The group features Frazey Ford (guitar, vocals), Samantha Parton (guitar, mandolin, banjo, vocals) and Trish Klein (electric guitar, banjo, harmony vocals). Jolie Holland is a former member and also a frequent guest.
The story of the groups begins in early-to-mid ’90s in the Kootenay Mountains outside of British Columbia, where caravans of tree planters toiled each year to replenish the rich Canadian forests that suffer abuse by the lumber industry. Ford and Parton lived the vagabond lifestyle and made a rudimentary living as tree planters during the summer months and doing other odd jobs or traveling during the winters. When they met at a tree planters’ camp, they discovered a mutual love of music, but ultimately went their separate ways.
A few years later, Klein and Ford hooked up when both were attending music school in Nelson, British Columbia. For a time, the three of them headed in different directions: Ford went to Montreal and then Guatemala, Klein to Vancouver, and Parton traveled south through America with her dog Sherpa by her side, eventually settling in New Orleans. Chance brought the trio back together in Vancouver in the winter of 1999. By this time, each had been experimenting with many different styles of music – Ford was in a trip hop band in Montreal, Klein and Ford later formed the soul/folk band Saltwater June in Vancouver, and Parton had been touring the back roads of America with spoken word punk poet Chris Chandler as well as her country-duo side project, The Illegitimate Daughters of Johnny Cash.
Their luminous debut, ‘Blue Horse was named one of 2002′s Top 50 albums by Britain’s Q Magazine. The albums "Chinatown" followed in 2003 and "Hello Love" in 2006.
In 2008 the band took a break from touring and recording. Ford released her debut solo album, "Obadiah", in 2010. The band is scheduled to play the 2011 Winnipeg Folk Festival.
Lakes of Pontchartrain
The Be Good Tanyas Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I bid New Orleans adieu.
And I was on the road to Jackson town,
My fortune to renew,
I cursed all foreign money,
No credit could I gain,
Which filled my heart with longing for
The lakes of Pontchartrain.
I sat on board a railway car,
Beneath the morning sun,
And I road the roads till evening,
And I laid me down again,
All strangers there no friends to me,
Till a dark girl towards me came,
And I fell in love with a Creole girl,
By the lakes of Pontchartrain.
I said, "My pretty Creole girl,
My money here's no good,
But if it weren't for the alligators,
I would sleep out in the woods".
"You're welcome here kind stranger,
Our house is very plain.
But we never turn a stranger out,
From the lakes of Pontchartrain."
She took me into her momma's house,
And treated me right well,
The hair upon her shoulder
In jet black ringlets fell.
To try and paint her beauty,
I'm sure it would be in vain,
So handsome was my Creole girl,
By the lakes of Pontchartrain.
I asked her would she'd marry me,
She said it could never be,
For she had got another,
And he was of at sea.
She said that she would wait for him
And faithful she would remain.
Waiting for her sailor,
By the lakes of Pontchartrain.
So fare you well my Bonny ol girl,
I never will see you no more,
I wont forget your kindness
In the cottage by the shore.
At every social gathering
A flowing glass I'll raise,
And I'll drink a health to my Creole girl,
And the lakes of Pontchartrain.
The Be Good Tanyas' song "Lakes of Pontchartrain" tells the story of a man who leaves New Orleans in search of fortune and happens upon a beautiful Creole girl by the same name. The singer encounters the woman after a long journey and asks her for shelter, to which she warmly invites him into her home. The two become romantically involved, but the woman tells him she is already promised to another man who is at sea. The singer must reluctantly leave the woman and continue on his way, never to see her again, but he promises to always remember her and the kindness she showed him.
The lyrics of the song explore themes of love, loss, and the transient nature of life. Through the singer's brief encounter with the Creole girl, the listener is reminded of the fleeting nature of relationships and how sometimes even the briefest moments can have a profound impact on one's life. Additionally, the lyrics are steeped in the rich culture and history of the American South, with references to New Orleans, Creole culture, and the alligators that inhabit the area.
Line by Line Meaning
It was on one fine March morning
The singer left New Orleans one March morning
I bid New Orleans adieu.
The singer said goodbye to New Orleans
And I was on the road to Jackson town,
The singer headed to Jackson town
My fortune to renew,
The singer wanted to change their luck
I cursed all foreign money,
The singer was unhappy about the foreign money
No credit could I gain,
The singer couldn't get credit
Which filled my heart with longing for
The singer longed for
The lakes of Pontchartrain.
The lakes of Pontchartrain
I sat on board a railway car,
The singer was on a railway car
Beneath the morning sun,
The sun was shining
And I road the roads till evening,
The singer traveled until evening
And I laid me down again,
The singer rested
All strangers there no friends to me,
The singer didn't have any friends
Till a dark girl towards me came,
A dark girl approached the singer
And I fell in love with a Creole girl,
The singer fell in love with a Creole girl
By the lakes of Pontchartrain.
By the lakes of Pontchartrain
I said, "My pretty Creole girl,
The singer addressed the Creole girl
My money here's no good,
The singer's money was no good there
But if it weren't for the alligators,
The singer would sleep in the woods if not for the alligators
I would sleep out in the woods".
The singer would sleep in the woods
"You're welcome here kind stranger,
The Creole girl welcomed the singer
Our house is very plain.
Their house was plain
But we never turn a stranger out,
They never turn away strangers
From the lakes of Pontchartrain."
From the lakes of Pontchartrain
She took me into her momma's house,
The Creole girl took the singer home
And treated me right well,
The singer was treated well
The hair upon her shoulder
The girl’s hair
In jet black ringlets fell.
It was jet black and curly
To try and paint her beauty,
It was impossible to capture the girl's beauty
I'm sure it would be in vain,
Any effort would be fruitless
So handsome was my Creole girl,
The Creole girl was very beautiful
By the lakes of Pontchartrain.
By the lakes of Pontchartrain
I asked her would she'd marry me,
The singer asked the girl to marry him
She said it could never be,
The girl said no
For she had got another,
The girl was already with someone else
And he was of at sea.
He was at sea
She said that she would wait for him
The girl would wait for her love
And faithful she would remain.
She would remain faithful
Waiting for her sailor,
She was waiting for her sailor
By the lakes of Pontchartrain.
By the lakes of Pontchartrain
So fare you well my Bonny ol girl,
The singer said goodbye to the girl
I never will see you no more,
The singer will never see the girl again
I wont forget your kindness
The singer won't forget the girl's kindness
In the cottage by the shore.
The cottage by the shore
At every social gathering
At every gathering
A flowing glass I'll raise,
The singer will raise a glass
And I'll drink a health to my Creole girl,
The singer will drink to the Creole girl
And the lakes of Pontchartrain.
And the lakes of Pontchartrain
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind