He was born in Hatfield and grew up in Hampstead, London. After training as an actor he sang in coffee bars. He became a resident at the Troubador folk club in Earls Court in the late 1950s. He joined Redd Sullivan's Thameside Four in 1961. He is a renowned solo performer of traditional songs in a very distinctive style, accompanying himself on his trusty old Martin Guitar; his style is marked by the use of alternate tunings, and a strongly percussive picking style that emphasizes the melody. His debut album, Martin Carthy, was released in 1965, and also featured Dave Swarbrick playing fiddle on some tracks, although he was not mentioned in the album's sleeve notes.
He has also been involved with many musical collaborations. He has sung with The Watersons since 1972, was an early member of the UK folk rock group Steeleye Span, and was part of the innovative Brass Monkey ensemble, which mixed a range of brass instruments with Carthy's guitar and mandolin and John Kirkpatrick's accordion, melodeon and concertina.
For many years Carthy has enjoyed a creative partnership with fiddle player Dave Swarbrick. More recently, Waterson:Carthy has provided the forum for a successful partnership with partner Norma Waterson together with their daughter Eliza Carthy.
In June 1998 he was awarded the MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours. He was named Folk Singer of the Year at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2002, and again in 2005 when he also won the award for Best Traditional Track for 'Famous Flower of Serving Men'.
Lord Randall
Martin Carthy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where have ye been all the day, my own dear comfort and joy?"
"I have been to my stepmother, make my bed mummy do,
Make my bed mummy do."
"What did she give you for your supper, …?"
"I got fish and I got broth, …"
"Hedges sought and ditches caught."
"What did you do with your fishbones?"
"I gave them to my greyhound."
"Tell me what did your greyhound do?"
"There he swelled and there he died."
"I fear that she does you deadly wrong."
"She took me in but she did me slay."
"What will you leave to your mother?"
"I'll leave you me house and land."
"What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear darling boy?
What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear comfort and joy?"
"Bind her with rope and there let her hang with the halter that hangs on the tree
For poisoning of me."
The lyrics to Martin Carthy's song, Lord Randall, tell the story of a young man who returns home after a visit to his stepmother. When questioned about his day, he reveals that his stepmother gave him fish and broth for supper, but the fish came from hedges and ditches, not a proper source. The young man gave the bones to his dog, who then died, raising concerns from his mother about the stepmother's intentions. The young man then reveals that his stepmother killed him, and he intends to leave his house and land to his mother, but his stepmother should be hanged for poisoning him.
The song is a ballad and a popular example of folk music that is known for telling stories. It's a tragic story of a young man who was betrayed by his stepmother, and it is believed to be based on ancient ballads that date back to the 15th century. The lyrics also reflect the social structure of the time, highlighting the vulnerability of young people who were subject to the whims of their parents and stepparents.
Line by Line Meaning
Where have ye been all the day, my own dear darling boy?
My beloved son, where did you spend your day?
Where have ye been all the day, my own dear comfort and joy?
My source of comfort and happiness, where were you all day?
I have been to my stepmother, make my bed mummy do, make my bed mummy do.
I went to my stepmother's house, and she's going to make my bed for me.
What did she give you for your supper, …?
What did you have for dinner?
I got fish and I got broth, …
I was served fish and broth.
Where did she get the fish that she give you?
Where did she get the fish that she served you?
Hedges sought and ditches caught.
She searched for fish in the hedges and caught them in ditches.
What did you do with your fishbones?
What did you do with the bones from the fish?
I gave them to my greyhound.
I gave them to my pet dog, the greyhound.
Tell me what did your greyhound do?
What happened to your dog after eating the fishbones?
There he swelled and there he died.
He swelled up and died from the fishbones.
I fear that she does you deadly wrong.
I am afraid that she is harming you greatly.
She took me in but she did me slay.
She took me in, but she killed me.
What will you leave to your mother?
What will you leave behind for your mother?
I'll leave you me house and land.
I will leave you my house and land.
What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear darling boy? What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear comfort and joy?
What will you leave behind for your stepmother?
Bind her with rope and there let her hang with the halter that hangs on the tree for poisoning of me.
Tie her up with a rope and hang her with the halter on the tree for poisoning me.
Contributed by Kylie N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@matyassipos1756
“Where have ye been all the day, my own dear darling boy?
Where have ye been all the day, my own dear comfort and joy?”
“I have been to my stepmother, make my bed mummy do,
Make my bed mummy do.”
“What did she give you for your supper, …?”
“I got fish and I got broth, …”
“Where did she get the fish that she give you?”
“Hedges sought and ditches caught.”
“What did you do with your fishbones?”
“I gave them to my greyhound.”
“Tell me what did your greyhound do?”
“There he swelled and there he died.”
“I fear that she does you deadly wrong.”
“She took me in but she did me slay.”
“What will you leave to your mother?”
“I'll leave you me house and land.”
“What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear darling boy?
What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear comfort and joy?”
“Bind her with rope and there let her hang with the halter that hangs on the tree
For poisoning of me.”
@KiONeill
this is incandescent - a masterpiece that deserves to be celebrated as a milestone of British music
@capoeirastronaut
You can hear in this version that it was the template for Dylan's 'A Hard Rain'. It is in the first British folk index as Child Ballad #12. One interpretation is it's about the danger of venturing deep into the wetlands & heart of the greenwood, vast areas in old times around the estuaries if Britain's biggest rivers, where a few were still living as hunter gatherers as late as 1880, like around Eely in East Anglia where they violently protested against the draining of some of the last substantial fens.
@MrScintilator
This, together with the "Famous Flower", was the apogee of the British Folk Renaissance. Magic.
@petdoe8938
One of the greatest folk men I know , beautiful music
@michellechase4753
The version of this I heard as a child had him eating poisoned eels...50 years later, I still can't eat eel!
@capoeirastronaut
UK eels are listed as Critically Endangered on the global IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Their breeding is still not understood because they cross the Atlantic to the Sargasso Sea to do it, so they can't be farmed. Everyone should leave them the hell alone, & let rewilded wetlands return. In Gaelic 'An Tiarna Randall' is also known as 'Eel Song'.
@leuzasoares9908
Muito linda essa música!
@sallycaves7893
I love this ballad.
@matyassipos1756
“Where have ye been all the day, my own dear darling boy?
Where have ye been all the day, my own dear comfort and joy?”
“I have been to my stepmother, make my bed mummy do,
Make my bed mummy do.”
“What did she give you for your supper, …?”
“I got fish and I got broth, …”
“Where did she get the fish that she give you?”
“Hedges sought and ditches caught.”
“What did you do with your fishbones?”
“I gave them to my greyhound.”
“Tell me what did your greyhound do?”
“There he swelled and there he died.”
“I fear that she does you deadly wrong.”
“She took me in but she did me slay.”
“What will you leave to your mother?”
“I'll leave you me house and land.”
“What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear darling boy?
What will you leave your stepmother, my own dear comfort and joy?”
“Bind her with rope and there let her hang with the halter that hangs on the tree
For poisoning of me.”
@optimisticnihilist3417
@Leonardo Esteban Nobody cares