After learning to play the guitar, the fiddle, and the piano, as well as to sing, Rusby played at many local folk festivals as a child and adolescent. She came to wider attention through her duets with her friend and fellow Barnsley folk singer Kathryn Roberts on the 1995 album Kate Rusby & Kathryn Roberts.
At about this time she joined, and became the lead vocalist of, the all-female Celtic folk band The Poozies. This led to her becoming a founding member of the group Equation, which included Kathryn Roberts and Seth Lakeman. Rusby left Equation (being replaced by Cara Dillon) to follow a more traditional direction and, in 1997, released her debut solo album Hourglass produced by Scottish fiddler John McCusker (to whom Rusby was married for some time).
In 1999 Rusby recorded Sleepless which earned her a Mercury Music Prize nomination and the BBC Folk Award for Best Album and Best Folk Singer.
Rusby continues to release albums mixing traditional and self-penned songs on her own Pure Records, winning fans as diverse as Graham Coxon (who provided the illustration for her album The Girl Who Couldn't Fly) and collaborator Ronan Keating.
2008 saw the release of Sweet Bells, an album of traditional Christmas songs interpreted by Rusby.
In 2010, Rusby released the album Make the Light, a collection of self-penned songs, and in 2011 issued a second collection of Christmas songs titled While Mortals Sleep.
www.katerusby.com
FAREWELL
Kate Rusby Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The snow lay on the ground
The sailor boy strode on the wharf
And the ship was eastward bound
His sweetheart standing by his side
Shed many a bitter tear
And as he pressed her to his breast
Was any fail the ship set sail
His love was standing by
She watched the vessel out of sight
And the tears bedimmed her eye
She prayed to him and heaven above
To guide him on his way
And all the parting words that night
Still echoed loud round the bay
Farewell Farewell my own true love
May this grief for me till sore
And you will be my guiding light
Till I return once more
My thoughts will be with you my love
When the storm is raging high
So farewell, farewell, remember me
Thy faithful sailor boy, thy faithful sailor boy
So farewell farewell my own true love
On earth we live no longer
Patiently tell heaven above
I'll be back to tell you sure
I hope to meet you in the land
From far beyond the sky
Where you know what the parts are from
Thy faithful sailor boy
This grief it makes me sore
And you will be my guiding light
Till I return once more
My thoughts will be with you my love
When the storm is raging high
So farewell, farewell, remember me
My faithful sailor boy, my faithful sailor boy
My faithful sailor boy
The song "Farewell" by Kate Rusby describes a heart-wrenching departure of a sailor boy from his sweetheart on a dark and stormy winter night. The sailor boy is about to embark on a journey and leaves his love standing by his side, shedding many tears. As he presses her to his breast, he whispers in her ear and promises to return to her. His love watches the ship sail out of sight and prays to him and heaven above to guide him on his way.
The lyrics of the song express the pain of separation and the hope of reuniting with the one you love someday. The sailor boy promises to remember his love and be with her in spirit even when they are apart. The lines "my thoughts will be with you my love when the storm is raging high" depict his love and care for her, even when he is far away.
The chorus of the song "Farewell, farewell, my own true love" repeats multiple times, emphasizing the emotional turmoil of the couple's separation.
Overall, the song portrays the bittersweet feeling of love and separation, and how the memories of the past and the promise of the future keep the love alive.
Line by Line Meaning
One dark and stormy winters night
On a cold winter night filled with thunderstorms
The snow lay on the ground
The ground had layers of snow
The sailor boy strode on the wharf
A young male sailor walked confidently on the pier
And the ship was eastward bound
The ship was heading towards the east direction
His sweetheart standing by his side
The young man's lover standing next to him
Shed many a bitter tear
She cried a lot, shedding only sad tears
And as he pressed her to his breast
As he hugged her tightly
He whispered in her ear
He spoke in her ear in a soft, low tone
Was any fail the ship set sail
If any trouble occurred, the ship would sail away
His love was standing by
His lover was present nearby
She watched the vessel out of sight
She watched the ship until it disappeared from her sight
And the tears bedimmed her eye
And her eyes became blurry with tears
She prayed to him and heaven above
She prayed to both the man and the heavens
To guide him on his way
To provide him direction during his journey
And all the parting words that night
All the words they shared while separating that night
Still echoed loud round the bay
Still reverberated around the bay loudly
Farewell Farewell my own true love
Goodbye, my one and only true love
May this grief for me till sore
May you grieve for me until it hurts
And you will be my guiding light
And you will be the light that guides me
Till I return once more
Until I come back again
My thoughts will be with you my love
You will always be in my thoughts, my dear
When the storm is raging high
During the times of high tempests
So farewell, farewell, remember me
So goodbye, goodbye, please remember me
Thy faithful sailor boy, thy faithful sailor boy
Your faithful sailor boy, your faithful sailor boy
On earth we live no longer
On this earth, we do not have an everlasting life
Patiently tell heaven above
Tell God, in Heaven, to wait patiently for me
I'll be back to tell you sure
I will come back to you and make sure you know
I hope to meet you in the land
I hope to reunite with you in the afterlife
From far beyond the sky
From a distant place beyond the sky
Where you know what the parts are from
Where the two of us would know where to find each other
My faithful sailor boy
My loyal sailor boy
Contributed by Luke G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
SoulxSpectre
Isn't her voice amazing? I remember loving her since I first heard her when I was only very little.
Gwilym Hughes
Her voice and songwriting mesmerised me since I first heard her on BBC's Folk Show and bought her very first album. I was hooked from then on. I just wish I had seen her perform live.😟
Nancy McQueen
I think these lyrics are closer to the song as sung here:
One dark and stormy winters night
The snow lay on the ground
The sailor boy stood on the wharf
And the ship was eastward bound
His sweetheart standing by his side
Shed many a bitter tear
And as he pressed her to his breast
He whispered in her ear
It was in a gale the ship set sail
His love was standing by
She watched the vessel out of sight
And the tears bedimmed her eye
She prayed to Him in heaven above
To guide him on his way
And all the parting words that night
Still echoed round the bay
Farewell, Farewell, my own true love
May this grief in me still sore
And you will be my guiding light
Till I return once more
My thoughts will be of you my love
When the storm is raging high
So farewell, farewell, remember me
Thy faithful sailor boy, thy faithful sailor boy
So farewell, farewell, my own true love
On earth we meet no more
but we shall meet in heaven above
on that eternal shore
I hope to meet you in the land
From far beyond the sky
Where you'll no more be parted from
Thy faithful sailor boy
Farewell, Farewell, my own true love
This grief it makes me sore
And you will be my guiding light
Till I return once more
My thoughts will be of you my love
When the storm is raging high
So farewell, farewell, remember me
Thy faithful sailor boy, Thy faithful sailor boy
Thy faithful sailor boy
Sage Allen
One dark and stormy winters night
The snow lay on the ground
The sailor boy strode on the wharf
And the ship was eastward bound
His sweetheart standing by his side
Shed many a bitter tear
And as he pressed her to his breast
He whispered in her ear
Was any fail the ship set sail
His love was standing by
She watched the vessel out of sight
And the tears bedimmed her eye
She prayed to him and heaven above
To guide him on his way
And all the parting words that night
Still echoed loud round the bay
Farewell Farewell my own true love
May this grief for me till sore
And you will be my guiding light
Till I return once more
My thoughts will be with you my love
When the storm is raging high
So farewell, farewell, remember me
Thy faithful sailor boy, thy faithful sailor boy
So farewell farewell my own true love
On earth we live no longer
patiently tell heaven above
I'll be back to tell you sure
I hope to meet you in the land
From far beyond the sky
Where you know what the parts are from
Thy faithful sailor boy
This grief it makes me sore
And you will be my guiding light
Till I return once more
My thoughts will be with you my love
When the storm is raging high
So farewell, farewell, remember me
My faithful sailor boy, my faithful sailor boy
My faithful sailor boy
Laurel monterosa
love her song writing..... wonderful ... i sing along and try to play my guitar with her...
elladan426
This is amazing, first time I've heard it. Oh, what I have been missing...