Lady Maisery is an English folk vocal harmony trio composed of Hannah James… Read Full Bio ↴Lady Maisery is an English folk vocal harmony trio composed of Hannah James (formerly in Kerfuffle) (vocals, piano accordion, clogs, foot percussion) Hazel Askew (of The Askew Sisters) (vocals, concertina, harp, bells) and Rowan Rheingans (of Fidola, The Rheingans Sisters) (vocals, fiddle, banjo, bansitar). Inspired by folk singing traditions of the UK and northern Europe, Lady Maisery sing songs and ballads both unaccompanied, and with backing from their combined instrumental talents on accordion, harp and fiddle. They are reviving the tradition of diddling, or singing, tunes, something which has nearly died out in the England but is still prevalent in Scandinavia and other parts of Europe.

They released their first album, Weave & Spin in 2011, and their second, Mayday, in 2013. Their third album, Cycle, was released in October 2016

The Lady And The Blacksmith
Lady Maisery Lyrics

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The lady stands at her bower door as straight as a willow wand
The blacksmith stands, close nearby with a hammer in his hand
"O well are you dressed you lady fair all in your robes of red
Before the morn' at this same time I'll gain your maiden head"

"Away, away you coal black smith! O would you do me wrong
And think to gain my maiden head that I have kept so long
I'd rather I were dead and gone and buried in my grave

Before a lusty coal black smith my maiden head should have"

So then she turned into a hare, a hare upon the plain
But he became a greyhound bold and he fetched her back again
So then she turned into a rose, as fair as fair could be
But he became a billy goat and he tore her from the tree

"Away, away you coal black smith! O would you do me wrong
And think to gain my maiden head that I have kept so long
I'd rather I were dead and gone and buried in my grave
Before a lusty coal black smith my maiden head should have"

So then she turned into a carp, a carp all in the brook
But he became a fisherman to catch her with his hook
So then she turned into a dove and she flew up so high
But he became a huntsman's hawk and he chased her through the sky

"Away, away you coal black smith! O would you do me wrong
And think to gain my maiden head that I have kept so long
I'd rather I were dead and gone and buried in my grave
Before a lusty coal black smith my maiden head should have"

So she became a barley corn that grew in yonder field
And he became a speckled hen and began to eat his fill
But she became a cunning fox all in her coat of red
And before that hen could change
again she took him by the neck and said

"Away, away you coal black smith! O you'll not do me wrong
You'll never gain my maiden head that I have kept so long

I'll not hide away from you a' wishing for my grave
Because a lusty coal black smith my maiden head would have"

Overall Meaning

The Lady and the Blacksmith is a traditional folk song that tells a tale of a lady who is wooed by a blacksmith. The song opens with the lady standing at her bower door while the blacksmith stands closely with a hammer in hand. He declares his intentions to "gain her maiden head" before morning, but the lady rebukes him sternly. She would rather die than let a lusty blacksmith take her virginity.

The rest of the song follows the lady's various transformations as she tries to escape the blacksmith's advances. She turns into a hare, a rose, a carp, a dove, and finally, a barley corn. Each time, the blacksmith transforms into an animal or a hunter that catches her. However, she outsmarts him in the end by turning into a fox and taking him by the neck.

The song is believed to be a representation of female empowerment and sexual autonomy in a patriarchal society. The lady in the song is in control of her own body and makes her own decisions about who can touch her. It is an early example of a feminist narrative that is told through the lens of traditional folklore.

Line by Line Meaning

The lady stands at her bower door as straight as a willow wand
The lady is standing straight at the door of her room like a thin and tall willow tree branch.

The blacksmith stands, close nearby with a hammer in his hand
The blacksmith is standing close by holding a hammer in his hand.

"O well are you dressed you lady fair all in your robes of red Before the morn' at this same time I'll gain your maiden head"
"Oh, you look so beautiful, my fair lady, dressed in red robes. I will have your virginity by this same time tomorrow morning."

"Away, away you coal black smith! O would you do me wrong And think to gain my maiden head that I have kept so long I'd rather I were dead and gone and buried in my grave Before a lusty coal black smith my maiden head should have"
"Go away, coal black smith! Don't you dare try to take advantage of me and take my virginity that I have kept for so long. I'd rather die and be buried in my grave than give my virginity to a lustful coal blacksmith."

So then she turned into a hare, a hare upon the plain But he became a greyhound bold and he fetched her back again
She turned into a hare and ran away, but he turned into a bold and fast greyhound and caught her.

So then she turned into a rose, as fair as fair could be But he became a billy goat and he tore her from the tree
She transformed into a beautiful rose, but he turned into a billy goat and aggressively pulled her from the tree.

So then she turned into a carp, a carp all in the brook But he became a fisherman to catch her with his hook
She turned into a carp swimming in the brook, but he turned into a fisherman and caught her using his hook.

So then she turned into a dove and she flew up so high But he became a huntsman's hawk and he chased her through the sky
She transformed into a dove and flew high in the sky, but he turned into a hawk and chased her as if she was his prey.

So she became a barley corn that grew in yonder field And he became a speckled hen and began to eat his fill But she became a cunning fox all in her coat of red And before that hen could change again she took him by the neck and said
She transformed into a barley corn in the field and he into a speckled hen and ate her. However, she cunningly became a fox in her red coat and caught him by the neck before he could transform again and said,

"Away, away you coal black smith! O you'll not do me wrong You'll never gain my maiden head that I have kept so long I'll not hide away from you a' wishing for my grave Because a lusty coal black smith my maiden head would have"
"You won't harm me again, coal blacksmith! You will never have my virginity that I have kept for so long. I won't hide away from you wishing for my death because a lustful coal blacksmith will never have my virginity."

Contributed by Brooklyn J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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