Her family encouraged her to sing in the house, in a church choir and at school. At Waterford Regional Technical College she studied piano then took music at University College Dublin in 1987. Having learned to copy Ella Fitzgerald's scat singing, she performed in a Dublin bistro several nights per week while still a student. At the Royal Irish Academy of Music she studied classical music and sang in a jazz band, then a folk-ballad band, then another jazz band. She also fell under the influence of Dublin folk singer Frank Harte. During this time she also formed her own band, called Dorothy.
In 1993 Karan moved to New York City. There she studied jazz at Long Island University. When she encountered Irish traditional music sessions in New York she started singing Irish traditional music again. During this time she mostly sang in bars and locals. For most of 1994 she sang with a group called Atlantic Bridge. At the end of the year she joined Seamus Egan and others in Solas. She sang five songs on their first album in 1996. In the same year she sang in Tramps club in Manhattan, accompanied only by a percussionist. They mixed jazz and folk. In 1997 she recorded a solo album, Songlines, inspired by the novel of the same name by Bruce Chatwin. It was produced by Seamus Egan and included several members of Solas. There were a few traditional songs and some contemporary folk songs.
In 2000 Karan collaborated with several other singers on "Seal Maiden - A Celtic Musical". It was a musical version of the film "The Secret of Roan Inish", designed for children. It concerns the mythical creature called the selkie - a seal-woman. Since then Karan has recorded three further solo albums released in 2001, 2003 and 2005. In a salute to her Celtic roots, several tracks were recorded in her native Irish tongue. She also features on the DVD "Solas Live".
Her 2005 album Chasing the Sun includes a number of songs Casey wrote herself. Her records are released by Shanachie Records in the United States and Vertical Records in Europe.
Karan is now living in County Cork, and is married to Niall Vallely, a composer and player of traditional Irish music.
Solo albums
* Songlines (1997)
* Seal Maiden (2000)
* The Winds Begin To Sing (2001)
* Distant Shore (2003)
* Chasing The Sun (2005)
Recordings with Solas
* Solas (1996)
* Sunny Spells and Scattered Showers (1997)
* The Words That Remain (1998)
* Reunion: A Decade of Solas (2006, CD and DVD)
As session musician
* Dancing at Lughnasa (film) (1998)
* Waking Ned Devine (film) (1999)
* "Celtic Solstice" by Paul Winter
She Is Like The Swallow
Karan Casey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She's like the river that never runs dry
She's like the sun beaming on the lea shore
I love my love, but love is no more
A maiden into her garden did go
For to pluck her some wild primrose
The more she plucked, the more she did pull
Then out of these roses she made a bed
A scarlet pillow for her head
She laid her down, no words she did speak
And then this maiden's heart, it did break
She's like the swallow that flies on high
She's like the river that never runs dry
She's like the sun beaming on the lea shore
I love my love, but love is no more
The song “She Is Like the Swallow” by Karan Casey is a melancholic traditional Newfoundland ballad about lost love. The lyrics use poetic imagery to describe the characteristics of the singer’s beloved, who is compared to the eponymous swallow, river, and sun. The repetition of this verse highlights the constancy of the natural world, and contrasts with the transience of human relationships.
The narrative shifts in the second verse, which tells the story of a maiden who goes into her garden to pick wild primroses. As she continues to gather more and more flowers, her apron becomes full. With these flowers, she creates a bed and lays down, wordless. The final line reveals that she dies from a broken heart. This tragic story serves to underscore the song’s main theme: that love can be fleeting and fragile, like a flower.
Throughout the ballad, the singer uses rich symbolism and metaphor to convey the depth of their emotion, while the repetitive structure of the refrain anchors the song in a timeless, universal quality. The song’s simple yet evocative language and melody have made it a beloved staple of traditional music in North America and beyond.
Line by Line Meaning
She's like the swallow that flies on high
She's like a bird that soars above, free and unencumbered.
She's like the river that never runs dry
She's like a river that will never stop flowing, her life force everlasting.
She's like the sun beaming on the lea shore
She's like a warm, bright light shining down on the peaceful shore.
I love my love, but love is no more
Despite my strong feelings for my love, my love is gone.
A maiden into her garden did go
A young woman ventures into her garden.
For to pluck her some wild primrose
She seeks to gather some wild primroses.
The more she plucked, the more she did pull
The more she gathered, the more she desired to collect.
Until this maiden's apron was full
She gathered so many primroses that her apron was overflowing.
Then out of these roses she made a bed
She used the primroses to create a makeshift bed.
A scarlet pillow for her head
She made a red pillow for herself to rest her head.
She laid her down, no words she did speak
She lies down on her bed of primroses, silent and alone.
And then this maiden's heart, it did break
Her heart breaks due to the weight of her unfulfilled desire and longing.
Lyrics © HAL LEONARD CORPORATION
Written by: BOB CHILCOTT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind