in the 70s, Williamson moved to California and formed Robin Williamson & His Merry Band with Sylvia Woods (Celtic harp), Jerry McMillan (fiddle), and Chris Caswell (flutes, and wire-strung harp), following more Celtic roots directions in his music. By this time, he had already contributed to over a dozen albums, toured widely and written fiddle and penny whistle tutors. By the 80s, Williamson was concentrating on harp music.
In 1993, Williamson recorded with British guitarist John Renbourn as John Renbourn & Robin Williamson.
On the three most recent ECM albums, a group of distinguished jazz musicians accompany Williamson notably violist Mat Maneri, bassist Barre Phillips, Swedish multi-instrumentalist Ale Möller, percussionist Ches Smith and English sax player Paul Dunmall.
The Dancing Of The Lord Of Weir
Robin Williamson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Robin Williamson: Chanter, bironne, chinese flute, jew's harp, bazooki, gong and vocal.
In the third part of the year
When men begin to gather fuel against the
Coming cold
Hear hoover ring hard on frosty ground
for centuries we lived alone high on the moors
Herding the deer for milk and cheese for leather
And horn
Humans came seldom nigh
For we with our spells held them at bay
And they with gifts of wine and grain did
Honour us
returning at evening from the great mountains
Out red hoods ring with bells lightly we run
Until before our own green hill
There we did stand
she is stolen
She is snatched away
Through watery meads straying our lovely
Daughter
She of the wild eyes
She of the wild hair
Snatched up to the saddle of the lord of Weir
Who has his castle high upon a crag
A league away
upon the horse of air at once we rode
To where Weir's castle lifts like a crippled claw
Into the moon
And taking form of minstrels brightly clad
We paced upon white ponies to the gate
And rang thereon
"we come to sing unto my lord of Weir
A merry song."
into his sorry hall we stepped
Where was our daughter bound near his chair
"come play a measure!"
"sir at once we will!"
And we began to sing and play
To lightly dance in rings and faster turn
No man within that hall could keep his seat
But needs must dance and leap
Against his will
this was the way we danced them to the door
And sent them on their way into the world
Where they will leap amain
Till they think one kind thought
For all I know they may be dancing still
while we returned with our own
Into our hall
And entering in
Made fast
The grassy door.
The Dancing of the Lord of Weir is a poem that tells the story of a group of people who lived in the moors and who were essentially self-sufficient. They herded deer, made cheese and leather, and kept to themselves mainly because of their magical abilities. However, their idyllic life is shattered when their daughter is stolen and taken to the castle of the Lord of Weir, situated high on a crag a league away. The group decides to rescue their daughter and, using their magic, transform themselves into minstrels to enter the castle, where they play a song so catchy that no one inside could resist dancing to its tune. They then use this opportunity to take their daughter back and return to their way of life.
The song seems to be about resistance against the encroachment of civilization and the power of magic to control people's behavior. The group of people who live in the moors is set apart from the rest of society by their magical abilities, which they use to keep humans at bay. When their daughter is stolen and taken to the castle of the Lord of Weir, they do not hesitate to use their powers once more to rescue her. The power of music is also emphasized in the poem, as the minstrels use their singing and playing to put everyone in the hall in a trance-like state where no one can resist dancing.
Overall, The Dancing of the Lord of Weir is a hauntingly beautiful poem that speaks to the power of magic, music, and resistance. It tells a compelling story of a group of people forced to take action to protect one of their own and showcases the importance of the supernatural in folklore and storytelling.
Line by Line Meaning
In the third part of the year
When men begin to gather fuel against the
Coming cold
Hear hoover ring hard on frosty ground
Begins our song
As winter approaches, the clansmen prepare for winter by collecting firewood. They begin their song on a frosty day when footsteps can be heard and when the hoover is ringing.
for centuries we lived alone high on the moors
Herding the deer for milk and cheese for leather
And horn
Humans came seldom nigh
For we with our spells held them at bay
And they with gifts of wine and grain did
Honour us
The clansmen lived in seclusion for many years, milking and making cheese and leather from deer. They repelled intruders with spells, and those who humbled themselves with offerings of wine and grain were honored.
