
They slept soundly.
Later on the wench she rose
The woman woke up.
And put on now the merchant's clothes.
She dressed in the merchant's clothing.
With his hat so high and his sword so clear
She wore his tall hat and carried his sword.
And she's awa wi the merchant's gear.
She left with all of his belongings.
Early next morning the merchant rose
The merchant woke up the next morning.
And looking round for to find his clothes.
He searched for his clothing.
There's nothing left into the room
Everything was gone from the room.
But a ragged petticoat and a wincey gown.
Only a torn underskirt and a cheap dress remained.
The merchant being a stranger to the town
As he was new to the area.
He put on the old coat and gown
He wore the remaining clothing.
And down the street he loudly swore,
He cursed loudly as he walked down the street.
He would never lie with a beggar no more.
He vowed to never be intimate with a beggar again.
Writer(s): Dp, Tabor June
Contributed by Jack N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.