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
Sweet Bride
Kate Rusby Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The birds they were whistling so merrily and gay
Along came a white steed in the finest array
And it carried a young man these words he did say
Come live by the great moon
That rules the strong tide
Climb up on my horse love
I bid you good morning this young man did say
And where might you be going on such a nice day
I'm walking to view sir the bonny blue sea
For it's all I have left now that means much to me
Come live by the great moon
That rules the strong tide
Climb up on my horse love
And be my sweet bride
If that's all you love now, come riding with me
You'll live in my castle deep under the sea
You'll sleep in my gold bed, my fine silken sheets
And have gifts of great beauty from all that you meet
Come live by the great moon
That rules the strong tide
Climb up on my horse love
And be my sweet bride
She's up in the saddle and away they did ride
The horse skipped and danced over waves on the tide
Now she's only remembered by this story I tell
From an old man on horseback who once know her well
Come live by the great moon
That rules the strong tide
Climb up on my horse love
And be my sweet bride
The song Sweet Bride by Kate Rusby tells the story of a lady who is walking along the beach on a midsummer's day, enjoying the birds' chirping. Suddenly, a young man on a white steed approaches her and invites her to join him, live under the sea, and become his bride. The woman is hesitant at first, saying that the sea is all she has left in the world. But the young man promises to give her riches and gifts, and she eventually accepts his offer. They ride into the sea, and the fate of the woman remains unknown. The song is interpreted as a metaphor for death, which the woman chooses over a life of hardship and loneliness, as indicated by her statement that the sea is all she has left.
The lyrics of Sweet Bride are metaphoric and poetic, leaving room for interpretation. One of the most common interpretations of the song is that the young man on the white steed represents death, and the woman represents a person who has lost everything in life and is lonely. The woman accepting the invitation to be the sweet bride is equivalent to the person willingly letting go of life to embrace death. The line, "Climb up on my horse love, and be my sweet bride" is interpreted as a call to the person to embrace death and the afterlife.
Line by Line Meaning
A lady was walking on a midsummer's day
On a warm summer's day, a woman was taking a leisurely walk
The birds they were whistling so merrily and gay
The birds were chirping cheerfully and joyfully
Along came a white steed in the finest array
A white horse appeared, adorned in the most exquisite manner
And it carried a young man these words he did say
The horse had a young man riding on it, who spoke these words
Come live by the great moon
That rules the strong tide
Climb up on my horse love
And be my sweet bride
The man invited the woman to live with him in his underwater castle and become his wife
I bid you good morning this young man did say
And where might you be going on such a nice day
I'm walking to view sir the bonny blue sea
For it's all I have left now that means much to me
The man greeted the woman and asked where she was heading. She replied that she was going to see the beautiful sea, which was a meaningful thing for her to do.
If that's all you love now, come riding with me
You'll live in my castle deep under the sea
You'll sleep in my gold bed, my fine silken sheets
And have gifts of great beauty from all that you meet
The man offered the woman a luxurious life in his castle beneath the sea, including a gold bed, silk sheets, and extravagant gifts from those they encounter
She's up in the saddle and away they did ride
The horse skipped and danced over waves on the tide
Now she's only remembered by this story I tell
From an old man on horseback who once knew her well
The woman rode off into the sea with the man and was never seen again. The only record of her is this tale, recounted by an old man who knew her long ago.
Contributed by Gavin A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Daniel Victor Cassidy
A lady was walking on a midsummer's day
The birds they were whistling so merrily and gay
When along came a white steed in the finest array
And it carried a young man these words he did say
Come live by the great moon
That rules the strong tide
Climb up on my horse love
And be my sweet bride
I bid you good morning, this young man did say
And where might you be going on such a nice day
I'm walking to view sir the bonny blue sea
For it's all I have left now that means much to me
Chorus
If that's all you love now, come riding with me
You'll live in my castle deep under the sea
You'll sleep in my gold bed, my fine silken sheets
And have gifts of great beauty from all that you meet
Chorus
She's up in the saddle and away they did ride
The horse skipped and danced over waves on the tide
Now she's only remembered by this story I tell
From an old man on horseback who once knew her well
Kelly Howard
Just heard this song in the movie "Heartlands" with the incomparable Michael Sheen. Kate Rusby is new to me, but just became my favorite female singer. What an incredible voice.
MEL
Kelly Howard same here! i loved the soundtrack and just had to listen to it again.
Kelly Howard
@MEL I've always sorta preferred male vocalists, but her voice is amazing...literally gives me chills. That was kind of a neat movie too, wasn't it? I read somebody called it "the British Easy Rider"...still trying to figure out if that was a joke. ;-) I suppose both involved motorcycles/scooters & road trips, but.....hmm.
Stephen Eblet
We played this at our wedding recently. Kate has a hauntingly beautiful voice.
Jaquie Daniels
I've only just found out that Kate wrote this one - lovely story and melody.
Вечно с чаем
просто волшебный голос))
Kevin Holmes
Can't agree more with you Rusby08. The Barnsley accent is one of the best for English folk. Soft, romantic, and lilting.
myomy2009
@drewskione Her voice is the "spellcaster"! I can't help but get drawn into any song she sings..she is great!
awol2602
I love hearing good songs on YouTube you might not otherwise come across, whether there's a video or not. It seems about 15,000 people agree on this one!
Greg Deprossino
she is a great musician .her music is so moody at times ,uplifting ,romantic ,bawdy - a little bit ioof everything