returning at evening from the great mountains
Out red hoods ring with bells lightly we run
Until before our own green hill
There we did stand
The clansmen returned from their harvests in the mountains and ran to their green hill. Their hoods rang with bells as they ran.
she is stolen
She is snatched away
Through watery meads straying our lovely
Daughter
She of the wild eyes
She of the wild hair
Snatched up to the saddle of the lord of Weir
Who has his castle high upon a crag
A league away
The daughter of the clansmen was kidnapped and taken to Lord of Weir's castle, which was located a league away, where she was put on a saddle. She was recognizable by her wild eyes and hair.
upon the horse of air at once we rode
To where Weir's castle lifts like a crippled claw
Into the moon
And taking form of minstrels brightly clad
We paced upon white ponies to the gate
And rang thereon
"we come to sing unto my lord of Weir
A merry song."
The clansmen rode on invisible horses and approached Weir's castle disguised as brightly-clad minstrels. They rang the gate and said they had come to sing Weir a song.
into his sorry hall we stepped
Where was our daughter bound near his chair
"come play a measure!"
"sir at once we will!"
And we began to sing and play
To lightly dance in rings and faster turn
They entered Weir's hall where they found their daughter bound near his chair. When asked to play a tune, they obliged and began to sing, dance and play music.
No man within that hall could keep his seat
But needs must dance and leap
Against his will
this was the way we danced them to the door
And sent them on their way into the world
Where they will leap amain
Till they think one kind thought
For all I know they may be dancing still
Their music was so captivating that everyone in the hall started to dance, even if they didn't want to. They danced them to the door and out into the world, where they presumably carried on dancing until they thought one kind thought. They might still be dancing.
while we returned with our own
Into our hall
And entering in
Made fast
The grassy door.
The clansmen returned to their hall with their daughter and locked the door behind them.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Alan Short
This and Cold February are in my opinion the finest songs he ever wrote. I've recently added Cold February to my repertoire and whenever I sing it, it's greeted with total riveted attention, and afterwards, people all want to know where it came from, who on earth wrote it, and what more I have like it. I'm in the process of learning this masterpiece, which I will perform acapella but otherwise very true to the original. I never saw ISB playing live; I hear all sorts of anecdotes from musician friends who knew them, pity they had gone their separate ways by the time that Mr. Williamson entered this phase of his songwriting skill. I hope to honor him by bringing this song back to the world.
Jàdawin di Atheia
Lyrics.
Robin Williamson: Chanter, bironne, chinese flute, jew's harp, bazooki, gong and vocal.
In the third part of the year
When men begin to gather fuel against the
Coming cold
Hear hoover ring hard on frosty ground
Begins our song
For centuries we lived alone high on the moors
Herding the deer for milk and cheese for leather
And horn
Humans came seldom nigh
For we with our spells held them at bay
And they with gifts of wine and grain did
Honour us
returning at evening from the great mountains
Out red hoods ring with bells lightly we run
Until before our own green hill
There we did stand
she is stolen
She is snatched away
Through watery meads straying our lovely
Daughter
She of the wild eyes
She of the wild hair
Snatched up to the saddle of the lord of Weir
Who has his castle high upon a crag
A league away
upon the horse of air at once we rode
To where Weir's castle lifts like a crippled claw
Into the moon
And taking form of minstrels brightly clad
We paced upon white ponies to the gate
And rang thereon
"we come to sing unto my lord of Weir
A merry song."
into his sorry hall we stepped
Where was our daughter bound near his chair
"come play a measure!"
"sir at once we will!"
And we began to sing and play
To lightly dance in rings and faster turn
No man within that hall could keep his seat
But needs must dance and leap
Against his will
this was the way we danced them to the door
And sent them on their way into the world
Where they will leap amain
Till they think one kind thought
For all I know they may be dancing still
while we returned with our own
Into our hall
And entering in
Made fast
The grassy door.
thefrisquette
A wonderfull first solo album of the sensationnal musician of "Incredible String Band",Robin Williamson.
theleadshoes
Does anyone know if this song has any specific references to actual Scottish mythology? Are there stories of spirits or otherworldly creatures who wore red hoods with bells like the ones here? In any case, I love this song.
christopher tull
Wonder full!!
graybearful
Interesting