The Bells of Rhymney - The Byrds

A recent reference to Fleetwood Mac's Dragonfly set me thinking on The Byrds' and Bells of Rhymney, the connection being that both tracks are based on poems by Welshmen, indeed men from Monmouthshire, my home county. The former is by W H Davies and the latter by Idris Davies (1905-1953). Idris from Rhymney wrote in Welsh and (mostly) English.

The lyrics to The Bells of Rhymney are from the poetic work Gwalia Deserta, first published in 1938. It was inspired by a local coal mining disaster and the failure of the 1926 General Strike. The stanzas are based on the pattern found in the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons.  In addition to Rhymney, the poem refers to the bells of a number of other places in South Wales - Merthyr, Rhondda, Blaina, Newport, Cardiff and the Wye Valley (also Caerphilly, Neath, Brecon, Swansea in the original).

Two decades after Gwalia Deserta was published, Pete Seeger used a part of the work as lyrics for his song after discovering them in a book by Dylan Thomas. The song was first released as part of a suite that included "Sinking of the Ruben James" and "There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly", on the 1958 live album, Pete Seeger and Sonny Terry. Another live version was included on Seeger's 1967 compilation album, Pete Seeger's Greatest Hits.

The best known version is the one by The Byrds, recorded on April 14, 1965, and released on the band's debut album, Mr. Tambourine Man. At the time of recording, the song was a relative newcomer to the Byrds' repertoire, having first been performed during their March 1965, pre-fame residency at Ciro's nightclub on Sunset Strip, Los Angeles. Lead guitarist Roger McGuinn (then known as Jim) brought the song to the band after becoming familiar with it as an arranger on Judy Collins' album, Judy Collins 3, which included a cover version of the song. The Byrds were anxious to correctly pronounce the Welsh place-names in the lyrics on their recording, but, like Seeger, they actually mispronounce Rhymney as "Rimney" (it should be pronounced as "Hrumney" although the former rhymes better with "give me").

A number of The Byrds' early musical trademarks are on the recording - the complex harmonies, McGuinn's jangly twelve-string Rickenbacker, etc. Scott Schinder (sic) has noted how the band's rendition of the song "managed to craft the dour subject matter into a radio-friendly pop song without sacrificing the song's haunting message." The Byrds' recording influenced The Beatles, particularly George Harrison, who constructed his song "If I Needed Someone" around the same guitar riff that The Byrds had used in the song.

The lyrics

Oh, what will you give me? Say the sad bells of Rhymney
"Is there hope for the future?" Say the brown bells of Merthyr
"Who made the mine owner?" Say the black bells of Rhondda
"And who killed the miner?" Say the grim bells of Blaina

"Throw the vandals in court" Say the bells of Newport
"All will be well if, if, if, if, if-" Say the green bells of Cardiff
"Why so worried, sisters, why?" Say the silver bells of Wye
"And what will you give me?" Say the sad bells of Rhymney

The first stanza is repeated.

Sunken Rags - T Rex

Sunken Rags is one of those throw away Marc Bolan tracks that he seemed to be able to come up with with ease when T Rex was in its hey day. Indeed this is one of two songs that first appeared on the B-side of Children of the Revolution (the other track was Jitterbug Love). This one was recorded in Copenhagen at the end of the Slider sessions. The lyrics are as throw away as the tune but what he actually says is in the main correct (from a Christian point of view) "So ride on, fight on, Love is gonna win. It's gonna beat your sins." However, there is no real instruction as to how this will come about. Ultimately, it is a song about unrequited love, one of so many in the pop genre, although some suggest he is speaking to an antagonistic press. As ever with Bolan what exactly each individual line means is anyone's guess. Sunken rags is the best line in the piece. The vocals of Flo and Eddie (Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman) add a lot to the track. They appear to be joined by Micky Finn and Tony Visconti. There is an acoustic demo of the song that was recorded in 1971. There is also a remix recorded in 1985.

Dragonfly - Fleetwood Mac

"Dragonfly" is one of the lesser known singles in the catalogue of the old Fleetwood Mac. It was written by Danny Kirwan, a member of the band 1968-1972. The lyrics are based on a 1927 poem by the Welsh poet W. H. Davies, who, like myself, was born in Newport. It was originally recorded in 1970, and became the first UK single released by the band after the departure of Peter Green. It was also the first single with Christine McVie as a full member of the group. By the time the song was released, guitarist Jeremy Spencer had left the band. He did not play on the track. The single failed to chart. Peter Green said of it "The best thing he ever wrote ... that should have been a hit." In his book, "The Complete Guide to the Music of Fleetwood Mac", Rikky Rooksby says of it "... wonderfully textured guitar playing. It has shimmering chords and the tune coming down in octaves... This is far and away the best thing which Kirwan ever wrote." The lyrics of the song are

And when the roses are half-bud soft flowers

And lovely as the king of flies has come

It was a fleeting visit, all too brief

In three short minutes, he had been and gone

He rested there upon an apple leaf

A gorgeous opal crown sat on his head

Although the garden is a lovely place

Was it worthy of so fine a guest.

This is Davies's poem

Now, when my roses are half buds, half flowers,
And loveliest, the king of flies has come-
It was a fleeting visit, all too brief;
In three short minutes he has seen them all,
And rested, too, upon an apple tree.

There, his round shoulders humped with emeralds,
A gorgeous opal crown set on his head,
And all those shining honours to his breast-
‘My garden is a lovely place’ thought I,
‘But is it worthy of such a guest?’

He rested there, upon the apple leaf-
‘See, see,’ I cried amazed, ‘his opal crown,
And all those emeralds clustered around his head!’
‘His breast, my dear, how lovely was his breast-’
The voice of my Beloved quickly said.

‘See, see his gorgeous crown, that shines
With all those jewels bulging round its rim-’
I cried aloud at night, in broken rest.
Back came the answer quickly, in my dream-
‘His breast, my dear, how lovely was his breast!’