Tensions between the band grew during the production in 1970 of their first album, Hark! The Village Wait to the point where they never again worked together after its completion, but the music itself shows no signs of these difficulties. While having a rock sensibility there is a greater sense of the authentic folk tradition than even in the best of Fairport, and a particular beauty arising from the two pairs of voices. The Woods being replaced by admired folk stalwart Martin Carthy, with violinist Peter Knight to widen the musical textures, the group late in 1970 recorded their most admired record Please to see the King. Ten Man Mop followed in 1971, more accomplished but generally felt to be less exciting. The expensive gatefold sleeve swallowed the band's royalties, and was referred to as a tombstone, since Hutchings and Carthy then left, to pursue Hutchings' new vision of a specifically English strand of folk rock with The Albion Band, and Steeleye Mk 2 folded.
However the inclusion of the less celebrated and more rock orientated replacements Rick Kemp and Bob Johnson led to the most commercially successful phase in the band's existence, vocalist Maddy Prior becoming the primary focus of the band, and a run of well received albums, from Below the Salt and Now we Are Six, their first with drummer Nigel Pegrum, to their eighth, and most commercially successful, All Around my Hat, in 1975.
Still active, they have a claim to be one of the longest-lived and perhaps the most commercially successful of all the folk rock bands of the era, thanks to their hit singles Gaudete and All Around My Hat, 3 top 40 albums and even a certified "gold" record with All Around My Hat.
Tim Hart died of lung cancer on 24 December 2009, aged 61.
Corbies
Steeleye Span Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
As I was walking all alane
I heard Twa Corbies making a main
And tane untae the tither did say O
Where sall we gang and dine the day
In behint yon auld fell dyke
I wat there lies a new slain knight
But his hawk and hound and his lady fair
His hound is tae the hunting gane
His hawk tae fetch a wild fowl hame
His lady's taen another mate O
So we maun make our dinner sweet
Ye'll sit on his white hause bane
And I'll pike out his bonny blue een
Wi' many a lock of his gowden hair O
We'll theek our nest when it grows bare
Many a one for him makes mane
But nane shall ken where he is gane
O'er his white bones when they are bare O
The wind shall blow forever mare
The wind sall blow forever mair
In Steeleye Span's song Corbies, the singer is walking alone when they overhear two ravens ("corbies") discussing where to find their meal for the day. One of the ravens suggests dining on a new slain knight who is lying behind an old ditch. This knight's Lady has taken another mate, and his hawk and hound are preoccupied. The two corbies decide to feast on the knight's remains, with one suggesting they sit on the knight's bones and pick out his eyes and hair to build their nest.
The song's symbolism suggests that death is inevitable, and no matter how great one's status was in life, ultimately it is their bones that remain. The imagery of the knight's Lady, hawk, and hound indicate a high social class, but in death, the knight is just another meal for nature. The ravens, commonly associated with death, are the ones who will ultimately consume him. The song is melancholic and serves as a reminder of the fleeting nature of life, power, and status.
Line by Line Meaning
As I was walking all alane
As I was walking alone
I heard Twa Corbies making a main
I heard two crows making a commotion
And tane untae the tither did say O
And one of them said to the other
Where sall we gang and dine the day
Where should we go and eat today
In behint yon auld fell dyke
Behind that old, broken-down wall over there
I wat there lies a new slain knight
I know that there lies a recently killed knight
And naebody kens that he lies there O
And nobody knows that he is lying there
But his hawk and hound and his lady fair
Except for his hawk, his hound, and his fair lady
His hound is tae the hunting gane
His hound has gone hunting
His hawk tae fetch a wild fowl hame
His hawk has gone to fetch a wild bird home
His lady's taen another mate O
His lady has taken another lover
So we maun make our dinner sweet
So we must make our dinner tasty
Ye'll sit on his white hause bane
You will sit on his white neckbone
And I'll pike out his bonny blue een
And I'll pluck out his lovely blue eyes
Wi' many a lock of his gowden hair O
With many locks of his golden hair
We'll theek our nest when it grows bare
We'll thatch our nest when it becomes empty
Many a one for him makes mane
Many people lament for him
But nane shall ken where he is gane
But no one shall know where he has gone
O'er his white bones when they are bare O
Over his white bones when they are exposed
The wind shall blow forever mare
The wind shall blow forevermore
The wind sall blow forever mair
The wind shall blow forevermore
Contributed by London L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ben - Moderator
on Bonny Moorhen
Hi Stuart, We have corrected the description above.
Stuart Tartan
on Bonny Moorhen
This description of the song completely misses the point in every way. It IS NOT about a bird.
It is an allegorical Jacobite-era song about Bonny Prince Charlie (the bonny moorhen). The colours mentioned, for instance, are the colours of the Clan Stuart tartan.