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.
The Boy And The Mantle
Steeleye Span Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A courteous child with much wisdom
A kirtle and mantle the boy had on
With rings and broaches full richly adorned
Out of his pouch he pulled two nut shells
A pretty mantle therein did dwell
King Arthur, let thy wife wear this
Forth came dame Guinevere the mantle to try
For she was gay and fond of novelty
She slipped it on but she was afeared
That it might show more than she cared
First it was gold, then it turned green
Then it was blue and it ill her became
Then it turned black of the very worst hue
Said King Arthur, I think that thou's not true
She threw down the mantle in a fit of pique
And ran to her chamber with flushed cheeks
She cursed the weaver that the cloth had wrought
And vengeance on him that had it bought
Then many a wife did the mantle wear
But on their backs it did crinkle and tear
Kay's wife, she wore it with certainty
But it showed her buttocks bare for all to see!
She threw down the mantle in a fit of pique
And ran to her chamber with flushed cheeks
She cursed the weaver that the cloth had wrought
And vengeance on him that had it bought
Craddock called his lady, bade her come in
You with no trouble this mantle could win
She bore the mantle, upon her back
But at her great toe it did crinkle and crack
Oh, Bow down Mantle and shame not me
I sinned but once, I tell you certainly.
I kissed my husband under a tree
I kissed my husband, before he married me
( Acapella)
When she had shriven, and her sins told
The Mantle clothed her in glittering gold
Then every knight in the court did behold
The chastest lady in all the world
The boy then stood, looking over the door
And there he espied a ferocious boar
He drew his wooden knife and fast he ran
He cut off the boar's head and quit him like a man
He brought in the boar's head, and held it brave
Saying no seducer's knife could it carve
Some sharpened their knives quickly on a whetstone
Some threw them away and said they had none
The King and the boy stood looking upon
For all of their knives had turned blunt again
Craddock had a knife made of iron and steel
He cut up the boar's head wondrous well
The boy had a horn of the good red gold
And to the court spoke he loud and bold
No seducer can drink from this horn
But he will spill it behind or before
Some spilt on their shoulder and some on their knee
For they were seducers for all to see
One missed his mouth and one poured in his eye
For no seducer could drink it right
Craddock won the horn and the boar's head too
Which showed him faithful and chaste and true
His lady the Mantle, which made her heart glad
To all such ladies, God send good speed
Beware of mantle and knife and horn
The truth out will so be forewarned
That you may live to rue the day
If the boy and the mantle come your way.
Beware of mantle and knife and horn
The truth out will so be forewarned
That you may live to rue the day
If the boy and the mantle come your way.
"The Boy And The Mantle" is a traditional ballad that tells the story of a young boy who arrives in Carlisle with a wise demeanor and a mantle adorned with jewels. He presents two nut shells containing the mantle to King Arthur, suggesting that if his wife, Guinevere, wears it, it will reveal her chastity. Guinevere, intrigued by the novelty, reluctantly tries on the mantle but becomes fearful that it might expose more than she desires. The color of the mantle changes from gold to green, then blue, and finally black, revealing her unfaithfulness. Upset and humiliated, Guinevere throws down the mantle, cursing the weaver and the buyer. Other wives in the court also attempt to wear the mantle, but it crinkles and tears, exposing their improprieties. Eventually, a virtuous lady named Craddock successfully wears the mantle, proving her fidelity. The ballad concludes with a warning to beware of the mantle, knife, and horn, as they have the power to reveal the truth and may bring regret if encountered.
