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'.
William Taylor
Martin Carthy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh from Lichfield town they came.
Oh the young man's name was William Taylor,
Sarah Gray was the maiden's name.
William Taylor he has enlisted,
For a soldier he has gone.
And he's gone and he's left his own true lover
Sarah his parents they abused her,
Filled her heart with much grief and woe;
And for to seek young William Taylor
For a soldier she would go.
She dressed herself in man's apparel,
Man's apparel she put on;
And for to seek young William Taylor
For a soldier she has gone.
One day as she was exercising,
Exercising one, two, three, four with the rest,
Oh a silver chain fell down from her waist,
Oh then exposed her lily-white breast.
The sergeant he stepped up to her
Asked her, "Young lady, what brings you here?"
"Oh I've come in search of William Taylor
Who was pressed from me last year."
"Oh if you come in search of William Taylor,
William Taylor he's not here;
For I do hear that he's to be married
To some lovely lady fair."
"And if you rise early in the morning,
Early at the break of day,
Oh it's there you'll see your William Taylor
Walking out with the ladies gay."
So she rose early in the morning,
Early at the break of the very next day;
And it's there she's seen her William Taylor
Walking out with the ladies gay.
She has called for a brace of pistols,
A brace of pistols was brought all there to her hand;
And she's shot William Taylor
With his bride at his right hand.
The lyrics of Martin Carthy's "William Taylor" tell a tragic tale of love lost, heartbreak, and revenge. William Taylor and Sarah Gray are two young lovers from Lichfield town. William enlists as a soldier and goes away, leaving Sarah behind. Sarah's parents mistreat her and she decides to dress as a man and join the army to search for William. When she is discovered, she learns that William is to marry someone else. In a fit of despair and anger, she shoots William with a brace of pistols while he stands with his bride.
The song explores themes of love, betrayal, and gender roles. The fact that Sarah must disguise herself as a man to pursue her love underscores the limited opportunities available to women in the past. The difficult choices faced by those who are forced to leave their loved ones to go to war are also highlighted. The lyrics are raw and emotional, and Martin Carthy's delivery adds to the poignancy of the tale.
Line by Line Meaning
I'll sing you a song of two young lovers,
I will share a tale of two lovers
Oh from Lichfield town they came.
The lovers were from Lichfield town
Oh the young man's name was William Taylor,
The young man's name was William Taylor
Sarah Gray was the maiden's name.
The maiden's name was Sarah Gray
William Taylor he has enlisted,
William Taylor enlisted in the army
For a soldier he has gone.
He has left for service
And he's gone and he's left his own true lover
He has left his true love behind
For to sigh and for to moan.
Leaving her sad and longing for him
Sarah his parents they abused her,
William Taylor's parents mistreated Sarah Gray
Filled her heart with much grief and woe;
They caused her much suffering
And for to seek young William Taylor
To find William Taylor
For a soldier she would go.
She decided to join the army
She dressed herself in man's apparel,
She dressed like a man
Man's apparel she put on;
She wore men's clothes
And for to seek young William Taylor
To find William Taylor
For a soldier she has gone.
She went to the army as a soldier
One day as she was exercising,
While training and practicing
Exercising one, two, three, four with the rest,
Doing drills and exercises with others
Oh a silver chain fell down from her waist,
Her silver chain fell from her waist
Oh then exposed her lily-white breast.
Revealing her breast
The sergeant he stepped up to her
The sergeant approached her
Asked her, "Young lady, what brings you here?"
He asked her why she was there
"Oh I've come in search of William Taylor
She explained that she was searching for William Taylor
Who was pressed from me last year."
Who was taken from her the previous year
"Oh if you come in search of William Taylor,
The sergeant told her that William Taylor wasn't there
William Taylor he's not here;
He wasn't present at the moment
For I do hear that he's to be married
The sergeant heard that William Taylor was to be married
To some lovely lady fair."
To a beautiful lady
"And if you rise early in the morning,
The sergeant gave Sarah a suggestion
Early at the break of day,
To rise early
Oh it's there you'll see your William Taylor
She would see William Taylor
Walking out with the ladies gay."
With women enjoying themselves
So she rose early in the morning,
Sarah followed the sergeant's advice
Early at the break of the very next day;
At dawn the next day
And it's there she's seen her William Taylor
Sarah spotted William Taylor
Walking out with the ladies gay.
In the company of other women
She has called for a brace of pistols,
Sarah grabbed a pair of pistols
A brace of pistols was brought all there to her hand;
She was given the pistols
And she's shot William Taylor
Sarah shot William Taylor
With his bride at his right hand.
While his new fiancée was with him
Contributed by Oliver E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@federicafanelli737
Beautiful song and beautiful image!
@fili-tis-petaloudas
Thank you so much for appreciating!
@douglaw9706
Beautiful piece...possibly a Child ballad?
@fili-tis-petaloudas
Yup, more specifically, Roud 158 ; Laws N11 ; G/D 1:169 ; Henry 213 , 757 ; Ballad Index LN11 ; VWML PG/6/16 , CJS2/9/21 ; Bodleian Roud 158 ; Wiltshire 711 , 1027 ; Mudcat 7920 , 35281 :)
@TheFolkRevivalProject
This recording is a cover of a version of the ballad sung by the Lincolnshire folk singer Joseph Taylor in 1907. You can listen to Taylor's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PxQ37K3rQs&t=649s (go to 9:51)
@fili-tis-petaloudas
Wow - and Carthy's performance is hauntingly true to the original. Thank you for sharing this. Would William Taylor relate to Joseph?
@TheFolkRevivalProject
@@fili-tis-petaloudas I think I read somewhere that it was a coincidence, but Joseph Taylor liked the fact that they shared the name!