Varo's debut album comes in a beautiful two panel gatefold, including artwork by Denise Conroy of Votive Illustration and a booklet with lyrics for the songs.
Includes unlimited streaming of VARO
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
ships out within 1 day
Purchasable with gift card
€15EURor more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Includes unlimited streaming of VARO
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
ships out within 2 days
edition of 250
Purchasable with gift card
€22EURor more
about
We first heard this Suffolk song on Anne Briggs’ album ‘Sing a Song for You’. It tells the tale of a woman who decides to test the love of her man by dressing as a highway robber and attacking him in a valley to attempt to steal the ring she had given him as a keepsake. From the very beginning we have been interested in songs told from a female perspective and this particular song grabbed our attention straight away. The woman in the story is a very strong character, as opposed to the more common scenario in which the woman is portrayed as a powerless victim who is either betrayed or abandoned by a man.
Sovay Sovay all on a day
She dressed herself in man's array
With a brace of pistols all by her side
To meet her true love, to meet her true love, the way she ride.
As she was riding over the plain
She met her love she bad him stand
'Stand and deliver, come sir,'' she said
''And if you do not, if you do not, I'll shoot you dead''
So he gives up his gold and his store
She keeps craving for one thing more
''Oh that diamond ring, that I've seen you wear,
Hand it over, hand it over, and your life I'll spare''
''Oh me diamond ring I wouldn't part
For it's a token from me sweetheart
Shoot and be damned you rogue" said he
"And you'll be hanged then, you'll be hanged then for murdering me''
She being soft-hearted just like a dove
She rode away she rode away from her true love.
Next morning in the garden green
Young Sovay and her love were seen
And he spied his watch hanging by her clothes
It made him blush lads, made him blush lads like any rose.
''Why do you blush you silly thing
I thought to have that diamond ring
It was I who robbed you all on the plain
So here's your gold, so here's your gold and your watch again''
''I only did it for to know
Whether you were a man or no
And If you had given me that ring she said
I'd have pulled the trigger, I'd have pulled the trigger and shot you dead''
One of my favorite albums ever and I listen to it all the time, every song is beautifully made and I admire the songwriting. Way Up on the Mountain wrenches my heart in the best possible way, the blending and passion of these singers is something genuinely special. feathered_fingernail
This album speaks to the continuum of African diasporic culture that is central to the vibrant canon of Americana folk music. Bandcamp Album of the Day May 29, 2020
Sweet harmonies & strummed melodies; the duo delve into decades-old folk, jazz, and country to find a timeless kind of love and connection. Bandcamp New & Notable May 23, 2018
