Kerr came to prominence in the early 1990s via a musical partnership with fellow fiddle player Eliza Carthy. The duo produced two albums – Eliza Carthy & Nancy Kerr (1993)[5] and Shape of Scrape (1995)[6] – before ceasing to work together. A retrospective collection of their work (plus three previously unreleased tracks) – On Reflection – was released in 2002[7].[6]
Kerr and her mother released an album together – Neat and Complete – in 1996.[8]
Since 1995 Kerr has mostly worked in a duo with Australian bouzouki player and singer James Fagan,[9] whom she married in 2007. The duo won the Horizon Award at the inaugural BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2000, and Best Duo at the same awards in both 2003 and 2011[10] Between 1997 and 2008 they released six albums on the Fellside label – "Starry Gazy Pie" (1997), "Scalene" (with Sandra Kerr) (1998), "Steely Water" (1999), "Between The Dark and Light" (2002), "Strands of Gold" (2006) and "Station House" (with Robert Harbron) (2008).[11] 2010 saw the production their first completely original collection of songs – "Twice Reflected Sun", released 9 August 2010 on Navigator Records (NAV0041). First track of the album, Queen of Waters, was nominated for the Best Original Song category at the BBC Folk Awards in 2011.
In 2008 the duo joined forces with concertina player Robert Harbron to form the trio Kerr Fagan Harbron, recording and touring the album Station House (Fellside CD 211).
Kerr has also worked with folk/pop group Epona, Australian folk family band The Fagans and the Tim van Eyken band, amongst others.
In 2010 she joined James Fagan, Richard Arrowsmith and Jess Arrowsmith to form "Melrose Quartet" in her new home city of Sheffield. They released a live EP in 2011 called "Live at Cheltenham" and a studio album "Fifty Verses" in 2013.
2013 saw Kerr make up part of Fay Hield's "The Full English" band to promote the on-line publication of the folk collections of the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library in Cecil Sharp House. The collective won "Best Group" at the 2014 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and their CD "The Full English" won "Best Album" at the same ceremony.
In 2014 Kerr was one of the key songwriters in "The Elizabethan Session", a concert, CD and film[12] commissioned by Folk By The Oak and The English Folk Dance and Song Society creating new music about the Elizabethan era.
2014 saw Kerr release her first CD of original songs under her own name. Sweet Visitor was released on her own label Little Dish Records on 21 July 2014. A UK tour with "The Sweet Visitor Band" (James Fagan, Rowan Rheingans, Tom Wright and Tim Yates) started on 18 November 2014. James Fagan now shares his role in the band with Greg Russell.
Nancy Kerr won "Folk Singer of the Year" at the 2015 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.
2015 saw the launch of "Simpson Cutting Kerr", a trio with Kerr, Martin Simpson and Andy Cutting. Their debut CD "Murmurs" was released on Topic Records on 8 June 2015.
In November 2015, Kerr was one of four songwriters commissioned by Folk By The Oak and The English Folk Dance and Song Society to write and tour a production called "Sweet Liberties" looking at the history of British parliament and democracy. Their CD "Sweet Liberties" was released in 2016.[13]
2016 saw the production of Kerr's second album of original songs with The Sweet Visitor Band on Little Dish Records. The album, entitled "Instar", was produced by Tom Wright and was released on 16 September 2016.
Sickle And Harvest
Nancy Kerr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lush were the leaves so ambitiously springing
When the mistletoe fallen from heaven
Ushered in love so deliciously clinging
Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow
Sing to my heart and play at your courting
Now look at me falling
I might never let go
How unwary the love that confesses
For morning undresses us sweet as a feather
But a melody never trangresses
And whiskey's caresses might bring us together
Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow
Sing to my heart and play at your courting
Now look at me falling
Freed like a miracle; seed where I land
I might never let go
Well all the bones in the clay are embracing
Facing eternity chasing each other
And all the trees with their branches unlacing
Bracing for mistletoe's miracle lover
Oh for youth is a crow at the harvest
Beauty is bound to be fickle and flee us
Now the moon is a sickle in darkness
Kiss me whilst only true lovers might see us
Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow
Sing to my heart and play at your courting
Now look at me falling
Freed like a miracle; seed where I land
I might never let go
Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow
Sing to my heart and play at your courting
Now look at me falling
Freed like a miracle; seed where I land
I might never let go
The lyrics of Nancy Kerr's "Sickle and Harvest" are a mix of metaphorical language and imagery that narrate a story of love and freedom. The song opens with the conjuring image of a garden filled with tall trees and lush leaves, evoking a sense of natural splendor. The arrival of mistletoe, a plant considered to possess magical powers, ushers in the theme of love. Kerr sings of the power of music and dance as a courtship ritual, symbolized by the sickle and harvest, fiddle and bow. Lyrics "Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow. Sing to my heart and play at your courting" reinforce the idea of celebration.
Despite the beauty of love, there is a recognition of its temporary nature in the song’s second verse. Kerr warns of the fickleness of beauty and love, acknowledging that although they are beautiful, they can disappear quickly. The reference to whiskey highlights the theme of passion and intoxication, which could lead the lovers’ desire to bring them temporarily together.
The final verse of the song brings the idea of cycles and renewal, as the song acknowledges the inevitability of aging and passing away. The image of bones in clay parallels the natural process of the earth reclaiming and renewing that which has passed. The song’s final message is hopeful: love and beauty are temporal, but the connection with the living earth is everlasting. "Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow. Sing to my heart and play at your courting. Now look at me falling. Freed like a miracle; seed where I land. I might never let go."
Line by Line Meaning
Oh the trees they grew tall in my garden
The trees in my garden were once tall and magnificent.
Lush were the leaves so ambitiously springing
The leaves of the trees were thick and growing quickly.
When the mistletoe fallen from heaven
The mistletoe came down from the sky.
Ushered in love so deliciously clinging
This brought about a deeply affectionate and long-lasting relationship.
Sickle and harvest; fiddle and bow
The tools of farming and music symbolize the cycle of life and love.
Sing to my heart and play at your courting
Make music to my heart and show me how you pursue my affection.
Now look at me falling
I am succumbing to your charm and love.
Freed like a miracle; seed where I land
I am liberated by love, able to grow wherever I go.
I might never let go
I am so deeply in love that I may never want or need to let go.
How unwary the love that confesses
Love is vulnerable and easily hurt when openly expressed.
For morning undresses us sweet as a feather
The light of day reveals us physically and emotionally.
But a melody never trangresses
Music always stays true and follows its own set path.
And whiskey's caresses might bring us together
Alcohol can make us feel closer and more intimate.
Well all the bones in the clay are embracing
Even beneath the ground, we all eventually return to and merge with the earth.
Facing eternity chasing each other
We are all racing towards eternal rest, chasing each other in life and death.
And all the trees with their branches unlacing
The trees are shedding their leaves, preparing for winter and new growth.
Bracing for mistletoe's miracle lover
Ready and hopeful for the love and fertility that the mistletoe symbolizes.
Oh for youth is a crow at the harvest
Youth is fleeting and can be foolish, like a crow during harvest season.
Beauty is bound to be fickle and flee us
Beauty can be fickle and temporary, slipping away from us quickly.
Now the moon is a sickle in darkness
The moon is a tool of the harvest, cutting away at the night sky.
Kiss me whilst only true lovers might see us
Let us kiss in secret, known only to true and devoted lovers.
Contributed by Charlie W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@paacer
What a beautiful song and the wonderful voice of Nancy .