Line by Line Meaning
On the third of May to Carlisle did come
A child arrived in Carlisle on May 3rd
A courteous child with much wisdom
The child was polite and wise
A kirtle and mantle the boy had on
The boy was wearing a tunic and a cloak
With rings and broaches fully adorned
He was decorated with rings and brooches
Out of his pouch he pulled two nut shells
He took out two nut shells from his bag
A pretty mantle therein did dwell
Inside one of the shells was a beautiful cloak
King Arthur, let thy wife wear this
King Arthur, let your wife try on this cloak
And it will prove whether she be chaste
It will reveal if she is faithful
Forth came dame Guinevere the mantle to try
Dame Guinevere came forward to test the cloak
For she was gay and fond of novelty
Because she liked fashion and novelty
She slipped it on but she was afeared
She put it on, but she was afraid
That it might show more than she cared
That it might reveal more than she wanted
First it was gold, then it turned green
First, the cloak was gold, then it turned green
Then it was blue and it ill her became
Then it became blue, and it didn't suit her well
Then it turned black of the very worst hue
Then it turned black, the darkest color
Said King Arthur, I think that thou's not true
King Arthur said, 'I think you are not faithful'
She threw down the mantle in a fit of pique
She angrily threw down the cloak
And ran to her chamber with flushed cheeks
And ran to her room with a red face
She cursed the weaver that the cloth had wrought
She cursed the weaver who made the fabric
And vengeance on him that had it bought
And swore revenge on the person who bought it
Then many a wife did the mantle wear
Then many wives tried on the cloak
But on their backs it did crinkle and tear
But it wrinkled and tore on their backs
Kay's wife, she wore it with certainty
Kay's wife confidently wore it
But it showed her buttocks bare for all to see!
But it revealed her bare buttocks to everyone!
Craddock called his lady, bade her come in
Craddock summoned his lady to come in
You with no trouble this mantle could win
You could easily wear this cloak without any issue
She bore the mantle, upon her back
She put on the cloak, on her back
But at her great toe it did crinkle and crack
But it wrinkled and cracked at her big toe
Oh, Bow down Mantle and shame not me
Oh, cloak humble yourself and don't embarrass me
I sinned but once, I tell you certainly.
I only sinned once, I assure you.
I kissed my husband under a tree
I kissed my husband under a tree
I kissed my husband, before he married me
I kissed my husband before we got married
When she had shriven, and her sins told
After she confessed and revealed her sins
The Mantle clothed her in glittering gold
The cloak adorned her with sparkling gold
Then every knight in the court did behold
Then all the knights in the court witnessed
The chastest lady in all the world
The most virtuous lady in the world
The boy then stood, looking over the door
The boy stood, peering through the door
And there he espied a ferocious boar
And there he saw a terrifying wild boar
He drew his wooden knife and fast he ran
He took out his wooden knife and quickly ran
He cut off the boar's head and quit him like a man
He severed the boar's head and acted bravely
He brought in the boar's head, and held it brave
He brought in the boar's head and held it proudly
Saying no seducer's knife could it carve
Declaring that no deceitful person could carve it
Some sharpened their knives quickly on a whetstone
Some sharpened their knives on a stone hastily
Some threw them away and said they had none
Some threw their knives away and claimed to have none
The King and the boy stood looking upon
The King and the boy stood watching
For all of their knives had turned blunt again
Because all their knives had become blunt once more
Craddock had a knife made of iron and steel
Craddock had a knife made of strong materials
He cut up the boar's head wondrous well
He skillfully sliced up the boar's head
The boy had a horn of the good red gold
The boy had a horn made of valuable red gold
And to the court spoke he loud and bold
And he loudly and confidently spoke to the court
No seducer can drink from this horn
No deceitful person can drink from this horn
But he will spill it behind or before
But they will spill the drink either behind or in front
Some spilt on their shoulder and some on their knee
Some spilled on their shoulder, and some on their knee
For they were seducers for all to see
Because they were deceivers, visible to all
One missed his mouth and one poured in his eye
One missed his mouth, and one poured it in his eye
For no seducer could drink it right
Because no deceiver could drink from it properly
Craddock won the horn and the boar's head too
Craddock won the horn and the boar's head as well
Which showed him faithful and chaste and true
Which proved him to be faithful and pure
His lady the Mantle, which made her heart glad
His lady received the cloak, which made her happy
To all such ladies, God send good speed
May God grant good fortune to all such ladies
Beware of mantle and knife and horn
Be cautious of the cloak, knife, and horn
The truth out will so be forewarned
The truth will be revealed beforehand
That you may live to rue the day
So that you might regret the day
If the boy and the mantle come your way.
If the boy and the cloak come across your path.
Beware of mantle and knife and horn
Be cautious of the cloak, knife, and horn
The truth out will so be forewarned
The truth will be revealed beforehand
That you may live to rue the day
So that you might regret the day
If the boy and the mantle come your way.
If the boy and the cloak come across your path.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: STEELEYE SPAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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.