Ian Campbell was born June 10, 1933 in Aberdeen, Scotland and his family moved to Birmingham in 1946. He formed the Clarion Skiffle Group in the mid 1950s along with his sister Lorna Campbell who was also the singer. They were later joined by guitarist Dave Phillips and banjo player Gordon McCulloch, and by 1958 were known as the Ian Campbell Four.
By 1960, McCulloch had been replaced by John Dunkerley and the group was also joined by violinist Dave Swarbrick (born April 5, 1941 in London). The group became well-known on the local folk music scene and played regularly around Birmingham, often appearing at The Crown Pub on Station Street. It was there that they played on a live recording that was released as Ceilidh At The Crown in 1962. The following year, the group was signed to Transatlantic Records and released their first album entitled This Is The Ian Campbell Folk Group. At around this time, Dave Phillips left and was replaced by Brian Clark.
The Ian Campbell Group soon established themselves as a highly proficient live act who became well known for their instrumental abilities as well as Ian Campbell's talent as a songwriter. Tours and television appearances followed, and in March of 1965 the group even managed to get a hit single with their rendition of Bob Dylan's The Times They Are A-Changin'. The group's major strength however, lay in their live performances where the line-up was often supplemented by top session musicians.
In 1966, Dave Swarbrick left to become a major player in the British folk scene and later joined the well known group Fairport Convention. Bass player Dave Pegg from the Birmingham group The Uglys joined the Ian Campbell Group in 1967 and a few years later would also leave to join Fairport Convention.
Despite many further personnel changes, the Ian Campbell Folk Group continued to tour and release records throughout the 1960s and 1970s although tragically, John Dunkerley died of Hodgkinsons disease in 1977 at only 35 years old. The group disbanded in the late 1970's but their status in folk music circles has continued to increase since then as one of the earliest significant British folk groups.
Cushy Butterfield
The Ian Campbell Folk Group Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
An I'm o'er head in love
Wi a young lass from Gateshead
An I call her me dove.
Her name's Cushie Butterfield
An she sells yella clay
An her cousin's a muckman
An they call him Tom Gray.
She's a big lass
She's a bonny lass
An she likes her beer
An I call her Cushie Butterfield
An I wish she was here.
Her eyes is like two holes
In a blanket pulled through
An her breath in the mornin
Would scare a young coo.
And when I hear her shoutin'
Will you buy ony clay?
Like a candyman's trumpet
It steals me young heart away.
She's a big lass
She's a bonny lass
An she likes her beer
An I call her Cushie Butterfield
An I wish she was here.
Ye'll oft see her doon at Sandgate
When the fresh herring comes in
She's like a bagful o sawdust
Tied round with string
She wears big galoshes
And her stockings was once white
An her bedgown it's lilac
An her hat's nivva straight.
She's a big lass
She's a bonny lass
An she likes her beer
An I call her Cushie Butterfield
An I wish she was here.
When I axed her to marry us
She started to laugh
"Noo, Nyen o' yer monkey tricks
For Aa like nee sic chaff"
Then she started abubblin'
An roared like a bull
An the cheps on the Keel sez
Aa's nowt but a fyeul
She's a big lass
She's a bonny lass
An she likes her beer
An I call her Cushie Butterfield
An I wish she was here.
She sez "The chep that gets us
He'll heh te work ivvery day
An when he comes hyem at neet
He'll need to gan an seek clay.
An when he awa' seekin it
Aall myek baals an sing
O weel may the keel row
That my laddie's in."
She's a big lass
She's a bonny lass
An she likes her beer
An I call her Cushie Butterfield
An I wish she was here.
The Ian Campbell Folk Group's song, "Cushy Butterfield," is the story of a keelman who is head over heels in love with a young woman from Gateshead named Cushie Butterfield. The song is sung in a Geordie dialect, which is a dialect spoken in the Tyneside region of northeast England. The keelman is smitten with Cushie Butterfield's beauty, her job selling yella clay, and her cousin Tom Gray, who is a muckman. The keelman affectionately calls her dove and wishes she were with him.
The description of Cushie Butterfield is vivid, with her eyes being like two holes in a blanket pulled through and her breath in the morning that would scare a young coo (cow). The keelman is clearly lovesick and enthralled by everything about her. Even when she shouts, "will you buy ony clay," it steals his young heart away like a candyman's trumpet. The song takes a comical turn when the keelman proposes to Cushie Butterfield, but she bursts out laughing and tells him that she would require him to work every day and come home to seek clay. She declares that they would sing "O weel may the keel row" when he is away looking for clay.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm a broken-hearted keelman
I am a sad boatman.
An I'm o'er head in love
And I am deeply in love.
Wi a young lass from Gateshead
With a young lady from Gateshead.
An I call her me dove.
And I call her my dear.
Her name's Cushie Butterfield
Her name is Cushie Butterfield.
An she sells yella clay
And she sells yellow clay.
An her cousin's a muckman
And her cousin is a garbage collector.
An they call him Tom Gray.
And they call him Tom Gray.
She's a big lass
She is a large lady.
She's a bonny lass
She is a pretty lady.
An she likes her beer
And she enjoys her beer.
An I call her Cushie Butterfield
And I call her Cushie Butterfield.
An I wish she was here.
And I wish she were here.
Her eyes is like two holes
Her eyes are like two empty spaces.
In a blanket pulled through
In a blanket that has been stretched.
An her breath in the mornin
And her morning breath
Would scare a young coo.
Would scare a young calf.
And when I hear her shoutin'
And when I hear her shouting
Will you buy ony clay?
Will you buy any clay?
Like a candyman's trumpet
Like the sound of an announcement from a candy vendor.
It steals me young heart away.
It captures my young heart.
Ye'll oft see her doon at Sandgate
You often see her at Sandgate.
When the fresh herring comes in
When the fresh herring arrives.
She's like a bagful o sawdust
She looks like a bag full of sawdust.
Tied round with string
Tied with a string.
She wears big galoshes
She wears large galoshes.
And her stockings was once white
And her stockings were once white.
An her bedgown it's lilac
And her nightgown is lilac.
An her hat's nivva straight.
And her hat is never straight.
When I axed her to marry us
When I asked her to marry me
She started to laugh
She started to laugh.
"Noo, Nyen o' yer monkey tricks
"No, none of your tricks
For Aa like nee sic chaff"
Because I don't like such nonsense."
Then she started abubblin'
Then she started laughing loudly.
An roared like a bull
And roared like a bull.
An the cheps on the Keel sez
And the people on the boat said.
Aa's nowt but a fyeul
I am nothing but a fool.
She sez "The chep that gets us
She said, "The man who gets me
He'll heh te work ivvery day
Will have to work every day.
An when he comes hyem at neet
And when he comes home at night
He'll need to gan an seek clay.
He will need to go and seek clay.
An when he awa' seekin it
And when he's away searching for it
Aall myek baals an sing
I will make balls and sing.
O weel may the keel row
Oh, let the boat row well
That my laddie's in."
So that my lover is in it."
Contributed by Nathan Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
StrikerEureka
I did enjoy and now I play it again and enjoy some more.