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
Game of All Fours
Kate Rusby Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To hear the birds whistle and the nightingale play,
Was there that I met a beautiful maiden,
As I was a walking along the highway.
Oh where are you going my fair pretty lady,
Where are you going so early this morn,
She answered, kind sir to visit my neighbours,
Oh may I go with you my fair pretty lady,
May I go along in your sweet company,
She turned her head round and smiling all at me,
Said you may come with me kind sir if you please.
We hadn't been walking a few miles together,
Before this young damsel began to show free,
She sat herself down saying sit down beside me,
The game we shall play will be one, two and three.
I said my dear lady if you're fond of the gaming,
There's one game I know I would like you to learn,
The game it is called The Game Of All Fours,
So I took out my pack and began the first turn.
She cut the cards and I fell a dealing,
I dealt her a trump and myself the poor Jack,
She led off here ace and stole the Jack from me,
Saying Jack is the card I like best in your pack.
I dealt the last time, its your turn to shuffle,
My turn to show the best card in the pack,
Once more she'd the ace and stole the Jack from me,
Once more I lost when I laid down poor Jack.
So I took up my hat and I bid her good morning,
I said you're the best that I know at this game,
She answered, young man, come back tomorrow,
We'll play the game over and over and over and over and over again
The lyrics of Kate Rusby's song "Game of All Fours" tell the story of a chance encounter on a midsummer's morning between the singer and a beautiful maiden. The singer asks the lady where she is going and she responds that she is going to visit her neighbors in Lincoln, her place of birth. The singer asks if he can accompany her, and she agrees. As they are walking, the singer teaches her a card game called The Game of All Fours, and they begin to play while sitting down.
However, as the game progresses, it becomes apparent that the lady is quite skilled at the game, and she wins multiple times, taking advantage of the poor jack card. Even though the singer loses, he compliments her skills and takes leave of her, planning to return the next day to play the game again.
This song highlights the social and economic conditions prevalent in rural England during the 18th and 19th centuries, where card games were commonly played by all classes of society. The lyrics also underscore the importance of chance encounters in people's lives, where two strangers can come together and enjoy each other's company, even if only for a brief while.
Line by Line Meaning
As I was walking one midsummer's morning,
During a midsummer morning stroll,
To hear the birds whistle and the nightingale play,
Enjoying the sound of birds and the nightingale singing.
Was there that I met a beautiful maiden,
I found a stunning lady there,
As I was a walking along the highway.
When I was walking down the path.
Oh where are you going my fair pretty lady,
I asked the lady where she was going,
Where are you going so early this morn,
What are your plans this early morning,
She answered, kind sir to visit my neighbours,
The lady answered politely that she was going to see her neighbors,
I'm going down to Lincoln the place I was born.
She is going to the location of her birthplace in Lincoln.
Oh may I go with you my fair pretty lady,
I asked her if I might join her,
May I go along in your sweet company,
I asked if I may go with her.
She turned her head round and smiling all at me,
The lady smiled and turned her head towards me
Said you may come with me kind sir if you please.
She answered I could come along if I wished.
We hadn't been walking a few miles together,
As we walked together for a few miles,
Before this young damsel began to show free,
The young lady's behavior changed; she became more confident
She sat herself down saying sit down beside me,
She invited me to sit beside her.
The game we shall play will be one, two and three.
She suggests we play a game of counting.
I said my dear lady if you're fond of the gaming,
I inquired if she enjoyed playing games,
There's one game I know I would like you to learn,
I suggest a specific game I'd like to teach her.
The game it is called The Game Of All Fours,
I introduced the game's name as 'The Game Of All Fours'.
So I took out my pack and began the first turn.
I started the game after taking out the cards.
She cut the cards and I fell a dealing,
She cut the cards while I started dealing.
I dealt her a trump and myself the poor Jack,
I gave her a trump card, and I kept the poor Jack card.
She led off here ace and stole the Jack from me,
She started the game with an ace card and won my Jack card.
Saying Jack is the card I like best in your pack.
She expressed a preference for Jack cards.
I dealt the last time, its your turn to shuffle,
I dealt the last set, and now it's her turn to shuffle.
My turn to show the best card in the pack,
It became my turn to show the best card in the deck.
Once more she'd the ace and stole the Jack from me,
Again, she won my Jack card with her ace card.
Once more I lost when I laid down poor Jack.
I lost again after playing my poor Jack card.
So I took up my hat and I bid her good morning,
I finished the game and said goodbye to her.
I said you're the best that I know at this game,
I complimented her on being the best at this game that I've played with.
She answered, young man, come back tomorrow,
She suggested that I visit her again the next day;
We'll play the game over and over and over and over and over again
She suggested we play the game repeatedly.
Contributed by Kennedy L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@rubymaecrockett1097
This will forever be one of my favourite songs as well as the entire album itself, brings back so many lovely childhood memories ☺️🌿
@oldbetter-or-for-worser8359
Same! Kate rusby was the main music I was exposed to as a young child. The nostalgia I get from so many of kate's songs (especially this one) is unmatched 🥰
@csblendo
This is one of my favorite folk songs. So erotic ! Well done Kate Rusby ! My favorite card game !
@andlowrey
I love this song, and loved it more when I discovered what a naughty, dirty sexy meaning it has. It really makes me laugh to work out what all the verses really mean.
@joer9156
I used to think 'Stir it Up' by Bob Marley was about Rita's cooking! Lol
@gregmattson2238
you know I was listening to the silly sister's version of this song a long time ago (at the library of all places), was a bit puzzled and then finally realized the double meaning of it all and burst out laughing so hard that the librarian came over and whacked me on the back of the head to be quiet (well ok she tapped me on the shoulder but she definitely wasn't pleased). she does a good job of it although I do like it as a duet better.
and as others have said, why don't I meet maidens like this in my walks in the forest?
@fahridaragon2234
I am not a native speaker of English, could you please help me to figure out the double meaning of the song? For I cannot distinguish any 🙏
@gregmattson2238
@fahrid aragon just think about it in terms of sex - the 'game of all fours', 'losing poor jack', that they will be playing the game over and over again, and so on. frankly though you might want to translate the lyrics via google translate or via a chatbot, it might make it more straightforward.
@sphexes
I first heard this from the SIlly Sisters, Maddy Prior and June Tabor...Kate does a fantastic job.
@markpriestley6927
kate is brilliant, but maddy and june's harmonies do it for me.